Thirteen ~ Flirtations

For the second time since arriving in Camberley, Mia and her friends invited me along for drinks on the beach. The final member of the group—Brooke—would also be there, and from what I'd been told so far, I didn't know what to expect.

"You look nice, Rosalie," Mum said as I passed through the hallway.

Dinner with Mia had been a turning point for my relationship with Mum. Whether it was relief at me making friends or genuine approval of Mia, she'd been much chirpier. She'd even provided me with alcohol to take tonight. Of course, I'd received the lecture on drinking responsibly, but I took it as a step in the right direction.

"Thanks." I smiled. "I'll be quiet when I get back."

She nodded, before retreating to the living room. As I ambled down the garden path towards the steps, I wondered if Mum had also experienced the same boredom and loneliness, or if the constant socialising through her job caused her to value time alone. It might have been her decision to come here—albeit for work—but that didn't mean she wasn't suffering, too.

As usual, Austin greeted me with a double kiss, then nodded towards the bag in my right hand.

"Have you brought alcohol, Rosie?"

I handed it over. "Sure have. Knock yourself out."

"Oh, I intend to," he said, rummaging through the bottles. "And in the most literal sense of the phrase, too."

"I'm not looking after you if you get stupidly drunk," Mia said. "And I doubt the boys will give a damn."

"You say that now, Torts, but we both know you'll happily come nurse me if I get ill."

"'Happily' isn't the word I'd use," she shot back.

"Hey, Rosalie?"

A new voice interrupted their exchange, and I turned to see an unfamiliar girl with ebony hair styled in neat waves. Brooke, I assumed.

"Yeah," I said, offering her a smile.

I didn't shrink away as Brooke's eyes scanned my body, although I couldn't tell whether her assessment was through approval or judgement. Did she like my shorts, or did she think leather was tacky? Was she admiring my lacy bodysuit, or did she consider it too revealing?

"You look great," she said, and a small smile made its way onto her face. "The boys sure weren't kidding. I'm Brooke."

She held out her hand, and I shook it, wondering what the boys had been saying and whether she genuinely thought I looked great or was only pretending.

"It's lovely to meet you," I replied, playing just as nice.

"How're things, B?" Mia asked. She elbowed me and jerked her head towards the alcohol, suggesting I grab a drink.

"Good," Brooke said. "And you? Still managing to keep away from all the guys?"

Her tone bounced with casual softness, but considering she'd said it would be cheap to get with any of the guys, I imagined something more malign hid behind her words. I concentrated on pouring myself a vodka mixer, not wanting to interfere in a friendship that I barely knew anything about.

"Yes," Mia said. "I'm successfully resisting them all."

As I straightened up again, Brooke's eyes landed on me. They sparkled with mischief—or malice, for all I knew—but she still smiled at me in a friendly manner.

"What about you, Rosalie?"

I couldn't help pretending to misunderstand, just as an excuse to stick up for Mia.

"I think Mia's doing remarkably well given how hot all your friends are."

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Mia taking a long gulp of her drink. A smirk still flickered across Brooke's lips, and I wondered if she was trying to suss me out just as much as I was trying to suss her out.

"It is remarkable," Brooke said. "Especially considering that it doesn't usually take much for her to...you know."

Wow. If you're going to slag off your friend so publicly, at least have the guts to do it properly. My protective instincts kicked in, and despite telling myself I wouldn't get involved in something that didn't concern me, I couldn't resist putting a slut-shaming bitch back in her place.

"Actually, I've been here for five weeks now and she's not, 'you know', with a single person. Where I come from, that's impressive."

"I guess we do things a little differently over here."

"Evidently so." I began to turn back to Mia, signalling that this conversation was over, but Brooke's next jab froze me in my tracks.

"For example," she said, raising her voice, "we don't invite random guys into our house if we've got a boyfriend."

Everyone else had stopped talking, Brooke and I becoming the centre of attention. I normally didn't mind that, but after her last comment, I wanted the ground to swallow me up.

"Come on, Brooke, don't be a bitch," Austin said. Despite his efforts to keep his tone jovial, his voice shook.

She held up her hands in defence. "I'm just saying it how it is."

My eyes hadn't left Brooke's—mainly because I didn't dare look elsewhere. However, once the initial shock and humiliation wore off, it occurred to me that someone had been talking, and it wasn't Mia. 

Trying to maintain composure, I sipped my drink—partially for Dutch courage and partially to wet my dry mouth—before speaking up.

"We all do stupid things when drunk," I said.

Brooke smiled and nodded at my cup. "You better be careful tonight, then."

I didn't reply. She was clearly determined to have the last word, and I would not sink to her level. Despite that, I refused to walk away, no matter how much I wanted to. She'd intended to embarrass me, and I would not give her the satisfaction of seeing she'd succeeded.

"Well, now you two are introduced," Austin said, his cheerful voice diffusing the tension. "Mia's a slut, Rosalie's a slut, everyone's a slut—let's get drunk, yeah?"

For the first time, he'd used my proper name, no doubt because of nerves. It didn't take a genius to work out who'd spilled the beans.

"I'll try not to get too drunk, Austin," I said. "Otherwise I might end up inviting you back."

Everyone laughed, and Austin appeared relieved to see me making fun of myself rather than getting upset. Sometimes laughing at yourself is the best way to stop everyone else laughing at you. At least, that's what I'd been taught...

Brooke soon occupied herself with a different conversation, and Mia and I took a stroll towards the water's edge. Eagerness to say something radiated off her and, sure enough, she blurted it out as soon as we were alone.

"It wasn't me, I swear."

"Relax. I know it wasn't you."

"I just don't understand why Brent would talk. He's so private about that kind of thing, and I think he was equally embarrassed."

"Well, I'm the most embarrassed now," I said.

Mia groaned. "I'm so sorry, Rose. I feel awful; you were only sticking up for me and—"

"It's fine. She was obviously dying to say it, and if she didn't say it now, I'm sure she'd have found another opportunity to do so."

Quiet footsteps padded down the sandy bank behind us, sand spraying the back of my ankles as they grew closer. Mia glanced over her shoulder and smiled.

"Hey there, big guy."

"Hey," Brent replied, his voice reserved. "Mind if I talk with Rosalie?"

"Sure." Mia took my cup from me. "I'll get you a top-up, Rose."

Brent took Mia's place beside me, so close that our arms almost brushed and gentle waves of his musky cologne drifted over me. Whenever I'd previously been close enough to him, Brent had smelled like a combination of sun cream and sea salt. This new scent drugged my head, confusing me. It was the lifeguard who stood next to me, but in disguise. Perhaps I'd been too busy arguing with him during the last beach party to notice how good he smelled when he dressed up.

"I'm sorry, Rosalie," Brent said, his tone solemn and full of regret.

"Why did you do it?" I asked, keeping my voice quiet as I twisted to face him. "I might put up a front and come across as a spoilt, rich girl who has everything she could ever desire, but what I did that night was out of character and I was so embarrassed. And now I'm humiliated. Is that what you wanted?"

"No." His eyes widened as he spun to look at me, putting us face-to-face. "Not at all. I was just as embarrassed. That's why I told Austin because I wasn't sure what to do or think—"

"It was nothing, okay? Poor judgement, that's all. I thought I made that clear."

He sighed and turned back to the water. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to embarrass you."

Silence threatened to fall between us again, so I continued, my voice quieter this time. "I've been with my boyfriend for three years. I've never had a one-night stand. Inviting you in made me so ashamed of myself, yet I'm still humiliated that you turned me down—"

"—Rosalie, you were so drunk—"

"—and now," I said, ignoring his interruption, "everyone knows. So I'm not only embarrassed about what I did, I'm embarrassed that everyone knows I did it, and that everyone knows you rejected me."

"Oh, shit—am I interrupting?"

Austin hovered behind us. My irate mood meant that I snapped at him, even though technically it was Brent to blame.

"What does it matter? There are no secrets between us anymore, are there?"

Austin sighed. "Ah, come on, Rosie. Don't be like that. It's all good-natured."

I sighed, trying to calm my racing heart that was pumping bubbling blood around my body. "I'm going to find my drink."

As I went to leave, Austin grabbed my wrist. "I wanted to apologise. I shouldn't have told Brooke. I didn't really know you at the time, but now I feel bad about it. I'm sorry, Rosalie."

I nodded in acknowledgement. "Thanks. Let's forget about it, all right?"

For all that I missed Carringham, I certainly didn't miss the gossip and bitchiness. Ironically, that seemed to be the only thing that had followed me here.

~~~

If anyone thought ill of me after Brooke's slip of the tongue, they didn't show it. As the alcohol flowed, everyone progressed through the different stages of drunk: chatty, tipsy, loud, slurred words, wasted... And then there was Austin and Mia.

While both could still stand and speak, they'd clearly had a lot to drink. I, on the other hand, wasn't in the mood to get drunk. Instead, I alternated between alcohol and lemonade, keeping an eye on Mia and hoping I didn't appear voyeuristic.

Not that they seemed at all bothered about anyone watching them as they joked together, unable to stop touching one another. Austin's hand kept sliding over the back of her shorts, resting on her bare thigh as he leaned to whisper in her ear. She'd then tip her head back to laugh, her arm winding around his body for support as her hips pressed against his. It all looked very flirtatious and intimate, but at no stage did it go further.

Tariq strolled up to join me, drowning the last dregs of his beer before tossing the bottle onto the rubbish pile.

"Brent looks ready to pounce," he said.

Austin was tugging Mia's hand towards the lifeguard chair, and when I stole a glance at Brent, I saw him watching the two of them with an unimpressed scowl, his can of Diet Coke crushed in his hand.

Just as Austin placed a foot on the first rung of the ladder, he shouted over at him.

"Get off my chair!"

Laughing, Austin obeyed and planted his foot back on sand. "You're such a spoil sport," he slurred at Brent, throwing an arm around Mia's shoulder. "Can we go in your hut instead?"

"Absolutely not," Brent said, moving to stand at the bottom of the chair in case they attempted to climb it again.

"How about we go back to yours, then, Mia Tortilla?" Austin asked, pulling her body close against his own.

She giggled into his shirt, her fingers clutching the fabric—most likely for support. "Well, I need someone to walk me back, anyway..."

"Don't play hard to get." He smirked, his hands now unabashedly gripping her backside.

Not fazed in the slightest by their antics, Brent remained by the chair as he watched the interaction with a stony expression.

"Let's go, then," Mia said, grabbing Austin's hand. She shot me a reassuring smile as she passed, as if to convey that everything was all right.

"Maybe tonight really is the night," Tariq said, seemingly impressed as they disappeared into the darkness. "Huh, who'd have thought?"

"I told you she was a slut," Brooke said to me. "I mean, fucking your friend? So not cool."

I wanted to explain how it was more than simple chemistry between Mia and Austin. They plainly had feelings for one another. I didn't, though. It wasn't my place, and I wouldn't betray Mia's confidence for the sake of bickering with Brooke.

"Let's hope Austin's worth it," I said instead.

Brooke arched an eyebrow. "Worth losing a friendship over?"

"I meant let's hope he's a good enough fuck to take the risk."

Tariq chortled beside me, and Brooke's eyes narrowed for a few seconds before she took another sip of her drink. I waited for the comeback, for her to spit out something derogative or catty. It never came.

When James and Tariq struck up a conversation about sport, I took that as my cue to leave and headed down to the water. With the air turning cooler, the sea seemed unusually warm as I stood in the swash, gentle waves rolling over my feet.

My mind was partly preoccupied with thoughts of Mia and Austin, but other than that, I felt strangely at peace. Something about the sea—perhaps the sheer size of it—made other little problems insignificant.

A few minutes later, a familiar presence joined me. That strong cologne had faded over the course of the evening, but remnants of it still lingered between us.

Brent shoved his hands deep into his pockets as he, too, stared out into the ocean. There was no telling what he was thinking, not least because he gazed into this same expanse of water every single day.

"Has Austin said anything to you about Mia?" I asked, destroying the silence.

Brent was quiet for several moments before answering. "Not particularly. I can't say I'm a huge enthusiast of the whole situation."

I frowned, glancing to look up at him. "Why not?"

Sighing, Brent dragged his eyes away from the ocean and settled them upon mine.

"Because Mia and Austin together would be weird."

"Why?"

Maybe I hadn't been around long enough, but if they already acted like a couple when drunk, what difference would it make?

"If they broke up, it would be awkward," Brent said.

"They might not break up."

"But they probably would. Most people our age break up, don't they? Are you and your boyfriend really going to last?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

Brent cocked his head to the side, his brow furrowing. "Unfortunately?"

"Our families are in business together. If we broke up, it might unsettle investors who assume there's a rift between the two partners."

Brent digested what I'd said. "That's the biggest load of fucked up shit I've ever heard."

Rather than being offended by his crude slandering of my life, I just sighed. "Yep."

At least we could agree on something.

~~~

Thank you for reading :) xx

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