"Well, it seems you two have been busy."

The sun was shining through the window of Jason's room by the time Chelsea's voice unceremoniously woke us up from the small amount of sleep we finally had. She was standing in the doorway of Jason's room— did I forget to shut the door behind me last night? It was a blur of emotion and sweat and noises that, even while trying to keep ourselves quiet, there was no doubt she heard us.

"I have to say though, this was the last place I expected you, Samantha. I was slightly concerned when I saw your door open without anyone in your room. I even conducted a thorough search of the rest of the suite before ruling out foul play."

She smirked slightly at the two of us, still wrapped in each other's arms while making sure there were enough blankets to cover us. Jason glared at her through half-opened eyes. "And now that you've found her?"

"I'm subtly reminding the two of you that we may have only hours before the rain hits, so if you want to enjoy the Caribbean before it washes away, now's the time to do sot." She was already dressed in a two-piece bathing suit with a sheer sarong tied around her waist. "I reserved us a cabana for as long as we can weather the storm so I suggest we use it while we can."

"Can we eat something first?" I asked, realizing after not eating the night before was sending my stomach rolling.

"We can order when we're on the beach." Chelsea pushed off the door and turned back into the suite. "I'll even give you two some privacy and meet you down there."

I watched her saunter away into the room beyond the bedroom and waited until I heard the door open and then shut before I laid back on the pillows and let out a sigh.

"She's pissed," I murmured, looking over to Jason.

"No, she's not. She's just being Chelsea."

"Aren't they one and the same?"

"Maybe you're right." He smiled as he turned to me, laying a gentle kiss on my lips.

I smiled up at him, debating whether I could take my chances with Chelsea and remain there with him for just a little longer.

As though reading my thoughts, Jason smirked and sat up. "You should get ready and meet her before she finds a reason to really get pissed."

"Wait, you're not coming with us?" I sat up, still clutching the comforter to my chest, out of habit more than anything else.

Jason didn't seem to experience any sense of modesty, not as I watched him stand from the bed absolutely naked, the muscles of his ass clenching as he stretched before he walked towards his connected bathroom. "I'm not going to spend our last day in paradise on the beach."

At least he couldn't see my frown. But it took everything I had not to pounce on him even as I watched every inch of his skin as he moved. "What are you going to do instead?" I asked, trying to mask the disappointment in my voice.

"Hike," he said matter-of-factly as he stood in front of the sink. "I want to try that trail that runs up over the breakers next to the hotel."

"Better you than me," I said with a shiver. Heights were not my idea of an enjoyable pastime.

"Well, if we only have hours to spend outside I'm going to explore as much as I can before I have no choice but to be locked back here in my room with you."

"I don't know if that would be such a bad thing."

"I didn't say it was."

He turned to face me, damn him to hell. I didn't hide my gaze as it drifted lower, and his answering smile had me leaping from the bed.

***

Almost an hour later, after Jason and I had showered and I dressed in a simple black one-piece bathing suit and a black sheer cover-up, I finally headed down to the beach, hoping that Chelsea was not only still there, but not too angry with me that she'd already drunk herself into a rum-induced stupor while she was waiting. And that she had ordered food.

As it was, I found her in the rented cabana, just as she said she'd be. She didn't acknowledge me when I entered, and with her sunglasses over her eyes, I couldn't tell if she was asleep or just ignoring me. There were two frozen drinks on the table between the chaises, one almost empty, one completely full and collecting condensation, with a plate of almost-eaten fruits and cheeses between them, which made me feel even more guilty for taking too long to come down.

"Sorry," was all I managed as I spread out my towel on the vacant chaise.

"Did Jason decide he was too good to join us?" she asked, still not looking at me.

"He said he was going to go hiking," I informed her, lying down with my back propped up, wasting no time taking a sip of the sweet rum drinking waiting for me.

"Good," she said, finally looking at me.

Here it comes, I thought. The onslaught of how inconsiderate I am as a friend, how selfish I am when we were all supposed to come on this vacation together, leaving her out and making her feel like a third wheel when she was the glue holding everything together for the last five years. I played the scenario out in my head with every step between our suite and the cabana, readying my response with excuses and requests for forgiveness.

"Look, Chel," I started, sitting back up. "Jason and me... I never expected that to happen."

"You didn't?"

I blinked.

Chelsea moved her sunglasses to the top of her head as she held my gaze. "If the two of you were together for a week and hadn't slept together, I was going to lock you in a room myself."

My cheeks heated. "Then what—"

"But that's besides the point. There's something you need to know about Jason."

I furrowed my brows. "I swear to God, if you tell me I need to ask him about Tony Marino..."

"What?"

"Nothing." I leaned back against my chair, looking out at the ocean. The white caps were visible from our cabana on the beach, the wind blowing at the tented sides as the clouds completely covered the non-existent sunshine. "But just between the two of you, trying to get a straight answer is like pulling teeth from a rottweiler."

"Since you brought it up," she mused as she smoothed out the towel underneath her. "And because I know he probably won't tell you himself, he was really messed up after what happened at the graduation party."

"Who, Tony?"

Chelsea gave me a blank stare. "Jason."

"Oh."

"Like... really messed up, Sam."

"Look, I know, okay? He told me. I broke his heart, and then disappeared. I get it. But as you can also see, we have made amends. " Though I wasn't expecting the guilt to be swaying that way in this conversation.

"Just because you two slept together doesn't mean you know the entire truth. Honestly, sleeping together probably made everything worse. And I'm afraid of what he'll do if something happens again."

"You're making it sound like Jason is some threat to my well-being."

"Maybe not yours."

I whipped my head towards her. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"I only know what I heard," she started. "It's not like Jason ever talked about it. But after the graduation party— after whatever fight you two had and you left and never looked back— something happened to Tony Marino after night. Something... bad."

"Can you be any more vague?"

"I'm honestly surprised you never heard."

As was I. "So tell me."

"Well, even I don't know— like I said, I was never close to him. He was your obsessive crush, remember? But I guess you really did leave everything behind after you left."

"Chelsea, cut the shit and tell me whatever it is you need to tell me."

She put her hands out in front of her, spreading them defensively. "All I'm saying is Jason, for all he may have told you and seems to want you to ask me, has plenty of secrets and even more answers all his own. And one of them is what really happened to Tony Marino after the graduation party. And why he stopped talking to you. And why he's started talking to you again now."

"I am really getting tired of this."

"Just watch out for him. He knows more than he's letting on. He may say he doesn't but—"

"Jason?"

Chelsea nodded.

"If he's such a danger to my well-being, why did you invite him on this trip in the first place?"

"Because I never thought he'd actually say yes."

My head was starting to hurt— whether it was from lack of food, alcohol intake, these non-answers from my friends, or all of the above. I was running out of patience and growing weary of the feeling that there was something neither of them was telling me.

And that I couldn't, for the life of me, piece it all together on my own was the most frustrating part.