Chapter 19
After finishing with the iodine, Zac wrapped the bite mark with a large adhesive bandage.
“You two really know how to make things complicated, don’t you?” he muttered, tossing the packaging and used swabs into the trash.
Justin’s face darkened in irritation. “Is that it? You just came here to nag?”
“Alright, alright, I’ll drop it,” Zac conceded, raising his hands in mock surrender.
Just then, Zac’s phone pinged with a message. He checked it, a grin spreading across his face, “Hey, didn’t you get a bunch of sparklers for Emma? Where’d you stash them? I could use a few.”
Still in a foul mood, Justin wasn’t interested in gossip. He gave a quick nod towards a suitcase, barely looking up. The code’s four zeros.”
Zac opened the suitcase, found the sparklers, and pocketed a few. “Thanks,” he said, making his way to the door. As he left, he looked back and added, “And, uh, you might want to change that shirt. There’s blood on it.”
Although Zac wasn’t a fan of Emma, he couldn’t just leave his friend in a bind. With a quick nod, he closed the door behind him and disappeared.
Justin glanced in the mirror, noticing a few drops of blood on his collar. Frustrated, he stripped off the shirt and
tossed it in the trash. Bare–chested, he went to find a clean shirt.
After changing, he returned to the living room and tapped away on his phone, ordering some cold medicine, sleep aids, and anti–inflammatory ointment. Satisfied that he hadn’t missed anything, he set the phone down, put on a fresh shirt, grabbed the remaining sparklers, and headed out.
After Justin left, Emily breathed a sigh of relief. She got out of bed and opened the window to clear out any lingering traces of his scent. Then she headed to the bathroom, brushing her teeth several times to rid her mouth of the metallic taste of blood. Only when she felt her mouth was clean did she start her shower.
Her right hand was still sore, so she awkwardly washed herself using her left. When she glanced in the mirror afterward, she noticed a few swollen red bumps on her neck. They itched, and she guessed they were mosquito bites, likely from those pesky black–and–white–striped mosquitoes by the shore. Fortunately, she had brought ointment for bug bites.
After drying off, she slipped into one of the brand–new bathrobes the resort had provided. She applied some ointment on her neck and then picked up her phone to message room service to request fresh bedding. Her soaked dress and Justin’s rough handling had left the bed damp, with a few droplets of blood as well. The sheets were in no condition to use again.
Emily then checked her messages. She had a new friend request from Sean, which she accepted, and a series of messages from Helen.
Helen had sent a short video she had taken of sparklers flickering on the beach, with a shadowy figure dancing around in the sand.
“Check out this cute guy I just met! He even brought sparklers just for me. The other women were so jealous!” Helen wrote, clearly showing off.
Then she added a teasing question. “So, how about that guy who danced with you earlier? Has he stolen your heart?”
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+15 BONUS
Chapter 19
Emily replied with an eye–roll emoji and texted back, “Just wait till you get back!”
Helen quickly responded with a laughing emoji.
Just as Emily set her phone down, the doorbell rang.
“One moment!” she called, throwing on some clothes over her bathrobe, expecting the housekeeping staff with fresh bedding. But instead, it was a staff member holding a small package.
“Good evening, ma’am. Here are the items you requested,” the staff member said, handing over the medicine with a polite smile.
