found out that (a) I lied about never being with a guy before, and (b) that guy is here right now, and he’s the big, handsome black guy …”
“I get it. He’d fall apart.”
“He’d totally fall apart.”
“Ladies.” It was the bartender, and Jill ordered another glass of wine. Abigail thought how incredibly strange it was that the two of them were in situations that were so similar. She’d been on the verge of saying something to Jill, telling her that at least her ex-boyfriend who’d shown up wasn’t attempting to blackmail her into sex. But she stopped herself. For one, she didn’t really want to upstage her new friend, who was clearly having a bad time, and for another, she didn’t know if she wanted anyone else on this island to know about what was happening to her.
“I don’t mean to be laying all this on you,” said Jill, stepping away from the bar toward Abigail. “It’s your honeymoon, too, and—”
“No, I’m glad you told me. Look, it’s just a bad coincidence. Nothing’s going to come of it, so just try to enjoy the rest of your stay.”
“That’s the other thing,” Jill said, taking Abigail by the arm again and leading her a little farther away from the bar. “I’m not enjoying this trip. I hate this island. It’s creepy. I feel like every move I make I’m being watched by about five staff people. They’re everywhere. Honestly, if one more person sneaks out from behind a doorway and asks me what I want I think I’m going to scream.”
Abigail laughed. “I know what you’re saying.”
“I’m right, right? I mean, the food is good and the drinks are good and our cabin is beautiful, but seriously, I’d give it all up right now for some cheesy resort down in Cancún, with actual other fun couples around, and bad food, and a piña colada in a plastic cup. I just need some freakin’ sun. Look at my skin—I’m turning into a ghost.” Jill held up an arm to actually let Abigail look at it, and Abigail couldn’t help but laugh again. She felt a little bad about having judged Jill earlier for her nose job and her skinny body. “And honestly, there’s just not enough people here, and there’s like no other women. Thank God for you. And I love the pool, but it’s actually scary in there when it’s just me by myself, or me and my ex-boyfriend.”
Abigail nodded. “Yeah, the pool is a little scary when you’re all alone.”
“Right?”
“Tell you what. Let’s go together tomorrow morning before lunch. We’ll hang out in the grotto pool and order piña coladas and request that they come in plastic cups.”
“Oh my God, you are making me so happy right now. Can we really do that?”
“Of course. You and I, and I suppose we should ask the husbands to come along, too, if they want.”
“Mine won’t. Well, maybe he will if I make him do it, but he says he hates to swim. He’s lost a lot of weight recently—actually, he’s lost about a hundred and fifty pounds—and so he has some excess skin and I think he’s self-conscious about it.”
“Oh okay,” Abigail said.
“God, I’m a blabbermouth tonight. I’ve told you all my secrets and now you know pretty much everything about my husband. Please tell me something scandalous about you so I don’t feel like a total idiot.”
Again, Abigail nearly decided to tell this stranger about her predicament, but something held her back. Instead, she said, “I think I hate this place, too. I actually called my best friend Zoe today just because I wanted to hear her voice.”
“How’d you call her?” Jill asked, her eyes widening.
“I used the landline in the office.” Abigail tilted her head toward the balcony. “Actually, I told her I’d call her back tonight because we got cut off and there was something we still needed to talk about. I was thinking of sneaking up there now.”
“Go. I’ll cover for you, tell them you went to the bathroom.”
“Okay, maybe I will,” Abigail said.
“Go! And we’ll get together tomorrow, right?” Jill said.
“Yes, let’s do it. Eleven-thirty in the grotto pool? Maybe we can even get lunch. Order something like nachos.”
“Sounds like heaven,” Jill said.
Abigail finished her Baileys and put the empty glass on the bar, then walked casually toward the stairwell that led to the offices on the second floor. She took the stairs two at a time and was happy to see lights on in the hallway