I headed back into the ocean and swam until my muscles felt it before I decided to hit the shower. As I made my way back up to the room, I caught a glimpse of Lindsay sitting alone in the dining room at the end of the row of bungalows.
It was an outdoor dining area with a kitchen under the sky and a simple thatched roof over a concrete floor. Strings of light wrapped around the beams were just starting to blink on, but she didn’t seem to notice any of it as she stared out into the distance again.
I didn’t stop to watch her or to wonder what she was thinking. As far as everyone at this resort was concerned, that was my wife sitting there all by herself. That was not a good way to spend the first night of a honeymoon, and I wouldn’t let it stand.
Chapter 9
LINDSAY
A man who had to weigh at least four hundred pounds grinned as he came up to my table. He wore an apron with the words “If a cook ain’t fat, don’t eat the food” emblazoned on it, and he carried two menus in his hands.
“You’re my new arrivals, right?” he asked, his big brown eyes latching on mine. “I’m Big Mac. The chef down here.”
“It’s nice to meet you.” I smiled back at him. “I’m Lindsay.”
He set the menus down on the table. “Your waitress will be coming around soon, but can I order you a drink?”
“No, I’m fine. Thanks.” I pulled one of the menus closer and studied my options. “What’s good here?”
All I wanted to do was eat and go to bed. I’d had a quick shower after getting back from the beach, but I hadn’t had a chance yet to wash my clothes. Everything that had happened was weighing heavily on me, and I was more than ready for sleep.
Big Mac’s grin widened. “Anything I make is good, but I’ll whip you up something special. Take care of whatever pain you’re in.”
My head jerked back and I frowned up at him. “Why do you think I’m in pain?”
He shrugged. “I’ve met a lot of people. I know pain when I see it.” His pitch-black curls bounced as he nodded. “I think I’ve got just the right thing in mind for you and your new husband.”
I was confused for all of about three seconds before I remembered about Jaxon. “I’m not sure if he’ll be joining me this evening.”
We were also going to have to figure out what to tell people if everyone at the resort knew their guests as well as Big Mac seemed to. His dark eyes lifted toward the entrance. “Oh, he is. Look over there. He’s already here.”
He introduced himself to my supposed husband, and the two of them hit it off immediately. While they talked about the seafood platter Big Mac suggested he would bring us, I took a minute to study Jaxon.
His hair was damp and he was wearing different clothes, so presumably he’d had a shower as well. It looked like he’d run his fingers through his hair because it was slicked back, but it was still too messy to have been brushed.
The light blue T-shirt he had on clung to his tattooed body like a second skin, stretching over his abdomen and biceps. Now that I knew what was underneath the fabric, it was a little more difficult to ignore the way he filled it out.
The guy might be a possible serial killer and thought he knew much more than he actually did, but I couldn’t deny how attractive he was physically. Everything about him just worked. There wasn’t a single feature out of place or anything about him that could’ve been better.
He smirked when he caught me staring at him again, and I narrowed my eyes, seriously considering flipping him off. The ass had overheard my conversation with Ember. He knew I thought he was good looking, but he really was. It was an objective fact. He didn’t have to look so damn pleased about it every time he caught me in the act.
An act I shouldn’t have been committing, sure, but I couldn’t help it. He really was just that gorgeous. So what if I needed a minute to get used to being around someone who looked like him?
By the end of the week, I probably wouldn’t even notice him anymore. This was just an adjustment period.