Page 83 of A Taste of Paradise

‘Hi,’ Naomi replied, smiling self-consciously.

‘Nice suite and, ah, you have the king bed,’ he commented, glancing inside. ‘I opted for two smaller queens. Holly tends to kick like a mule so I’d never get a wink of sleep if we shared.’

‘What can I get you?’ she asked, heading towards the minibar, wishing he hadn’t made her so aware of the bed. ‘Water, beer?’

‘Beer is perfect,’ he responded, and she duly plucked that and a bottle of water for herself from the fridge before heading back out to the balcony to join him.

They both stood watching the obsidian ocean, while the occasional spark from the bonfire still going strong on the beach leapt into the sky.

‘Too late for you?’ he asked, referring to her water.

‘No,’ she chuckled. ‘I think I had way too much champagne today and I know my limits.’ Plus she needed to keep her wits about her.

‘I enjoy a sneaky beer or two every once in a while.’ Will smiled, raising his bottle to the air. ‘A guilty pleasure since most of my life involves either work or Holly.’

Naomi raised hers too. ‘Cheers. You’re really devoted, aren’t you?’

‘I suppose I am, depending on the situation and how invested I happen to be.’

When Will’s gaze met hers, she felt as if his words had some deeper meaning and the longer it lingered, the surer of it she became, until finally he looked away. ‘It really is so beautiful here,’ he commented, glancing back out at the ocean. ‘Like a gorgeous pause from real life. I don’t really want to leave, but Holly has school and my business won’t last long if I’m swanning around on tropical islands.’ Then he laughed. ‘Neither would my bank balance.’

Naomi watched him in side-profile, hunched over the rail so casually. ‘I’ve already decided to come back,’ she declared. ‘Maybe not next year, but I’ll definitely make this trip to The Palms again. It’s an incredible place and despite all that’s happened, the trip has been an amazing experience.’ She figured this might give Will an easy opening to ask about Greg if he wanted to, but he didn’t bite.

‘I hope you do come back. Maybe our visits might coincide again – like our nighttime beach walks,’ he joked, and Naomi’s gaze turned to directly settle on his. A grin tugged at the corner of his mouth.

‘I’d like that.’

‘By the way, I talked to Sam about the job earlier,’ Will told her. ‘Once we get back home we’re going to pursue it further and see if it’s something she might be interested in.’

‘Thank you, and regardless of whether or not it works out, it’s very kind of you. And great that Sam’s got something to look forward to, at least,’ she added sardonically.

‘What do you mean?’

‘Well, now that we’re both single, my living situation is somewhat askew. Greg, my ex …’ It actually felt weird saying that out loud, though not as distressing as Naomi imagined, ‘owned the apartment we shared back home, so I need to start over too.’ A small chuckle of disbelief followed and she sighed. ‘It’s strange how your entire life can be upended in such a short space of time, isn’t it?’

‘That’s certainly true,’ Will agreed and she kicked herself for her choice of words, considering. ‘But it doesn’t always have to be a bad thing,’ he added then.

She regarded him quietly for several moments before responding. ‘No, I suppose it doesn’t.’

‘Can I make another suggestion?’

‘Sure.’

‘Since as you said you and Sam are both starting over, why don’t you two move in together for a bit and share the living expenses and all that, while you figure out what to do next? Assuming your friend doesn’t mind, and you can handle having a toddler around twenty-four-seven.’

Naomi considered it. ‘That does make a lot of sense actually. We lived together while we were at university. And I’d love the chance to spend more time with my godson.’ Plus, she could help with some of the babysitting if Sam decided to go and work for Will.

Which also meant that tonight didn’t have to mean goodbye.

‘I’ve also made another big decision. I’m going back to work, to teaching, I mean. Real work. So thank you – again—’ she added, but she’d barely got the words out before Will stopped her.

‘Would you stop thanking me?!’ He chuckled. ‘Even without my nudging, you would have eventually come to the same conclusion on your own. You already said you were tired of the online stuff.’

‘Perhaps, but I do think you helped me get there faster. You have such an easy-going outlook on things.’

The complete opposite of Greg, in fact.

As a comfortable silence descended, Naomi noticed Will glance at her from time to time as if he wanted to say something, but when their gazes met he turned away.