Page 96 of Fake It For Love (Faux Love)
To my surprise, my best friend, who was always worried about her hair and makeup, stepped out of her dress. “I’m coming in!” she said.
“Me too,” one of the other girls said.
Within five minutes, we were all naked and frolicking in the water. I couldn’t believe we were all having so much fun. I almost felt guilty for judging these women. They were just like me. They all had their own insecurities. That made me feel a lot better about everything.
After kicking up a lot of sand and completely destroying our hair and makeup, we dragged our wet, naked bodies out of the ocean. We grabbed our clothing and headed back to the fire. Then, as if we were possessed by the spirits of pixies, we danced around the fire in the nude. The alcohol had definitely fueled this little display of freedom, but there was something about being on a beach in the middle of nowhere.
Once dry, we redressed and fell onto the beach once again. “So, Claire, what’s Ryan like?” someone asked.
“He’s great,” I answered. It was a vague answer, but I did feel like I needed to hold back. I didn’t want to share him with anyone.
“He was such a nerd back in school,” one said.
“Total dork,” another added.
“Remember he used to always walk around talking about airplanes?”
They all laughed. Except me. “He’s not a dork and all that talk about airplanes made him a very rich man. You are the ones that dubbed him a dork. You guys made him an outcast. I wasn’t great to him, but you guys made fun of him. He is nicer than all of you put together.”
They were all quiet. “Damn, mic drop,” Norah said.
“Sorry,” I said. “I didn’t mean to be a downer.”
“You were defending your man,” one of them said. “I would too.”
“He’s gorgeous,” one said.
“He is,” I said. “Good and kind.”
We needed drinks. Thankfully, the waiter showed up a few minutes later. I had a feeling he had witnessed the naked display in the water and discreetly stayed away. The night was growing late, and the alcohol was taking its toll. We were all fading fast.
Our group made our way back to the resort and dispersed. I went to Ryan’s room. I hoped he was back. It was almost three o’clock in the morning. If he was back, he would probably be dead asleep.
I stood in front of his door and hesitated before knocking. My knock was so soft, I wasn’t sure I even heard it. I knocked a little louder. If he didn’t answer, I would go to my room. I didn’t want to disturb him. Just when I was about to walk away, he pulled open the door wearing just his underwear. He leaned his head against the door and offered a sloppy grin.
“Hi,” I said.
“Hi.”
“You’re drunk,” I said.
“Yep. You’re drunk.”
“I am,” I said.
“Get in here,” he said and pulled me into the room. “Don’t take this personally, but why do you look like a drowned puppy? A cute puppy, but still drowned.”
“We went skinny-dipping in the ocean,” I answered.
He was already taking off my dress before I could even get my shoes off. “You went skinny-dipping?” he repeated. “As in, in the nude?”
“I was definitely in the nude.”
“I would have killed to see that,” he growled.
“No, no, no,” I teased. “All of us were in the nude.”
“Fine, but I want to go skinny-dipping in the ocean with you before we leave here,” he said.
