The Fling

9

Eloise held up her mai tai. "Here's to friendship! I love you bitches so damn much!"

We clinked glasses, and after I took a sip, I let out a contented sigh. "I love a good cocktail...and both of you, of course."

The server brought over the pu pu platter we ordered and placed it on the table. It had an assortment of hot appetizers, and I immediately reached for a potsticker, dipping it in the garlic-infused sauce.

Mia smiled at me. "I don't think you've ever looked more beautiful, Abi. This getaway has been very restorative."

If only they knew which parts of me had been restored the most. "Thank you for insisting we do this. I really needed to escape this week."

"Are you still down about the wedding?" El asked.

"No. I think I'm finally ready to let go of my bitterness towards Bert, so I wish him well. As long as he continues to be a good dad, we can have a strong co-parenting relationship."

"How are your bambinos?" Mia queried before taking a chicken skewer.

"Lizzie called me while I was getting ready for tonight. She said they're having a blast but that Hannah gets homesick at bedtime. Bertie is apparently so exhausted from Disney World that he crashes as soon as they get back to their room." I pulled out my phone and showed them a photo of the kids taken earlier that day. They all had on mouse ears and were grinning widely.

"What cuties!" Mia exclaimed. "Lizzie is turning into a stunner. Does she date at all?"

"She's very picky, so no."

"Picky is good," El stated. "No one should ever settle."

I took a long sip. "Looking back, I think I settled with Bert. He was older, handsome, and rich. From the very start, he made me feel special and secure, and I fell hard. I loved him, and a part of me still does, but I don't believe that he is the one, you know?"

"That's good, because now you know that the one is still out there waiting for you!" Mia said.

"Maybe. I'm not getting my hopes up."

We finished the platter and ordered some chicken sliders since we were still hungry. When the waitress brought the food, she also put one of Tonga Hut's famous shareable bowl drinks in the middle of the table. "Compliments of a handsome gentleman sitting on the other side of the bar," she explained when we gave her confused looks.

The three of us swiveled around to see who the mystery benefactor was and saw Shawn and his friends. I felt my cheeks flush red when he gave me a small wave and a toothy grin.

"He's into Abi. I called that days ago when he couldn't stop staring at her," Eloise whispered.

"He's just being nice because he recognizes us from the resort."

Mia cocked her head to the side. "Funny he ended up here."

"That is quite a coincidence," I replied as I took a sip from one of the three paper straws in the gigantic drink. When I told him where we were going, it hadn't occurred to me that he might show up.

El narrowed her dark brown eyes. "Have you had a class with him? And you two have flirted? You're definitely not telling us something, Abigail!"

Panic set in, causing my heart to race. I didn't want to lie, but I hadn't planned on telling them about the tryst until we were back home. I was about to confess everything when Shawn and his friends approached us. "Looks like you ladies had the same idea we did."

Mia giggled. "We needed booze and toxic food!"

"Same. I had no idea the resort was dry until we checked in," Brian said.

Shawn gestured to the empty table next to ours. "Can we move this over and join you?"

Eloise kicked me under the table before saying, "Of course."

Introductions were made, and Shawn did a decent job pretending like we hadn't been fucking each other's brains out, but he did make a lot of eye contact with me since we were sitting across from each other. An hour later, we were all quite tipsy and having a fun time.

"What's the one word that best describes you. Let's go around the table," Shawn said. "I'll start. I think most people would agree that I'm an over-thinker."

Brian nodded his head. "Yep. You are. My girlfriend would probably say that I'm unserious. I can't help that I like to keep the mood light."

Shawn's friend Mike shared that he was unpredictable, and the guys agreed.

Eloise went next. "I'm blunt."

"That's the truth," Mia said. "Remember when you told me my pixie cut looked horrible? I cried my eyes out! This leads into my biggest trait- being too sensitive."

I reached for her hand. "I love that about you. I guess the word for me is dependable, which is pretty boring."

"I would have said predictable for you, which is close," El replied. "Like how you haven't missed your Wednesday ten o'clock Pilates class in four years."

"And how you always go to Erewhon afterwards for that smoothie you like," Mia added.

I laughed. "Strawberry probiotic! I don't think I'm that predictable, though; I just like a daily routine. Dependable has a more positive vibe."

"Being someone people can count on isn't boring at all," Shawn remarked. "I've let people down before and it's a horrible feeling."

Lizzie and I had tickets for the tour for his last album, but he'd canceled after a handful of shows. I wondered if perhaps this was what he was referring to. I knew he was plagued by anxiety, but we'd never really discussed anything super personal. I had an overwhelming urge to give him a hug after his comment. "Excuse me, but I need to use the restroom," I said as I pushed my seat back and stood. I was hoping Shawn might follow me so that we could have a moment alone, but both of my friends hopped up and joined me.

After we'd peed and washed our hands, Eloise grabbed my shoulder. "I swear to god, if you don't hook up with Shawn Mendes, I'll scream."

"He's totally hot for you," Mia added, "which is evident with the eye-fucking, but I get why you wouldn't want to do anything."

"Why?" El asked.

"The Lizzie thing! Her stepdaughter loves him so it would be such a betrayal."

My stomach clenched uncomfortably as I imagined Lizzie's reaction to what I'd done. She'd probably be both mortified and angry.

"Lizzie is too young for him and she knows it," Eloise argued. "Plus she's very mature and cool, so she would understand why Abi did it."

"I'm approaching forty. That's a much bigger gap than the one between her and Shawn," I said.

"How's the gap compare to the one between Bert and his new wife?" Mia asked. "It should be just as acceptable for a woman to date a younger man as it is for an older man to date a young woman."

"That's a fair point," I replied with a grin.

"Promise me you'll have an open mind if he makes a move," El urged.

"I'll try. Do me a favor, though. Don't bring up my children. I feel like me being a mom would probably be a turn-off for him." I was thankful that they hadn't come up while we'd been drinking and talking. I honestly wasn't sure how he'd feel about this fact, but it wasn't relevant to what we were doing so I preferred to keep it to myself.

They nodded, and we exited the tiki hut-themed bathroom. When we returned to the table, Mia took a different seat so that I was forced to sit next to Shawn. He immediately placed his hand on my bare thigh, sending shivers to my core. When one of his long fingers moved under my short skirt, I tried to stifle a gasp and ended up coughing.

"You okay?" El asked.

"That last sip went down wrong." I looked down and saw that I was rubbing my empty ring finger again. Maybe my therapist could help me break this annoying habit.