Sway Me (book 1)

Chapter Eleven- Coward

11. Coward
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Coward!. I was a complete coward, and maybe even a perverted coward. How else would I have a sexual dream about a man whom I once claimed to detest?

I had a wet dream about a serial cheater, for crying out loud! And I've been desperately trying to avoid him. That means not going downstairs for breakfast, lunch, or even dinner. Most of all, I haven't ventured downstairs at night to get a drink whatsoever. Today was the third day of my escapades, and I worry that I won't be able to keep up with this whole charade. How was this charade even possible? I lay the blame on the flight and not having a proper sleep since then, causing my body to break down. So far, so good. It seems to be working. The only negative thing is having Rosanella wait on me like a sick infant. It makes me feel guilty, knowing that she's concerned for my health while I'm more worried about facing a man who has no idea whatsoever about the dream. Coward! My brain screamed again.

Thankfully, that night I had the dream, and Giulia walked in on me. She was dead drunk, so she had no idea that I had screamed out her brother's name in the physical world after having a well-detailed sexual encounter in my sleep.

"I should have let you sleep instead of forcing you to go to the beach with me. Now you look like a complete disaster. This is not how I planned our trip to be," Giulia said with a pouting face as she slumped down on the floor beside my bed. I gave her a small smile, knowing that she had no idea that the reason I looked like a disaster, as she claimed, was not due to any bodily illness but rather a mental struggle. Coward!, My mind once again, as my conscience continually taunting me.

"I'm sure I'll feel better soon," I said, feeling guilt gnawing at me.

"You have to. I don't want to have to explain to your mother if it gets more serious," she shrugged. Now, this was maybe going too far. My mom doesn't have to be involved in this. "It's a shame, though. I was hoping you could sleep it off. My brother rented a luxury yacht for us. He's coming, and so is his so-called fiancée. I don't want to be alone around them—well..., around Laura. Matteo and Alessandro can't make it, and I can't bail either," she ended with a sad face, which made me feel even more guilty. I felt extremely guilty, and I responded in a flash.

"I could come," it was when the words left my mouth that I realized what I had just said, but it was too late to take it back. I guessed I would have to face Giovanni after all. How quickly the entire charade ended. It wasn't going to go on forever, after all.

"But you're sick," she stated, her eyebrows knitted in confusion.

"Well... I could just sit around on the boat, maybe read a book. The fresh air could be good for me."

"Millie, are you sure? I don't want you to get sicker. I can handle Laura's presence," she said with a concerned look.

It was the perfect way to bail out and stay back. Giulia was giving me an opportunity to escape, and I should have taken it. But "I'll be fine," I stupidly said. I roped myself in.

"Yay!" She cheered happily, jumping off the floor. "Just relax, Millie. I'll pack everything we need so you don't have to stress yourself out," she said as she rushed over to the closet and started digging through it.

****

"Emily, are you feeling better now?" Giovanni asked as Giulia and I stepped out of the house. He was dressed in shorts and a plain, but stylish aloha shirt, with a few buttons undone, exposing some of his chest. It immediately reminded me of the dream, and I felt a rush of heat all over, even though I was wearing a short floral yellow summer dress. My hands suddenly felt clammy, and I dropped my head down to hide my face, hoping to conceal the blush that I was sure had spread across my cheeks.

"She's getting better, strong enough to tag along," Giulia was the one who answered as we approached him.

"Alright, shall we leave now? Laura is waiting for us at the beach," he said as he turned around the front of his truck and entered it.

"Of course," Giulia gritted. I knew she was offended by just the mention of Laura's name. But the beach was down there. Why do we have to drive? I asked internally. "You must be wondering why we're driving. The boat is not at this beach; it's in another one, not too far from here though," she said, immediately clearing my confusion.

"Oh," I muttered. She gently pulled me along, opened the back seat of the trunk, and helped me get in before she got in at the front. Once we were both properly situated, he started the car and drove off.

They were right; the beach was not far, maybe a ten-minute drive or so. He parked the car, and we all got out. Laura was already there, as he claimed, and she spotted us. She rushed over to us, or rather, to Giovanni, like a blinded woman completely and irrevocably in love and planted a kiss on his lips. Maybe she was blinded, too blind to see her fiancé deceit. Giovanni deepened it, and something inside of me turned, something that I had to immediately shake off.

Giulia snorted, literally snorted. I had never seen her do that before. I painfully tore my eyes away from the couple and looked at the beach. His lips were doing something different to me in my dreams, things that made me completely lose my mind. I forced myself to focus my attention back to the beach, It wasn't your typical beach; it was mostly filled with boats of different sizes.

After Giovanni and Laura ended their not-so-mini make-out session (jealous much, my brain mocked), a young man with blonde hair, maybe in his late twenties, came over to where we stood.

"Mr. Marino, good day. I'm Stefano, and I'll be your assistant today. The boat is ready. If you'll follow me, please," he said. Giovanni gave a curt nod before taking Laura by the arm, causing her to giggle. Giulia rolled her eyes, and we followed Stefano towards the docks.

The air was incredibly good, maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to come after all. To think I was planning on missing this because I was trying to avoid a man who didn't even realize I was avoiding him. I was nothing to him, just delusional for thinking otherwise. Still, I maintained a healthy distance from him.

Giulia and I were on the flying bridge of the yacht, it was mid-sized yacht, while Giovanni and Laura were at the Hatch, acting like the happiest couple in the world. How could he even pretend like that when he was unfaithful? If he cared for her so much, as he was displaying, why was he cheating in the first place? Poor Laura still had no idea. She may have broken Giulia's trust, but she was a woman. Wasn't the girl code meant to be applied in this kind of scenario?

"How are you feeling?" Giulia asked, snapping me out of my thoughts and away from their direction.

"I'm okay. The air is nice," I responded.

She gave a small smile. "Mio Amore, I'm so sorry that I had to drag you out here because I didn't want to deal with a certain someone. You must hate me," she pouted.

I chuckled. "I don't hate you, I could never," I assured her.

"You're simply the best," she said, giving me a smacking kiss on my cheek. I giggled at her childishness.

"I'll be right back, I need to use the restroom," I said as I stood up, my bladder was threatening to burst.

"Of course, go ahead," she smiled.

I gave her a small smile in return before getting up and going into the cabin, heading straight to the restroom.

"Not again," I mumbled quietly in shock as I stared at a half-naked Giovanni removing his belt, and a fully-naked Laura bent over the restroom sink. I immediately shut the door and bolted out of the cabin, my bladder can certainly wait. Why me!. My poor bladder!. My poor eyes!. My poor heart!!!.