Not quite an hour later, after Jordan had passed out in his dad’s arm, I decided I could finally end the night without being rude. But then there was even a fuss getting out of there.
I went to grab a sleeping Jordan from the bench next to Stenton. When my hand brushed past his to take Jordan from his side, our gazes met. I immediately went to Jenna, who was staring adoringly at Jordan. I swallowed hard and tried to scoop him, but Stenton gently tapped my wrist.
“Don’t worry. I got him.”
I shook my head. “Stenton, I’m used to carrying this lug of love around. I can handle him,” I protested.
“Yeah, but not trekking him on the beach in a foreign country,” he quietly reproached.
My eyes traveled over to Jenna again. She was so captivated by our proximity she didn’t even know I was looking at her. Her mother was busy observing her clunky makeup in a compact mirror.
I sighed. “Fine.” Then I turned to Jenna. “It was a pleasure to meet you. I hope you enjoy your time here.
Before I could finish, she was out of the chair, eagerly reaching for my hand to shake.
“The pleasure was all mine, Zoey. Thanks again for bringing Jordan. He’s a cutie pie.”
I nodded my appreciation of her compliments and called a general goodnight over the table not particularly caring if Maggie replied or not. I offered Jenna a parting smile before gaiting out of the restaurant. The first few yards were met in silence. Then I couldn’t take it anymore.
“So, are you in the habit of telling your girlfriend lies?”
Stenton didn’t answer.
“Well, you could’ve at least told me the truth, Stenton.” I managed to keep my voice low.
“I didn’t lie to you,” he informed calmly.
Oh, no?
“But you didn’t exactly tell her this was my graduation gift. Don’t insult me.”
“Would you have come had you known the full story?”
I paused for a minute, my anger still brewing, but my level of reasoning was now at work, too.
“No.”
“And that’s why you didn’t know the full story ahead of time.”
“That’s wrong, Stenton. Wrong and deceitful.” I pinched the bridge of my nose then found myself shaking my head. “Does she even follow you on social media? She would’ve seen all the pictures from Hawaii and Spain with just you and JR.”
For a while, Stenton said nothing. I was done with my lecture, not understanding my need to explain how messed up a situation he’d put me into. A few feet from the villa, he spoke again.
“I told you I’d bring you to Rio de Janeiro.” His tone was but a hush. I knew it was a difficult task for him to admit that.
“But visit while you’re screwing your girlfriend? That’s very low of you, Stenton!” I whispered harshly, trying to contain my boiling anger. “What are you doing now? You’re walking your son and his mother back to their villa when you should be taking full advantage of the romantic backdrop with her.”
A bitter film coated my tongue with that acknowledgement. I wasn’t inviting Stenton to have sex with another woman with my knowledge. It was a gruesome thought. It didn’t matter that we hadn’t been intimate since our time in The Hamptons. It didn’t matter that it was almost a year ago, those experiences had been some of the best I’d ever had. And while Stenton was the bulk of my sexual experiences, it didn’t lessen the fact that the chemistry we shared was unparalleled. I had to stop thinking about sex and Stenton and the romantic landscape. He was here…with his girlfriend!
“Gosh! She must hate me!” I berated myself out loud, closing the door to the villa behind Stenton and a sleeping Jordan.
“Jenna is...different,” I heard his baritone and peered up to find him gazing at me.
“Different?” I found myself suddenly curious. “Different how? Any warm-blooded woman in a romantic setting as this with a…man…like you would want privacy for intimacy,” I murmured, trying to keep with his stride to the back of the apartment.