Longing For The Beach Billionaire Daddy
Chapter 50

*Shelby*

“Would you care for another drink, miss?” one of the maids asked.

“I would love one, thank you,” I said and then turned my attention back to the book I was reading.

I’d spent the last hour on the back deck next to the infinity pool, reading the book Michael gave me. The past few days, we’d spent our time exploring different hiking trails across the resort, swimming in the ocean, and relaxing by the pool.

The heat was starting to get to me, so I set down my book, slipped off my coverup, and eased myself into the pool’s refreshing water. I waded around for a few minutes, careful not to get my hair wet.

Michael took me to a fancy restaurant every night, and I wouldn’t have time to get my hair dry again before it was time to leave.

“I will just set your drink on the table. Oh, and miss? Your phone is ringing. Would you like me to bring it to you?” the maid said as she set a fruity drink down next to my things.

“Oh, would you mind?” I asked wading over to the edge of the pool.

She picked up my phone as well as the towel sitting on my chair and brought them both over to me.

“Thank you so much,” I said, drying my hand off on the towel and picking up the phone. Lin’s name lit up the screen.

“Hello, Lin. Missing me already? How has it been having the apartment to yourself?” I asked.

“I could get used to walking around the place naked all the time,” Lin answered, and I heard her laughing through the phone.

“Oh, gross, Lin. You better not be sitting on the couch like that!” I said, but I couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across my face or the small laugh that escaped. I missed Lin’s teasing the last few days.

“So the real question is, how has your romantic tropical getaway going?” Lin asked.

“It is so gorgeous here, Lin. I feel like I have died and gone to heaven. I am currently swimming in an infinity pool that looks out over the water. I can barely tell where the glass separates the pool from the ocean. Plus, bottomless drinks any time I want!”

“You’re just being mean with that last part!” Lin yelled, but I could hear her hidden laugh.

“I did mention that on purpose. Really though, it is amazing. I wake up every morning to a view of palm trees. It was just like a movie when we walked into the cabana, all of these open windows and sheer white curtains.

“We eat spears of fresh pineapple every morning, and our room has those glass spots on the floor so you can see fish swim under you.”

It was nice having someone to gush to about the extravagance of the trip, and I knew Lin would always be there to listen. Although, Lin usually liked more juicy information about my relationship with Michael. I was sure she’d ask about that soon.

“And how are things going with Michael? I bet you two haven’t been able to stay off of each other. Is this one of those all-nude resorts? That would be my dream vacation,” Lin said in a dreamy voice.

I knew it.

“No, it is not a nude resort! I didn’t even know those were a real thing!” I said loudly.

“Oh, they are! Look it up!”

“I will take your word for it, Lin! Honestly, though, it has been absolutely perfect with Michael. We can hold hands and not worry about who might be lurking around the corner with a camera. We can go to dinner and not have to worry about keeping our relationship a secret.

“I love having Michael all to myself and not feeling like we have to hide our every move from reporters. It’s a private resort, so no paparazzi to worry about,” I said with a small sigh.

“That is one really rough part of your relationship with him. I am sorry, Shelb, I hadn’t realized that keeping things secret had been taking such a toll on you.”

“I didn’t realize it either until I said it just now. I really think that we needed this vacation. We needed time together to be able to act like a normal couple. We have been dating for months, and this is the first time we haven’t had to hide what we have together. It has been really nice.”

Everything I’d said started to sink in. Hiding our relationship didn’t seem hard when I was doing it but it did weigh me down. It was hard not to just be a normal couple. And to know, we never would be.

If we did go public, Blaine could still release those pictures and ruin my chances at the position I wanted so desperately. I wanted to earn it without help from my boyfriend.

I felt stuck, knowing on the one hand I needed to keep this private for me as well as him, and on the other that I wanted us to just be able to see each other in public without always looking over our shoulders.

“I’m happy for you, Shelb. You’re going to come home all tan, aren’t you?”

“More like a strawberry pink, but I will take what I can get,” I laughed, letting my worries go for now.

“It is more sun than I am getting here. I am so tired of wearing so many layers,” Lin said with a dramatic sigh.

“That is going to be so hard to come back to after wearing sundresses all week. Anyway, how have you been? Are you relaxing or just partying?” I asked Lin.

“I have been to a few amazing parties, and if you count recovering from hangovers relaxing, then yes I have been.”

“Hey, whatever works for you,” I said with a smile and a laugh. I pulled myself out of the pool to dry off but left my feet dangling in the water.

“I went to an outrageous house party last night. The guy even hired a DJ. Man, these trust fund kids with their dad’s credit cards are a pain in the a*s to deal with during class, but they sure know how to throw a party.”

“I understand that a little too well,” I said in reference to Michael’s daughter and my former friend Lauren. Lin laughed knowingly.

“That is too true, anyway, this one was thrown by that Jerick Hastings. You know the guy from our legal descriptions class?”

I knew exactly who she was talking about.

On the very first day, he made everyone very aware of just how successful his father was and how much money his family had. I found it incredibly tacky, just like his fake blond hair he obnoxiously flipped out of his eyes when he tried to be charming.

“Oh, I hate that guy!” I exclaimed. I pulled my feet out of the water and wrapped the towel around my waist.

“I know you do, and you are about to hate him even more. He is going after that internship too. He was very drunk and talking very loudly about how his dad is golf buddies with Brunnings, so he is basically a shoo-in for the position,” Lin told me.

“NO!” I jumped up and started pacing the deck.

“YES!” Lin said, copying my energy.

“Brunnings as in the ‘Brunnings and Hawthorne Law,’ Brunnings?” I asked, walking faster. My heart started pounding. I knew I had other options, but the thought of losing my internship to that pretty boy was unbearable.

“How many Brunnings do you know? Of course, that Brunnings,” Lin said in her sarcastic tone.

“What the hell am I supposed to do now?” I asked rhetorically. Lin answered anyway.

“Well, lucky for you, you have a very rich boyfriend who also has connections. Go and ask Daddy for a little help.”

“Lin, I told you not to call him that,” I said hotly, but it just made Lin laugh.

“I am serious, Shelb. It really wouldn’t hurt your cause if he could pull some strings. For you, it is different because you actually deserve the position, unlike Jerick.”

“It is not that easy, though. I told Michael about the internship on our first night here. We went to dinner with a couple of his investors, and you should have seen how proud he looked when I told them all about how I was going for the position.”

“Shelby, you can’t let pride get in the way of an opportunity you deserve. Jerick surely isn’t.”

“Jerick doesn’t have any pride.”

“That much is true. Especially after seeing his drunken dance on the coffee table,” Lin said. I knew she had done it to break the tension, and I was grateful for it.

“I guess I will just have to keep working hard and hope for the best,” I said, taking a deep breath to calm my nerves.

“It will all work out in the end. I miss you, but I am glad you are having a great time. You deserve it.”

“I miss you too. I’ll talk to you soon, Lin.”

I slumped back into the patio chair, slightly deflated from the news.

I should have suspected that someone would try and use their connections as a way to get ahead. I strengthened my resolve to beat Jerick fair and square on merit alone. I slipped my cover-up back on and went to replace Michael, so we could decide where to eat tonight.

As soon as I walked into the cabana, I heard Michael’s voice echoing from our room. He must be on the phone, but his tone of voice was concerning.

“I don’t care what the hell you want. You need to figure this out now!” Michael yelled into the phone.

As soon as I walked in, he hung up and shoved it in his pocket.

“Shelby, I didn’t hear you come in.”