Free Destination Wedding ~ A Novel by Deanna Lynn Sletten Page A

talked me into it."
    "Hmmm," Glen said, turning his sights on Jim.
    "What?" Claire asked.
    "Oh, nothing. Have you heard from Steven since you got here?"
    "He called this morning. I'd told him not to bother since it was so expensive, but he did anyway."
    "He probably misses you," Glen said.
    Claire looked out past Glen at the ocean view. Every place they'd gone today had an outside patio with an amazing view. "Probably," she agreed. "He's always thoughtful like that."
    "That's good to hear. We should all get together sometime. I've only met him once."
    Claire nodded, her eyes turning back toward Jim. She was surprised to see him look over at her, too, and he raised his glass to her in a silent toast. Claire smiled.
    "Be careful, baby sister," Glen said, then got up to get another drink from the bar.
    Claire stared after him. What in the world did he mean by that?
    As the sun began to set, the group decided it was time to go back to the lodge. Craig started worrying about his parents, and that made Mandy anxious as well. Claire just wished the Fishers would relax so their son could.
    They all walked over to the golf carts. Claire and Jim had been sharing one, so when they got to it, she put out her hand. "Hand over the keys. I'll drive back."
    Jim didn’t put up a fight. Claire figured he realized he'd had a bit too much to drink and his back still hurt, too.
    It was only a five minute drive to the resort and soon they were in their room again. Mandy had said they should all meet down at the patio in a half-hour to go to dinner. Claire hurried into the bathroom with clean clothes and quickly showered and changed. She wasn't sure where they were going to dinner, so she decided on white cotton pants and a silky blue camisole top. When she came out of the bathroom, she saw Jim had claimed one side of the bed again and was talking on his phone.
    "It was nothing," he insisted into the phone. "I didn't even know she'd taken a picture." He paused, and Claire heard a screeching voice come through the speaker.
    "What the hell do you care anyway?" Jim said. "Oh, just get over yourself."
    Claire grimaced. She didn't want to hear this conversation. She grabbed her sandals and stepped out onto the balcony, closing the glass door behind her.
    Claire stood on the balcony and looked out over the resort grounds. It was dark, but the grounds and walkways were lit up, as was the pool. People were down by the bar, and others sat on the porches of their cottages. She took in a deep breath, enjoying the aroma of tropical flowers and salty air. She was so absorbed in her surroundings that when the patio door slid open, it startled her.
    "I'm off the phone now," Jim said gruffly. "You can come back in."
    Claire turned and looked at him. "Trouble with the wife?" she asked, teasing.
    Jim narrowed his eyes. "Just a misunderstanding," he said sharply. "Apparently Mandy took pictures this afternoon at the beach and posted them on her Facebook page. There was one of us from behind, when I was rubbing lotion on your back. We weren't even the focus of the picture, but Diane had a hissy fit about it."
    Claire bit her lip. Divine justice, she wanted to say. The other woman now jealous of the ex-wife. But she saw how upset Jim was, so instead she just said, "Sorry."
    Jim grabbed clean clothes out of his suitcase and looked up at Claire with piercing eyes. "Yeah. Sure you are," he said. He turned and headed into the bathroom, slamming the door.
    Claire's face heated with anger. "Jackass," she said under her breath. Every time she tried being nice to him about Diane, he threw it back in her face. Fine. She wasn't going to be nice anymore. She went to the closet and grabbed the light jacket she'd brought along and then headed out the door and down to the patio.
    Some of the group was already down there, waiting, so Claire sat down with Cameron's wife, Angela, and started up a conversation. Angela was a pretty girl with golden red hair, very pale skin, and light