Chapter 2
Rhett
Fuck. Am I really do this?
“You ready for a fucking good time, bro?” Tommy asked.
Tom waved for the bartender to order another round of drinks for us.
“I can’t believe you talked me into this,” I said.
“Come on. You know it’s gonna be awesome. Think about all the hot chicks we went to school with. You know how hot they’re all gonna be now?” he asked.
“Or they could all be moms that let themselves go and have four kids and drink like fish just to feel young again,” I said.
“Oh, yeah. Life of the party over here. You mean to tell me we’re about to take a week-long cruise in the Caribbean, and you’re not the least bit excited?”
I shrugged my shoulders as I leaned back in my chair.
“Rhett. Don’t tell me you’re still hung up on that girl you wasted the best years of your life on,” Tommy said.
“It doesn’t matter. She probably doesn’t even remember me anyway,” I said.
“You know who I’m hung up on? That girl’s best friend. What was her name?”
“Ana?” I asked.
“Was that her name? What’s-her-face’s friend?”
“Really? You don’t remember any of their names?” I asked.
“I’m shocked you do. With all the pussy you slayed as a SEAL, I’m surprised you’re letting this chick piss on your good time.”
“Her name was Chanel, and her friend’s name was Ana.”
“Fuck. That chick had some curves in high school. You think she’s still got them now?” he asked.
“Chanel or Ana?” I asked.
“We are not focusing on Chanel. That girl broke your heart,” he said.
“Nope. I broke hers.”
“Then what the fuck’s the problem?”
The problem was I had left my heart in pieces right next to hers. That had been the worst night of my life. I knew I’d had a lot to drink, we all had. Someone snuck some vodka in and spiked the punch, just like in all those old cheesy 80’s movies. I don’t remember being so drunk that I would fuck some random girl in the limo while waiting for Chanel. I don’t even know who the girl was, I just remember the look on Chanel’s face when she’d opened the door and caught us.
And worst part of it was I didn’t go after her. I avoided her until after graduation when I left for the Navy. I’d always known she deserved so much more than I could offer. Subconsciously, I knew that she wouldn’t break up with me, unless I first broke her heart.
In a way, the universe gave me what I wanted – as fucking twisted as was.
“Well, I know Connie Thomas isn’t married,” Tommy said.
“Our class president? That woman’s crazy,” I said.
“And it’s the crazy ones who always have the tightest pussies.”
“You’ve fucking got that right,” I said.
“Emma isn’t either. And neither is Lauren.”
“Emma Deese? The cheerleading captain? I thought she married Brian.”
“Nope. They were engaged, but he was apparently cheating on her. Poor Emma. I bet she hasn’t rebounded yet.”
“And I bet you have just the words to comfort her,” I said.
“Oh, my tongue can do some serious talking,” he said.
“And who the hell is Lauren?” I asked.
“You don’t remember Lauren? That chick who was all over you freshman year?”
“The one with the coke bottle glasses?” I asked. “Have you gotten that desperate?”
“Desperate? You haven’t looked at the RSVP list have you?”
“Nope,” I said.
“Then how did you know Chanel was going to be there?”
“I didn’t, but thanks for confirming that little tidbit. That’s sure to make this trip a fucking blast.”
“Dick. Anyway, Lauren’s fucking hot now, a bit thin, but I can work with that. Long as I can suckle on those nipples of hers, I can make do with everything else.”
“You're a mess,” I said.
“And you should be one. You’re in the prime of your life. You’re a fucking SEAL. You’ve got muscles I wish I had, and you’ve got that brooding stare that makes women want to fix you. You’ll be drowning in pussy, if not from our high school class, then from the exotic women we’ll be meeting on this cruise, on these islands. Man, get your head in the game. It’s time to get your shit together.”
I chuckled and shook my head as the bartender brought us another round of drinks.
“Retired, SEAL.”
“In all realness, man, I’m glad you’re home for good. This only seeing you when you’re stateside shit was getting old,” Tommy said.
“You glad to have the dream team back together?” I asked.
“Yep. And I’m ready to take this dream team on this cruise. It’s gonna be amazing, even though you’re already trying to shit on it.”
“I’m not trying to do anything. I’m just thinking.”
“Since when did you start thinking?” he asked.
“Since I realized I was an adult?”
“That’s bullshit. This cruise isn’t supposed to have us acting like adults, only indulging in adult whims.”
“Despite what you think, I am excited about it. Got my shit packed and everything,” I said.
“We riding separately, or we taking my car?”
“Why can’t we take my car?” I asked.
“Because you’re a shit driver. Remember what happened the last time?”
“What? You don’t like the way I drive my cars?”
“You drive them like they’re tanks. I’d like to live to see this cruise. I really wanna know what Emma’s pussy tastes like,” he said.
“Fine. Fine. We’ll take your car. But you’re paying for dinner,” I said with a grin.
“See? There’s the Rhett I’ve been looking for. Good to have you back, brother.”
“Good to be back,” I said.
I was nervous about this trip. I hadn’t even seen Chanel since that night, much less spoken to her. What took place that night was a train wreck. She came prepared for the night of her life, and I broke her damn heart. Hell, I trampled it and left it out on the gutter. I’d replayed that night over and over in my head for years to come, and I still couldn’t come up with a logical explanation for how I ended up under that girl.
I’d held Chanel close all night long. I’d danced with her, and kissed her all night long. I’d planned to take her to that room my brother had rented for us, open that bottle of champagne, and make love to her like she deserved, instead of the sloppy fuck in the back of my car we’d had the week before.
Apparently, sloppy fucks in the back of a car, were my specialty. But with Chanel, it was special. No one else could ever compare.
I’d tried so many times over the years to figure out what had happened. Had I been so careless and drunk to know who I was with at that moment? Had I sabotaged us, and broken us both in the process in some misguided attempt to let her go?
She was the smarter girl I knew. A writer with natural talent, and an A student. I was barely a C student, and I only tried hard enough for those grades so that I could still play lacrosse and run track. I knew college wasn’t in my future, and Chanel had a chance to go Ivy League. I didn’t want to mess that up for her.
But, fuck, could I have let her down a better way?
Apparently not.
Of course, I kept tabs on Chanel since high school. I wanted to know how she was doing at Cornell. If she was happy. If she was moving on with her life. She was amongst the top of her class, running the school newspaper and constantly on the front page with shit that affected their college community. She graduated a semester early and took a paid internship with The New York Times. Now, she had her own blog that generated thousands of views and comments and shares. Now, she was selling her own individual voice to online and paper publications.
She was making something of herself.
I couldn’t have been prouder of her. Even in my darkest moments in combat, her happiness was the only thing prayed for. She was better off without me.
Who the hell was I? Rhett Smith. A fucking jock from the wrong side of town, dating the best thing to happen to him and kidding himself all along.
“Earth to Rhett. You there, man?”
“Sorry. What was that?” I asked.
“Holy fuck, really? I’ve been rambling on for the last ten minutes, and you weren’t even listening?” Tommy asked.
“Let me guess. You were talking about all the pussy you’re gonna eat on this cruise,” I said.
“Well, that wasn’t all of it. I was also asking you about all those island excursions. You picked yours yet?” he asked.
“I thought that shit didn’t happen until we got on the ship.”
“Well, not officially, but I figured you would’ve at least looked this shit up to figure out where on the islands you want to tap some ass,” he said.
“Nope. Haven’t done any intense research on this trip. Honestly? It’s a great deal on a fresh start for me. I’m out of the SEALs. I’m trying to figure out what my next fucking move is. A booze cruise with nothing on but my bathing suit for a whole week sounds nice,” I said.
“Oh, dude. I didn’t even think about that. Yes. Fresh start. Oh, shit. You know what we could do?” he asked.
“What?”
“Get you laid,” he said.
“Was that not already on the agenda?” I asked with a grin.
“And he’s back, ladies and gentlemen! Another round of drinks for my friend here. We’re celebrating the next leg of our adventure together.”
The bar couldn’t have cared less, but I was excited. I didn’t know what seeing Chanel was going to bring, but I knew one thing for sure.
This would be the perfect way to clean my slate and start all over.