“It was wonderful. I’m so happy. And tired.” She buried her face in his neck, breathing hard.

“Do you want the chips now?” He chuckled. “I can feed them to you Cleopatra style.”

“Yes, please.”

24

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“It was for certain the most amazing place I’ve ever visited,” Emma told the girls. “The beaches were spectacular, and the accommodations rated more than five stars, if that’s possible.” They were all seated around a table at Ike’s, a great bar with specialty beer and burgers. Emma had been back for only a single day, but she’d been dying to fill everyone in, and the girls had all wanted to hear how it went. “It far exceeded my expectations going in. If any of you want to go, we’re happy to give you a glowing reference. But the very best part?” She glanced around at the looks of interest. “Pete and I are back on track, and I’m ecstatic. He really manned up. I think he realized for the very first time what it might be like without me, and he didn’t like what he saw.”

“That’s fantastic!” Caroline was the first to reply. “I’m so happy for you, and the resort sounds crazy beautiful. I’m going to talk to Jace about it tonight. I would love to go.”

“Oh, and you’re never going to guess who we met there!” Emma almost clapped. She couldn’t wait to tell them.

“Who?” Piper asked, setting her arms on the table. “Tell us! Your excitement is palpable.”

“Mallory”—Emma paused to give it the full effect—“Baldwin.”

“The supermodel?” Gillian said, picking up her beer. “You’re shitting us. She’s unbelievably gorgeous, and young, if I remember correctly.”

“Yes, she’s only twenty-two—almost twenty-three. I’m not kidding, and we became friends! It was like she was just one of the group the entire time. But, honestly, when I got home, I Googled her, and all I can say is holy wow! That woman can take a killer picture. She’s breathtaking in person, but even more so in the photographs. She’s fairly down-to-earth—and a little jaded, but that’s not saying much considering the business she’s in.”

“Who was she there with?” Caroline asked. “Did they do any swapping? I can’t stand that you met her! That’s so cool.”

Emma leaned in as the waitress walked by. “She was there alone and she visits all the time. Apparently, she got into modeling at a really young age, and in her words, sex is her drug of choice. But I’m not sure how long she’ll be single. I have high hopes for her.”

“How would you know that? Did she meet someone there?” Piper asked. “This is so surreal.”

“No, but this millionaire businessman we met is sending her to a private dating island! I know,” she said, responding to all the looks of disbelief, “it sounds so insane. It costs fifty thousand a week! He’s a new partner, and he’s sending her for free as a test client the first week it opens.”

Piper slapped her hand on the table, chortling. “What? You’re going to have to start at the beginning with this one, sister. What millionaire? What island? This is better than any movie I’ve seen in ages. I cannot believe all this happened on your trip.”

Emma nodded. “There is so much to tell! We met this rich entrepreneur, Antonio, and his girlfriend at the airport here in Madison, and then they ended up in the villa next door to ours. We got to know them, and he invited us on his yacht the first day—”

“A yacht! No way!” Caroline hooted. “Was it fabulous?”

“It was ridiculously nice,” Emma told her. “Like, whatever you’re imagining, times it by a hundred—white couches, stainless steel accents, gleaming wood floors. It was totally amazing. Antonio invented a rocket in college and now he runs a company that launches satellites into space or something like that.”

“Antonio Rafferty? The aerospace guy?” Piper said, her voice incredulous. “Are you talking about the billionaire who’s in the news all the time? That Antonio?”

Emma placed a hand over her heart. “I don’t know, maybe?” She glanced around the table, her expression stunned. “I Googled Mallory, but I didn’t think to search for him because we never caught his last name. We knew he was rich, for certain a millionaire, but I had no idea he was a billionaire! That makes sense, though. He was in a different stratosphere, even from Mallory, who must have tons of money herself. He carried himself with complete assuredness.”

“Of course it makes sense,” Gillian snorted. “The guy has a yacht and a private island!”

“He’s actually only part owner of the island, from how he explained it,” Emma said sheepishly. “I wasn’t about to ask him how rich he is, and it’s not like he was shouting how much money he has.” She laughed. “I don’t watch the news that much, and his first name didn’t ring any bells. Now I feel silly.”

Piper swished her hand. “It’s not a big deal at all. You just met and partied with one of only a handful of billionaires under the age of thirty. We do that kind of stuff all the time around here! Madison is a hotbed for attracting those filthy-rich types,” Piper joked. “But, seriously, no worries. The next time you take a trip, I’m giving you a notebook filled with mugshots of the rich and famous, along with their names, birth dates, and net worth.”

Emma started to laugh in earnest. She had to cover her mouth to stop.

When she finally quieted down, she sputtered, “Pete almost took Antonio out because he wanted to have sex with me! And I don’t think he wanted to just fuck me—he actually wanted me. At least, that’s the vibe he gave off. It was enough for Pete to feel threatened, and it was actually the best thing that could’ve happened to us. Pete has never had his heart broken before and has never gone through an agonizing breakup or loss. That explained a lot to me. But he figured it out quickly, and from then on out, it was totally wonderful.”

“I’m glad you and Pete worked it out,” Piper said. “Pete’s a good guy. He just didn’t know what he had until it could’ve been yachted out from under him.” She snorted. “I’m sure the strutting helped things along.”

“It totally did,” Emma said. “I wore the white bikini bottoms for the first time on the yacht, and Pete nearly leapt out of his skin, so thanks for that. In fact, all of the bottoms had similar effects. They were so sexy.” Emma turned to Caroline. “And we had an incredible last night, thanks to you. That teddy paired with the lube, and the…um…beads.” She blushed. “I can’t even tell you. It was a night I’ll never forget.” Then she nodded to Gillian. “I used the harness the night you gave it to me, and we need to talk later. It was totally incredible, and I’d like to look into more things like that as a surprise for Pete.”

“Glad it worked for you,” Gillian said. “There’s a lot of pleasure to be had if you learn to like control.”

“No kidding.” Emma took a long drink of her martini. “It was some of the most intense pleasure I’ve ever experienced.”

“I’m super happy for you, too, but can we get back to the scenario where Mallory Baldwin finds the man of her dreams?” Piper asked. “I still don’t get the dating island. How does it work? And can I just interject here and say that for a very brief, teensy moment my black heart wished I was single again. Going to a private island to find a man sounds like reality TV on steroids chased with lots of tequila.”

“I totally agree. Even to be a fly on the wall in such a place! Mallory deemed it Fuck Me Island, and she’s not off base.” Emma giggled. “I don’t know a lot, but I exchanged e-mail addresses with her and she’s promised to update me. She’s supposed to be going next month. From how Antonio explained it, it’s like Tinder meets Tahiti for the rich and famous. All guests on the island are there to hook up and are given phones with a Tinder-like app with all the guests’ info on it.” Emma shrugged. “Everyone there is a potential fuck buddy, they’re all filthy rich, and everyone is hoping to find the person of their dreams. I’m rooting for Mallory to find what she’s looking for. Under it all, she’s a sweet girl and deserves to find happiness. She didn’t dish too deep about her background, but she mentioned her mom ‘selling’ her into the modeling at a young age and that must’ve been rough.”