Once the bags were empty, she turned to Jess and waved a hand expectantly. “And?”
“We just went shopping at the mall. And then we danced—but you saw that part.”
“So, itwasa date. Ice?”
Jess opened the freezer and pulled out an ice tray.
While Naomi mixed the drinks, Jess put the snacks on serving dishes and told her about the three holiday-themed dates. She hadn’t mentioned them at Rhianne’s party because she wanted to see how the first date went.
“So, that’s why you’re in a bikini.”
Jess glanced at herself. She’d almost forgotten she was mostly naked, drinking margaritas in her kitchen. “Yeah, basically. I need you to help me pick one out, and then braid my hair in case I go in the pool.”
“Let’s see what you’ve got.”
They took the margaritas into Jess’s bedroom, where she had upended the swimsuit bin from her closet onto the queen-sized bed.
“Damn, girl, you got a lot of bikinis!”
“We all have our vices.” Jess sifted through the scraps of spandex. “I want to find one that says ‘sexy’ without also saying ‘obvious,’ you know?”
“If that’s the case, what you’re wearing now is pretty obvious.”
Jess glanced down at herself again. “I guess you’re right.”
Naomi plucked a shimmering green top with a mermaid scale pattern from the pile. “How about this?”
“No, that’s one I took to Brazil for Carnaval. It doesn’t even cover my ass.”
“Ah. So it goes in the obvious pile.”
They continued to sort and debate the merits of Jess’s swimsuit collection. The decidedly unsexy one-pieces Jess wore for swimming laps at the gym were also out.
“What about this?”
Jess cocked her head, considering the white one-piece Naomi held up. It had bits of netting and artful cutouts that made it sexy and stylish. “I’ll try it on.”
When she emerged from the master bathroom wearing the white suit, Naomi raised her margarita glass. “That’s the one, my dear.”
“Excellent.” Jess did a little shimmy, then clinked her glass to Naomi’s.
After changing into sweats, Jess shoved all the bathing suits into their bin while Naomi sat on the edge of the bed.
“I feel like a proud mama,” Naomi said, pretending to wipe away tears. “Baby’s first hot tub date.”
Jess rolled her eyes. “I know I work for a reality show, but there will be no cameras on this date.”
“How do you know? There were cameras on the first one.”
“That was spontaneous!”
“Are you sure?” Naomi raised a brow.
Jess paused, then shook her head. “Nik wouldn’t do that.”
Sure, she still had doubts about his wanderlust sending him packing again, but he wouldn’t use her for a publicity stunt. Of that, at least, she was certain.
“How do you know?”
