“Doug, please,” she moaned, tugging at his hair. “I don’t think I can do this.”
“Why not?” he murmured.
The question caught her off guard. Why not indeed? she wondered, temporarily mesmerized by the reaction of her own body. So what if she gave in and had sex with Doug? Was that so very wrong?
“Forget about SondraBeth,” he murmured, crawling up her body to kiss her neck. “It was only a momentary thing. It lasted less than fifteen minutes.”
Pandy suddenly came to her senses. Doug was going to double-dip? He was going to have sex with both Monicas? In one night? And she was going to be second?
Never!
“Get off me!” she cried, trying to wriggle out from beneath him. He laughed and grabbed her leg, pulling her back.
“I mean it!” She slapped at him wildly.
“Come on, Pandy,” Doug crooned. “Don’t be so uptight. No one’s like that.”
Pandy kicked him away. “Well, I am.” She sat up and grabbed at the covers, clutching them to her chest.
Doug sat back on his heels. “You called me, remember? I thought this was what you wanted.”
Pandy could only stare at him in shock.
Doug reached for her again. “What’s the big deal? We’re only playing. You know, like in a scene.”
“A scene? You mean like acting?” Pandy gasped. “Is that all this is to you?”
“Of course,” he said, grinning cluelessly. “What did you think it was?”
Pandy reached back, grabbed a pillow, and flung it at his head.
The pillow landed at the edge of the bed. Pandy couldn’t take her eyes off it as it teetered for a moment, then slowly slid to the floor.
“Get out!” she hissed.
Doug put up his palms in surrender. “No problem. I get it. You’re crazy. All you women are fucking crazy.”
Pandy jumped out of bed and ran into the bathroom, locking the door behind her. She sat on the toilet seat, pressing her face into her hands until she heard Doug’s footsteps cross the deck and go down the stairs. She went back to her bed and lay on her back, staring up at the darkened ceiling. What the hell? she thought. What the hell?
Pandy awoke at noon the next day. She felt ragged, torn, and feeble, like an old woman who was no longer in control of her world.
SondraBeth was on the deck, reading a script and nursing a Bloody Mary.
Pandy looked around. “Where’s Doug?”
“He went bonefishing.”
“Is that another one of your sick jokes?”
“My sick jokes?” SondraBeth asked, astounded.
“Doug came into my room last night.”
“So?” SondraBeth stared at her as if she didn’t understand. “You look like you need a Bloody Mary. Want me to make you one?”
“Doug came into my room last night,” Pandy repeated. “After he was with you.”
For a second, the aftermath of an emotion raced across SondraBeth’s face—anger, surprise, consternation?—before she opened her mouth. “Oh,” she said, and laughed.
“Oh?” Pandy demanded.
“Well.” She shrugged.
“How sick is that?”
“I don’t know.” SondraBeth smiled queasily.
“You don’t know?”
“Oh, Pandy.” She sighed. “I told him to.”
“You what?”
“I told him to,” she repeated. “I sent him to you. Like a present?”
“A present?”
“Why not? Share and share alike.” She went back to her screenplay. “I don’t understand why you’re so upset.” She glanced up at Pandy again. “How was it?”
“You don’t understand, do you?” Pandy said coldly. “I’m not that kind of girl. I don’t need to be. I have standards. I don’t want anything to do with this.”
“But you have everything to do with this. You invited him to the island for Monica, remember?”
Pandy stormed out of the villa. She jumped into the golf cart and took off. She had no idea what she was doing, but halfway around the island, a tan, shirtless man leaped out of the brush and into her path. Pandy screamed and swerved into a cactus, the cart jouncing backward from the impact. The side of her head hit the roll bar.
She cried out in pain and anger as tears stung her eyes. “Jesus Christ, Doug! What the hell are you doing?”
“Why were you driving so fast?” Doug asked. He grabbed the side of the cart to keep it from rolling and leaned over her to turn off the key. He had the damp, grassy odor of fresh sweat and marijuana.
Pandy pushed past him and got out of the cart, rubbing the bump on her head. “I wasn’t driving fast. What were you doing in the middle of the road?”
“I was looking for you,” he said.
Pandy gave him a dirty look. “Why?”
She got back into the cart and began backing it up. Doug ran around to the other side, gripped the roll bar, and swung himself into the passenger seat.
“Would you like a ride?” Pandy sneered.
“Yes, please.” He looked around the interior of the cart. “Got any water?”
“There.” Pandy pointed to a half-empty bottle. He picked it up and drank, tipping his head back. Once again, Pandy found herself admiring his physique in spite of herself.
“Did SondraBeth talk to you?” he asked.
“Yep,” Pandy said.
Doug suddenly looked uncomfortable. “What did she say?”
“What didn’t she say?”
“Did she mention anything about…” He hesitated. “Last night?”
Pandy took her eyes off the road to give him a disdainful glare.
“As a matter of fact, she did.” Pandy tore her eyes away to stare fiercely through the plastic windshield instead. “She said she told you to have sex with me. That you were a sort of gift. All in all, it was fairly insulting.”
Doug let out a long groan. “It’s not true, Pandy. She didn’t ask me to have sex with you. She’s lying.”
“That makes it so much better,” Pandy said sarcastically. “So you managed to think of it all on your own.”
“Don’t be mean, Pandy.” He sounded oddly earnest. “I like you. I always have. You’re the one who rejected me.”
Pandy took a sharp left, heading back to the villa. “Doug.” She sighed. “I honestly don’t know what you’re talking about. Your so-called interest in me has nothing to do with me at all. It’s about you. You’re playing at being interested in me so I’ll pay attention to you. And frankly, without the face and body, you’re actually not very interesting at all. And neither is SondraBeth. In fact, you’re both so terribly dull, you have to invent stupid little games that you think are daring but are merely pathetic, just to keep everyone around you from dying of boredom.”
Doug laughed as if she were merely being funny again.
They arrived back at the villa. The door to SondraBeth’s room was closed. Doug rolled a joint, lit it, and handed it to Pandy. Thinking the marijuana might calm her down, Pandy took a few hits. Doug strolled out to the pool and lay down on a chaise, where he promptly fell asleep.
Pandy went into the kitchen. “You’re back,” SondraBeth said, suddenly appearing in the doorway.
“It’s a small island,” Pandy said coldly.
“Come on, Peege,” SondraBeth said soothingly. “Don’t be angry. We’re both Monica—so why would you mind sharing the same man?”
“You’re kidding, right?”
“Why would I be kidding?” SondraBeth asked.