Sunset Down Under

COCO

Just breathe, Coco.

“Are you okay?”

My eyes snapped open at the sound of my best friend’s voice. Her tone was laced with concern, pulling me out of my thoughts. The meeting I’d just left was intense and left a heavy feeling in my chest.

The morning had been hot, the humidity only increasing as lunchtime approached.

I was thankful that the building we were in had air conditioning (one of the many perks of hiring one of the top law firms in Melbourne—and I needed the best).

But the moment we stepped out of the revolving doors, sweat started to seep through my white shirt.

I glanced at Christina. Her hair, streaked with blue, was slightly tousled over her perfect face, her skin shimmering under the harsh sun.

“I think so,” I replied, taking another deep breath as I fanned myself. “But how am I supposed to do this?”

Christina leaned in closer. “Do what?”

“You know. Start over.”

“I know it sounds cliché—”

“One day at a time?”

Christina nodded. “Exactly.”

“Can you believe he wanted to take Boadicea?”

“What?” Christina gasped, knowing how much my little dog meant to me. “That fucking jerk.”

Boadicea was my King Charles Cavalier. My husband—well, now ex-husband, Jack—and I had adopted the adorable dog from a local pound when I’d started feeling lonely.

We had moved from the US to Australia when Jack was offered a job opportunity he couldn’t pass up. Jack thought the dog would be a better companion for me than, well…another person.

“What did you tell that jerk?”

“I said, ‘You can keep your bitch, and I’ll keep mine.’”

Christina laughed before shaking her head. “He’s got some nerve, but he can suck it because you got the house and the dog.”

Jack couldn’t afford anything, so the house was always in my name. My parents insisted on a prenup, and I’d never been more grateful than in that moment.

“Where’s he staying now?” Christina asked.

“Somewhere between go fuck yourself and I don’t give a shit,” I replied.

“My ex is living there too.” Christina chuckled. “Popular place, that one.”

As much as I hated the idea of going through a divorce at twenty-five, I hated being with someone so selfish even more—and Jack was the epitome of selfish.

Christina pulled out her lip gloss from her bag, applying the clear moisturizer over her full lips. “So, are you going back to work anytime soon?”

“No, I took another week off.”

“Really?” Her eyes widened.

“Yeah, I told them I needed the time to settle the divorce.”

My boss was understanding. He was transferring to Sydney, just like Christina.

I hated the thought of losing her.

“I’m glad you can at least stay in the country.” Christina pouted, then her eyes lit up as if she’d just had the best idea in the world.

Whenever she got that look, something unexpected was bound to come out of her mouth.

“You need to come and move to Sydney with me.”

And there it was.

I met Christina while working together in Melbourne. When Jack and I had moved to Australia a year ago, we hit it off.

Christina planned to move back to her hometown, Sydney, after her office closed and relocated there.

“Bill asked me to move to the Sydney office too,” I confessed. It was something I’d considered, but moving interstate was a big step.

“What?” Christina exclaimed. “What are you waiting for? Start packing, girl!”

“The thought of packing up my life again scares me.”

“I’ve already bought a place with two bedrooms. I was looking for a roommate. Please don’t make me live with someone I can’t stand, or some jerk who chews too loud.”

I bit my lip, considering her offer. A fresh start sounded appealing.

I loved living in Australia and couldn’t imagine going back to the US, especially with the shame of facing my family after the divorce. They were supportive, but the added shame was too much to bear.

Jack and I had married young. His inability to keep it in his pants led to the premature end of our marriage.

Kind of like his cock.

My thoughts were interrupted by Christina’s persistent urging for me to move and live with her in Sydney, which was starting to sound pretty tempting.

“So, what do you say? Will you move to Bondi Beach with me?”

“I’ve never been to Sydney before.”

“Pleeeease,” Christina pleaded, drawing out the word for effect.

I gave her a teasing smile. “I need to talk to my boss first, and if he agrees, then yes! I’ll move there with you!”

Christina squealed in excitement and started jumping up and down right outside the law firm, drawing stares from passersby.

“But it’ll only be temporary until I can find my own place. I’ll sell the house here and find a smaller one for Bobo and me.”

“At least you won’t have to worry about running into that jerk in Sydney.”

“You never know,” I said. “He did travel there a lot for work. I just never got to go with him.”

“Well, you’re going to love it. The eye candy alone will make you wetter than the ocean.” Christina winked.

“God!” I rolled my eyes at my friend, who was always blunt when it came to things coming out of her mouth—or going in.

“What? I’m serious. You’ll forget about what’s-his-face when you’re under someone else. Wait till you see all the hot guys walking around half-naked.”

“I can’t think about dating right now, babe. I just signed my divorce papers twenty minutes ago,” I huffed.

“You need to get back out there, Coco. You can’t stay here if there’s a chance you’ll run into Jack.”

“I’m done with that jerk.”

A slow smile spread across her face. “We’re going to help you forget about Jack. I promise.”

“This is the last one,” I huffed, setting the brown box down on the lobby floor of Christina’s new apartment, which was also my temporary home.

“Need help carrying it up?” Christina asked.

“Nope,” I replied. “Can you take Bobo to the apartment?”

“Sure. Come on, Bobo.”

Woof.

Christina left with the cute pup. I bent down to pick up the last of the moving boxes.

Man, this thing is heavy.

With my view blocked, I stumbled to my feet and immediately bumped into two people, dropping the box on the floor. I heard a few things inside break.

“Shit. Sorry,” I apologized, looking up at the two guys in front of me.

The first one smiled—and what a smile it was. His sandy-blond hair fell just above his neck, and I couldn’t help but notice his perfect body.

The second was just as attractive, covered in tattoos, and reminded me of the Mountain Man from Game of Thrones.

“Watch where you’re going, sweetheart,” the muscular guy said.

His friend smiled, bent down, and picked up the box before handing it back to me. “Here you go.”

“Thank you.”

The box was labeled Asshole’s Things in black marker, written in Christina’s handwriting.

I wondered why I was still holding onto that stuff. I wanted to be done with Jack, and not have any reminder he had ever been a part of my life. At least while I tried to live my own.

Both guys watched and smirked while I happily tossed the box into the lobby trash bin, dusting my hands as I headed to the elevator.

“Coming in?” I smiled, holding the elevator door with my arm.

The two snapped out of their thoughts and made it just in time for the doors to close.

“Floor?” I asked.

The cute guy leaned toward me and pressed the button for Level 1. I immediately inhaled the coconut scent that clung to his wavy hair.

So this is what summer smells like. God, he smells good.

As the door opened, I moved aside and watched them leave, my gaze lingering on their backsides, unable to choose just one. Because why not?

Wow.

I was slightly disappointed when they stepped out of the elevator. The short-haired hottie turned around and caught me staring.

Oops.

My cheeks turned a light shade of pink, and I swallowed my embarrassment. He winked before the two of them disappeared through the doors of the tattoo parlor.

Shit.

***

Christina looked at my hands, narrowing her eyes when I walked back into the apartment.

“Where’s the box?”

“Which one?”

Christina raised her eyebrows. “The one I left you with to bring up.”

“Oh, I threw it away.”

I explained how I didn’t want Jack in my life—in any way—so getting rid of his things was therapeutic and somehow satisfying in a way I hadn’t felt before.

“I did run into two guys though.”

“Two guys, huh? Were they hot? I bet they were hot.”

I smiled and set my bag on the kitchen island. “They were both attractive and one was definitely your type. Tattoos. Big muscles.”

“Damn,” Christina whispered. “I hope we see them again.” She fell back with a heavy sigh onto the couch, which had just arrived the day before. “So, are you sure you didn’t want anything in that box?”

“Nope. Don’t even know what was in there. Didn’t care enough to check.”

“I’m glad you threw that stuff away. It didn’t look like stuff you wanted to keep anyway. Old photos of you and him, and of course, the jumper you loved so much.”

“Don’t remind me. He was wearing it the day I caught him in the garage. I don’t know why I didn’t burn it.”

I sat down next to my best friend on the plush leather couch, realizing that our skin would probably stick to the fabric on hot days.

“We could do something with the box.” Christina smirked.

“What are you talking about?”

“Well, we could still burn the damn thing right outside on our veranda. A little bonfire.”

I thought for a moment, picturing the fire getting slightly out of control and some really hot firemen coming to our rescue. Single ones, of course.

“That actually sounds good.”

“Scratch that. There’s a total fire ban right now.”

Summer in Australia could get intense. Much hotter than what I was used to in the US. The humidity alone made me sweat in places I didn’t know were possible. Like my eyeballs.

“Okay, so no burning,” I replied. “It doesn’t matter. It’s in the trash now. Done and dusted. Gone from my life.”

“That’s the right attitude, babe. Now all we need to do is find someone to give you the orgasm you’ve been begging for.”

“Seriously, Christina?” I muttered under my breath.

“What? Jack was a selfish prick and only thought of himself. I can’t believe he was your first.”

My cheeks burned and I sank into the couch. Part of me regretted telling her that I had never climaxed with Jack. He was my first love, and I thought the love of my life, which was why I married him.

Boy was I wrong. He would blame me when I never finished during sex and kept telling me I was the problem. He said it enough times that I started to believe him.

“Maybe there is something wrong with me.”

Christina rolled her eyes. “Maybe if he could last longer than two minutes, you might have actually had that mind-blowing orgasm. The guy is a douche!”

“I’m chewing on my lip. “I don’t know. I mean—”

“Don’t even start defending him. He’s selfish in bed and selfish in life. I know you’re hurting, but I’m glad you’re not with him anymore.”

So was I.

***

The next morning, Christina tried to pull me out of bed, but I groaned and clung to my blanket.

“Not yet,” I mumbled. “It’s too early.”

“Get your ass up, Coco. It’s almost ten!”

With a sigh, I tossed the blanket off my body. “Seriously?”

“Yes. We can unpack and then go sight-seeing, if you want.”

I groaned in protest. “I’m too tired. Let’s just unpack and have a lazy day. I mean, don’t you have to go to work?

“Nope. I took the day off. Now get up, lazy bones.”

“Fine, I’m up.”

After a bit of a struggle, I managed to get out of the comfortable bed. I was grateful Christina was there to help. Packing up my life wasn’t easy for me.

She was there every step of the way through my divorce and was the first person I’d called after finding out Jack cheated. We hadn’t even known each other for long.

Christina had her own troubled past with an abusive ex, but she was one of the toughest girls I knew, and damn funny. She knew how to make me laugh, even at the most inappropriate times.

We spent the day unpacking, but by the end of it, we were completely exhausted, unable to move a muscle.

So we decided on a girl’s night in, binging on pizza and beer while watching classic Netflix movies.

Perfect second night at Bondi Beach.

***

It was early morning, and I was lying in bed after spending the previous day unpacking. I hadn’t had a chance to see much of Bondi, but as the weekend drew nearer, I hoped to at least make a visit to the famous beach.

A couple of nights in Sydney, and it had already been the most relaxed I had felt in a long time. The idea of being far away from Jack gave me some semblance of normalcy.

After only two months living in Australia, I’d found Jack balls-deep in some whore. Not just anywhere, but in the back of my beloved Mazda 3, which was parked in the garage.

A huge reason why I’d wanted to leave the place behind. A constant reminder of his infidelity.

No, thank you.

Woof!

“What’s up, buddy?”

Woof!

“Need to go out and pee?”

Bobo stood and wagged her tail. Daily morning walks were a regular thing for us before I had to leave for work.

“Okay, pal. Let me get changed and we can go for a nice walk. Check out the sights with me, huh?”

I jumped out of bed while Christina slept and changed into some workout gear. Bobo followed me until it was time to head out.

Before stepping into the elevator, I attached Bobo’s leash to her collar. “Ready?”

Woof!

The bell dinged, and it wasn’t long before we arrived in the lobby. My dog and I walked out and looked around the unfamiliar yet exciting place I had only seen during one of my favorite Aussie TV shows, Bondi Rescue.

With no idea where I was going, I decided to enjoy the walk nonetheless. We followed the path along the beach, and it was truly spectacular.

The sun was already hot, reflecting off the ocean, and it was only 7 a.m. Christina would kill me if she knew I went out without any sunscreen on.

A few people jogged and rode their bikes along the path, along with other dog owners taking their dogs out for a walk. I started from the middle and made my way to the other side of the beach.

After finding a warm bench, I sat down to watch the early morning surfers ride the waves.

“What do you think, Bobo? Do you think we’ve made the right choice coming here?”

I bent down and scratched my dog on the side of her head. Wanting more, Bobo jumped on my lap and smothered me with kisses.

“Cutie!”

After a few cuddles and admiring the view, I stood and took a deep breath. We’d been walking for an hour and it was time to return to the apartment.

Before I had a chance to move, Bobo bolted with my hand holding the leash, causing me to chase after her.

“Damnit, Bobo! Stop!”

Bobo continued to pull me across the path while I tried to keep up with her. She may have been small, but she was a tough little shit.

I was so busy trying to focus on Bobo that I didn’t realize I was about to run into someone.

Suddenly, I bumped into a man causing me to fall over and land on top of him with an accidental knee—to the groin.

“Fuck!” the guy yelled, scrunching his face as he winced in pain. “My balls!”