Irresistible Bachelors: Books 1-5 by Landish, Lauren (bts books to read TXT) 📕

We all laugh. There might be nothing there, but I’m not completely convinced. Tony comes over, extending his hand, and as he comes closer, I can smell a faint cologne. It’s tropical, and it feels special.

“Are you ready?” His smile is pearly white, and my mind starts whirling, thinking of all the ways that he could be meaning his question. Am I ready for the festival? Yes. Am I ready for this trip to be over? No. Am I ready to maybe break his heart? Fuck, no, I don’t think I ever will be ready for that, not without breaking my own.

He takes my hand, and I hear Cassie and Caleb whispering, probably about us. I smile back and decide that no matter what tomorrow brings, tonight is about one thing. Tony, and what we can have . . . for now.

“Yes. I was born ready to party.”Hannah

The beat of the Hawaiian drums pounds in tandem with my heartbeat as Tony and I walk onto the festival grounds, trailing the rest of the group.

There are all sorts of colorful tents set up and down the shoreline, each offering some kind of delicacy, the aromas mixing in with the vibrant colors and carried on the warm winds. There are even game booths further on down where people are gathered around, shouting and engaged in fierce competition.

I suck in a deep breath as I take everything in, my eyes feasting on the explosion of culture on display. There are groups of women here and there hula dancing, their tanned bodies moving in a seductive, ritualistic manner. As they swirl around each other, the air seems to come alive with a kind of joyous energy, crackling against my skin and causing goosebumps all over.

With the backdrop of the sparkling ocean, the kaleidoscope of colors, and bright lights, the wild pounding music, dance, and people, I’m almost dizzy with wonder.

“This is beautiful,” I half whisper, shaking my head in awe.

“It sure is,” Tony agrees. He points. “Look over there.” In the center of the village, we can see the recreation of a volcano glowing orange-red and spewing clouds of steam. Some wiseass has even painted a sign in front of it, Mt. Fuka’ayuu.

“A sign?” I ask.

Tony smiles, flashing his beautiful teeth. “Maybe.” He reaches out his hand to me. For a moment, I stare at it and then glance ahead, where Cassie and Caleb are razzing each other, blissfully unaware of us. Meanwhile, Wesley and Alani have already walked off and are talking with a group of locals. None of them are paying attention, but even if they were, it seems everyone already knows there’s something going on between Tony and me.

Smiling, I take his hand. He squeezes, and my anxiety ebbs. My heart swells in my chest as we walk hand in hand together, slightly trailing Caleb and Cassie.

“You’re always talking like I’m not good enough for you,” Cassie is complaining just a tad too loudly. “Like, I’m too young, or I’m too short. Like what the hell? Get out of here with that mess. You want to know what I think? I think you’re just scared that I would rock your world.”

“Don’t flatter yourself, darling,” Caleb chuckles. “The only thing that would end up being rocked is your mind when I gave you the best orgasm of your life.”

“Tell you what, Mr. Hot Shot,” Cassie says, placing her hands on her hips. “Let’s make a bet. If I can grab a girl faster than you can, you have to bow down and kiss my feet. If I lose, I’ll do the same.”

Caleb arches an eyebrow and guffaws in disbelief. “You grab a chick?”

Cassie nods. “I’m not ashamed. I’ll show you that not only am I hotter than you, but I have more swagger and a bigger set of balls, too.”

“You’re fucking nuts!” Caleb laughs. “But game on!”

The two quickly disappear off into the crowd, and Tony and I shake our heads, chuckling.

“Since becoming an adult, I’ve never in my life seen Caleb act this way,” Tony remarks. “You’d almost think he was a kid in the candy store.”

I shrug helplessly. “What can I say? Cassie is a bad influence.” I sigh wistfully as we pass a stand with mouth-watering delicacies on display. “But to tell you the truth, I like having her around. She kind of reminds me of myself a few years back.”

Tony chuckles, arching a skeptical eyebrow. “Seriously? I can’t imagine you acting like that.”

“I was different, sure. But Roxy and I did get into some crazy shit.”

Tony appraises me with interest. “So you’re telling me there’s a wilder version of Hannah locked away somewhere?”

I grin and poke him in the side. “Maybe, so don’t fuck with me.”

Tony laughs. “Oooh, scary. I’ll make a mental note not to cross you.”

“Good decision.”

Tony can’t contain his grin as joy seems to surround us, and he tugs on my arm. He leads me around the festival and we take in the sights. I have to admit, it feels good walking around on his arm in public, like we’re a couple. No one here cares, and it just feels so right. For all of my self-talk about not needing a man to be complete, I know that as I put my arm around Tony’s waist and he pulls me close around the shoulders, I’ve never felt more complete in my life.

We stop by several booths to play games, and Tony shows me his competitive spirit that I’ve come to love, playing aggressively to win. But each time, he gets to the end of the match, only to lose to some local. Finally, in an arm wrestling contest, he triumphs, winning a stuffed animal. A parrot.

I scowl at the parrot in disgust. It even looks like Mo Mo. “I love you for winning this, but . . .”

Tony laughs. “Just think, you got her a boyfriend. She might love you now.”

I certainly won’t miss being