Delanie picked up the phone on the fourth ring. "Hello," she knew it was probably her agent, but reports were bulldogs, never resting. She learned early on never to answer and state her name.



"Delanie, it's Mimi. I was wondering how you're holding up?"



"I'm fine."



"You should come home."



"Mimi, I am not coming home. I'm happy here. I need this rest."



"It's dangerous."



"No. I'm in no more danger here than anywhere else."



"But Amanda."



"I'm not Amanda. Besides, my hair is still brown."



"Really?"



"It's fading, but not too fast. No one would target me because of my blonde hair." She toyed with her hair. It looked blond but she didn't want to go back to civilization. This time away was too important.



"I'm just worried about you."



Delanie walked out to the pool and dipped her toes into the cool water. She should go for another swim. Without any hesitation she dropped her shorts and her panties. "Hold on just a second." She put down the phone and pulled her top off. Her body had tanned up nicely in the few days she'd been here.



"Mimi, I'm not coming home early."



"Fine, but you need to be careful."



Delanie looked down at her naked body. She could never do this at home. Everyone wanted to see naked pictures of her. If she even thought about skinny-dipping back home the press would be on her. Out here she had freedom. "I'll be super careful, don't worry. By the way, I'm ready to start thinking about a new project."



"A new project? That's great. I'll start talking you up. What do you want, a Tom Hanks, or maybe a Ron Howard?"



"Something good, something classic. I want to do something different, difficult and inspiring."



"That's one tall order."



"I feel good, Mimi. I think this year will be my best. I really want to do something amazing."



"Okay, I'll get to work on finding you the right project."



"Mimi, thanks. You're one in a million."



Delanie hung up, placed the phone on the table and jumped into the pool. The water cooled her body and soothed the ache in her calves. She'd run on the beach earlier in the day just like she'd done every day this week.



This week had been a week of other first too. Not only was she skinny dipping, she also hadn't showered today, and she ate ice cream two days in a row. Dangerous wouldn't even come close to how she was living.



A new project would be exciting. Maybe she could do something that would take her to the next level of acting. Something that would inspire people. Delanie hopped out of the pool and lay down on a chase lounge. The sun and ocean breeze dried her body. The gentle touch of the wind made her think about Sam. He hadn't touched her, but next time she would welcome him to explore her body.



She closed her eyes and imagined him touching her, kissing her. If only she could contact him she would do a booty call.



Delanie jumped up and dove into the pool. She was disgusted with herself. A fucking booty call was at the top of her mind. She didn't want to fall back into a crappy relationship like that. She wanted true love and romance. No one-night stands, and no meaningless sex.



She'd broken herself of that habit with Rhye, and she wouldn't fall back into that type of behavior. Not with Sam, and not with anyone else. She swam until her body ached with exhaustion.



With shaky arms, she pulled herself out of the water and got dressed, not even bothering to dry off. Life after the island would be different than life before. No meaningless relationships. This time she was going to get it right. Thank God, she didn't know how to contact Sam, because if she did, she feared all of her resolutions about turning over a new leaf would be dashed on the rocks of heated passion.

Copyright Sara Thacker