“I’m not hungry,” Gemma said, causing the girls to erupt in laughter again.

“You’re a truly beautiful girl,” Lexi commented once she’d stopped laughing. She leaned in closer to her, resting her hand on Gemma’s leg, and stared up at her. “You know that, right?”

“I guess.” Gemma pulled the shawl more tightly around her, relieved to have it covering her. She didn’t know how to take Lexi’s compliment, but it left her feeling both flattered and disturbed.

“You’re a big fish in a small pond, aren’t you?” Penn paced on the other side of the fire, keeping her eyes on Gemma.

“How do you mean?” Gemma asked.

“You’re gorgeous, smart, ambitious, fearless,” Penn explained. “And this is just a seaside attraction. A small town that would dry up if it weren’t for loud tourists wreaking havoc on it every summer.”

“It’s nice in the off-season.” Gemma’s defense of Capri sounded lame even to her own ears.

“I doubt that.” Penn smirked. “But even if it is, you’re still more than this bay will ever be. I’ve seen you out in that water. You swim with strength and grace and unbridled determination.”

“Thank you,” Gemma said. “I’ve been training a lot. I want to go to the Olympics.”

“The Olympics are nothing compared to what you can do,” Penn scoffed. “You have a natural aptitude that is almost impossible to come by. And believe me, I know. We’ve searched.”

That struck Gemma as odd, alarmingly so. To calm her, Lexi began singing again. It was little more than humming this time, but it was enough to keep Gemma sitting on the rock. Her concerns remained, though, even if she didn’t run away.

“Why did you invite me out here?” Gemma asked. “And why’d you want me to swim with you so badly yesterday?”

“I just told you,” Penn said. “You are something rare and special.”

“But…” Gemma furrowed her brow, knowing there was something off about this that she couldn’t pinpoint. “You’re way hotter than I am. You’re more of everything you said I was. What do you need me for?”

“Don’t be silly.” Penn waved her hand. “And don’t worry about any of that.”

“Don’t worry about anything,” Lexi added, and as soon as she’d said it, Gemma felt her worries slipping away, as if she’d never even had them.

“We wanted you to come here and have fun.” Penn smiled at Gemma. “We wanted to get to know each other.”

“What did you want to know?” Gemma asked.

“Everything!” Penn spread her arms widely. “Tell us everything!”

“Everything?” Gemma looked at Lexi uncertainly.

“Yeah, like what you’re doing with that dolt you hang around with,” Thea said from beside her, and Gemma snapped around to look at her. “He’s way beneath you.”

“Dolt?” Gemma bristled when she realized that Thea meant Alex. “Alex is a really fantastic guy. He’s sweet and funny and nice to me.”

“When you look like us, every guy is nice to you,” Thea countered with an even stare. “You realize it doesn’t mean anything. Guys are shallow, and that’s all.”