Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 78576 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 314(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 78576 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 393(@200wpm)___ 314(@250wpm)___ 262(@300wpm)
It never dawned on me that they might be getting good men in the bargain as well.
“You don’t agree?” Dave asks.
“Why would you say that?”
He smirks. “Just the look on your face.”
I draw a breath, take another sip of my drink. “I was just thinking about something.”
“Anything you want to share?”
“Not really. But I will ask you one thing.”
“Shoot,” he says.
“I’ve watched two of my sisters fall for Steels, and I think my youngest one may be well on her way. Do you have feelings for her?”
“Fuck…” He downs the rest of his cognac.
“That’s not a real good sign, Simpson.”
“No. I mean, it’s not a sign at all.” He taps his fingers on the empty glass and looks away. “I didn’t come here looking for love. I didn’t come here looking to sleep with your sister. I came here looking for a fucking vacation. A break from it all. And of course having sex with a gorgeous woman always makes a vacation better.”
This time I’m holding the lowball glass with white knuckles. “And…?”
He presses his lips together. “And…I’m still not looking for love. But I’ll admit that tonight’s events have me thinking about things.”
“And is Maddie one of those things?”
“To be honest, yeah. Your sister’s beautiful. All three of them are, but Maddie has a…warmth.”
“You don’t think my other two sisters are warm people?”
He rolls his eyes. “For Christ’s sake, Pike. That’s not what I mean, and you know it. All three of your sisters are beautiful, smart, and talented. But I’ve always seen something in Maddie. Something I’m not sure others see.”
“And what is that?” I say through my clenched jaw.
“She’s a little quieter than the other two. Quieter than my foursome of cousins who she’s always hanging out with. She’s the most like Angie, so I was surprised that she and Brianna came on this trip together.”
“Well, there’s a story behind that.”
“I figured there was.”
“Apparently, your cousin has been in love with me from afar for years.”
Dave’s jaw drops. “Say what?”
“Yeah, scared the shit out of me when I found out. Especially when I developed real feelings for her. She’s so young.”
“Same age as Maddie,” Dave says.
“I know. She’s so young, too.” I finally let go of my glass and signal to the waiter. “Can I get another?”
“Deux, s’il vous plaît,” Dave says. Then to me, “That’s about all the French I know.”
The waiter nods. Good thing everyone speaks English here.
“It’s more than I know,” I tell him.
“So you and Bree…” he nudges.
“I can’t explain it,” I say. “And I feel weird talking to you about it. Guys don’t talk about this kind of thing. At least I don’t.”
“Don’t I know it.” He exhales sharply through his nose. “But I’ll say one thing about Maddie and me—because you’re her brother.”
I lift my eyebrows.
“I didn’t intend for anything to happen with your sister. I thought we would enjoy each other’s company while we were here on the trip. She and I talked about it, and I thought we had an understanding.”
“Is there more coming, or do I have to kick your ass?”
He chuckles dryly. “You’ve already tried that, Pike. But yeah, there’s more coming.” He crumples his cocktail napkin in his fist. “That drop on the plane has me freaked out. Like I said. I’ve been complacent. You know, when your life is good for so long, and then chaos erupts.”
“That’s kind of the way of the world, Simpson.”
“Right, I get that.” He frowns. “But it’s never been the way of my world. I never had any worries. About the only bad thing that happened to us before we found out about our family’s past was when Aunt Ruby had breast cancer. But they caught it early, and she made a complete recovery. It was like the sun was always shining on us, you know?”
I can’t help gritting my teeth slightly. “Oh yeah. I know.”
“And now,” he continues, “Uncle Talon gets shot, this bitch Wendy Madigan shows up and wreaks havoc, and I find out she’s been running a human trafficking ring on our property. It’s like some kind of floodgate has opened and we’re all struggling to keep above water.”
“You guys still have it pretty good,” I say.
He casts his eyes to the floor. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten that. We weren’t raised to be spoiled brats, Jesse. We were raised to understand our good lot in life, to appreciate hard work and the value of a dollar. But when you never have to worry about anything, well…”
“You kind of forget all of that,” I finish for him.
“You knew where I was headed.”
The waiter comes with our drinks and sets them down.
“Merci beaucoup,” Dave says.
“Oui, messieurs.”
I take a sip of my brandy… Or is it cognac? Whatever it is, I take a sip.
“So,” Dave says, “I’m not sure I can continue this thing with your sister.”