Текст книги "Shaken, Not Stirred"

Автор книги: Sawyer Bennett

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Текущая страница: 11 (всего у книги 19 страниц)

She stares at him a moment, and then asks, “Do you really mean that, Jeff, or are you just afraid Tenn here is going to put you in the hospital?”

“I really mean it,” he practically screams, and the smell of ammonia greets my nose. I tilt to the side and look at the dude’s crotch, which now has a wet stain starting to spread.

“Uh-oh,” I say with a chuckle. “Jeff here just pissed his pants.”

Casey dips her head and covers her mouth with the back of her hand to hide her smile. She looks at me and shakes her head, telling me it’s done.

I release my grip on the fucker’s neck and stand up, walking around him to my bike and my girl. “You cool, baby?” I ask her as my fingertips stroke her cheek.

“Yeah,” she whispers with gratitude in her eyes. “I’m actually really cool.”

Chapter 17

Casey

“Wake up, Tenn,” I say as I shake his shoulder. He’s in the classic position I’ve found him in almost every morning. While we go to sleep wrapped up in each other’s arms, I always wake up on one side of the bed, practically clinging to the edge, while he sprawls out on the other seventy-percent of the mattress. Face down, arms wrapped around a pillow his head is resting on, gorgeous naked ass for me to look at.

I shake him again. “Come on, dude. Places to go, people to see.”

Tenn groans and opens one bleary eye to look at me. “What time is it?”

“Eight,” I tell him and give him a tiny shove. “Zoey will be here soon.”

“She won’t be here for another two hours,” he says and then turns away, giving me his back. “Plus… she’s not coming here. We’re meeting them over at the Sand Shark. Remember?”

Yeah… we decided to meet them at the Sand Shark because it was right at the intersection where the highway ran north and south up the islands and connects to the mainland. Apparently, Zoey’s mom and her boyfriend were going to make their way south and spend a few days down there, so we agreed to meet them at a convenient place.

“I know… but I want to make sure we get the bed made in here, and then see if there are any last-minute arrangements we need to do, and are you sure I got all of Zoey’s favorite foods? Do we need to run to the grocery store again? It probably wouldn’t—”

“Jesus, woman,” Tenn growls at me as he flips over so fast I have no clue what’s going on until he has me flat on my back and he’s pinned me down. “Why can’t you seriously just sleep in a little?”

“Because there’s too much to do and I want everything to be perfect for her,” I say quickly.

“Relax, Goldie,” he says with a soft smile. “I swear Zoey is going to like you. Stop trying so hard to impress.”

My cheeks heat up with embarrassment that he’s calling me out over my insecurity. “I just… I really, really want her to like me. I mean… if she doesn’t then there’s no hope for you and me, because do you realize how stressful that can be on a relationship? Because your loyalties will be with Zoey, as they should, so it’s really important to make sure—”

Tenn slams his mouth down on mine, shoves his tongue halfway down my throat, and kisses me quiet. His lips move with surety over mine, his goatee tickling my skin. I can feel him start to grow hard between my legs, and a tiny whimper pops out.

He lifts his head and peers down at me. “Casey… she’ll love you. Trust me, okay?”

I nod, my lips still tingling from his onslaught. Giving him a sheepish smile, I give a little push on his chest. “Fine. Sorry. You can roll back over and get some more sleep.”

“Nope,” he says and rolls his hips so his erection is now placed squarely in between my legs. “I’m awake now, and I think you need a diversion to help you relax.”

“What did you have in mind?” I ask him with a sly look.

“Well, remember last night… when we got back from your “date” with that douche?”

With eager eyes, I nod at him quickly and suck my bottom lip in between my teeth. I hold it a minute, and then let it pop free, loving the way his eyes watch me and go darker. “You were so gallant.”

“Yeah… right… gallant. Anyway, you were so grateful to me for rescuing you from that douche, that you gave me the best blow job I’ve ever had in my life.”

“I remember,” I tell him breathlessly. “It was really good, wasn’t it?”

“So good,” he says as he quirks those sexy lips at me. “I was thinking of returning the favor.”

“Yes please,” I say as I wiggle my hips under him.

He cuts me a sinful grin and starts sliding down my stomach. When he makes it only halfway down, I bring my hands up to his head and slide my fingers into his hair on either side. I grip it and tug, stopping his progression.

Tenn tilts his face up to look at me in question, resting his chin right above my belly button.

“You’ve been in relationships before,” I murmur. He doesn’t nod or say a word, just waits for me to continue. “Is this what relationships are all about? I mean… is this what I’ve been missing? Is it always this good?”

His eyes soften and he dips his face to press a kiss on my stomach before peeking up at me again. He’s so beautiful, with his dark hair sticking up all over the place, his broad shoulders and tattooed arms, and just behind, the swell of his rounded and tight ass. I sigh deliciously.

“No, Goldie,” he says seriously. “It’s not always like this. But sometimes it is.”

That makes me sad. “Does it just get old?”

He shakes his head and stares at me with warm intensity. “No, it has nothing to do with the length of time you’re together. It has everything to do with the person you’re with.”

“Oh,” I say, not really understanding, then I completely understand and say in an enlightened voice, “Oh.”

“Yeah, oh,” he teases. “It’s like this for me because it’s you, and it’s like this for you because it’s me. Get it?”

“I get it,” I tell him, and then give him a push on his head. He grins at me and starts moving back down my body again.

I pull my Jeep into the parking lot of the Sand Shark, and Tenn points over at a white pickup with an extended cab. “Right there. That’s Kip’s truck.”

“Oh, my God,” I mutter. “I’m so nervous.”

Tenn reaches out and squeezes my thigh. “It will be fine, Goldie.”

My sweaty palms on the steering wheel beg to differ. I pull into the spot behind the pickup and watch as the passenger door opens and a tiny, dark-haired girl comes flying out. Tenn has his door open just as fast, and I have to blink back tears as I watch him engulf her in a huge hug.

A man gets out of the driver’s side, wearing a navy baseball cap, t-shirt, and shorts, and then a woman, who I presume to be Zoey’s mom, Brianna, gets out of the passenger side. She’s wearing a sundress that’s obscenely short—definitely something I would have worn in my sluttier days—and looks over at my Jeep with her lip curled.

She intimidates me… no doubt. Not only was she married to Tenn and has known him for like a gazillion years, but she’s also a bit whackadoodle according to Tenn and seems to think she has some proprietary interest in him. I find this odd since Tenn assured me she’s in a committed relationship with Kip, but I didn’t pretend to understand.

I take a deep breath and pry my sweaty fingers from the steering wheel, give them a quick wipe on my shorts, and get out of my Jeep. Because I happen to be on the same side as Kip, he shoots me a friendly smile and sticks his hand out to me. “Hey, I’m Kip.”

“Casey,” I say and hope my hands are still dry.

He motions for me to precede him and we walk between the two vehicles to where Tenn is now standing with his arm around Zoey’s shoulder. Brianna stands there with her arms crossed over her chest, looking like someone peed in her Corn Flakes.

Tenn ignores her though, so I do the same, focusing a smile on Zoey instead. I walk up to her, my heart pounding so very hard because of how desperate I am for her to like me, and I stick my hand out to her. “Hey Zoey… I’m Casey.”

And to my utter surprise, she squeals and launches herself at me, wrapping me up in a hug that is surprisingly powerful for such a tiny thing. “Oh my God,” she gushes through straight and even teeth that I can tell were the product of braces. “I’ve been dying to meet you. My dad has told me so much about you when we talk on the phone.”

“Um… okay,” I say as I squeeze her back, looking at Tenn smile at me over her shoulder. “We’re going to have a blast while you’re here.”

Zoey releases me and then bounds for the truck. “I’ll get my bags.”

“I’ll help you, squirt,” Kip says, and it’s clear they have a nice relationship.

I turn my attention to Brianna, who is glaring at me. I bite the bullet and stick my hand out to her. “You must be Brianna. It’s really nice to meet you.”

She stares at my hand for a second before turning to Tenn. “I don’t like it. Staying at her house with Zoey.”

“Not up for debate,” Tenn says in warning. “You have no say so.”

“I most certainly do,” she sneers, shooting me an evil look. “I won’t have you shacking up with your summer floozy with my daughter around.”

“Now wait a minute—” I start to say, but then Zoey is bounding back up to us, a backpack over her shoulder with Kip right behind carrying a suitcase. My mouth snaps firmly shut.

“I’m ready,” she says with a big smile, her light blue eyes exact replicas of Tenn’s.

“I mean it, Tenn,” Brianna snaps. “You’ll have to stay somewhere else. Not with her.”

Zoey’s eyes get wary, and Tenn’s eyebrows slash downward in anger. He looks at Kip and says, “Do me a favor… take Zoey inside and grab her a drink so I can talk to Brianna.”

Kip nods, sets her suitcase down, and holds his arm out to her. “Come on, Zoey.”

She rolls her eyes and mutters, “Leave it to Mom to totally mess things up.”

I duck my head down and turn toward the restaurant. “I think I’ll join them.”

Tenn’s arm shoots out and snakes around my waist, pulling me in to him. “You’re not going anywhere.”

Brianna snorts and says, “So caveman, Tenn. I remember when you used to do that to me.”

“But not anymore,” he says quietly. “Now, I’m only going to say this once… you do not open your mouth with any form of disrespect to Casey. If I see you treat her with anything less than abject politeness, I am going to rain so much misery down on you that you will not be a happy camper. And I’ll start by getting sole custody of Zoey and making sure your bitter, crazy ass can’t influence her anymore.”

Bri’s eyes widen and she opens her mouth, but Tenn cuts her off. “And if I hear you say anything disrespectful about Casey outside of my presence—say to our daughter, for example—you can expect the same misery. Are we clear?”

The woman wisely holds her tongue but refuses to give him any acknowledgment.

“You need to know that Casey is in my life. I’m looking at permanently relocating to this area and I expect you will be seeing Casey over and over again as you and I attempt to parent our daughter. This is non-negotiable, Bri. I mean it… do not fuck with me on this.”

I can actually hear the woman gritting her teeth in anger, but again, wisely, she keeps her mouth shut. She gives a jerk of her head at Tenn, and then spins on her foot to head toward the diner. “I’ll say goodbye to Zoey in there.”

When she walks through the door, I let out a huge, pent-up breath of relief. “Wow. She’s just… um… wow.”

“But Zoey’s great, right?” Tenn says with a playful grin before leaning down to kiss me on the side of my neck.

“She’s fantastic. She’s a miniature you,” I say reverently. “And you’ve obviously raised her right… to be open and kind to people. I’m kind of guessing that comes solely from you.”

“You’re nice to say that,” Tenn says humbly. “My parents spent a lot of time with her as well, so I think she gets it from them too.”

“How come you’ve never told me about your family?” I ask suddenly.

Tenn’s body stiffens slightly, but he tries for a casual shrug of the shoulders. “Guess we’ve been busy doing other things.”

I snort, because I know exactly where we’ve been spending our time and most of it has only led to dirty talk and touches. Which now that I think about it, makes me a little apprehensive. What if this thing with Tenn is no different from my other flings?

“We should talk about your family,” I say with desperation. “It’s what people in relationships do, right? They talk about things that are… you know… non-sex related.”

Tenn pulls me to the front of his body and wraps his arms around me. Leaning down, he kisses the top of my head and says, “Relax, Goldie. Those are all details we’ll continue to learn about each other. Things are fine.”

“But… I don’t want this to just be about sex,” I insist as I push away from him. I know my voice sounds desperate when I say, “Damn it… if I’m going to change my ways, I want this to be different with us.”

Tenn’s eyes soften in empathy and a hand comes up to stroke my hair. “It is different with us. You know that deep down, right? You feel it? And while the sex is fucking phenomenal, it’s also pretty fucking phenomenal to just hold you like this.”

“God, you’re really good at this,” I say with a dreamy sigh and rest my head on his chest.

“But you feel it?” Tenn asks again, and although he’s asking me a question, it’s almost a foregone conclusion in his mind.

“I know I feel something I’ve never felt before,” I tell him shakily. “Scaring the shit out of me half the time and making me paranoid the other half.”

He gives a hearty laugh. Pulling me away from his chest, his eyes twinkle at me with humor. He kisses me… hard… swift… possessively. “Well, I think you’re very brave, Goldie, to give it a shot.”

“Okay, I’m ready,” Zoey yells from behind us as she comes running. “Mom and Kip are going to stay in there and eat a late breakfast.”

Tenn releases me, turns to Zoey, and holds his arm up so she gets the message that he wants to tuck her into his side. She slams herself against him, her arms going around his waist, and he squeezes her in close.

God, that right there. That is so freakin’ sexy to me.

Tenn turns toward my Jeep, guiding Zoey along with him. He reaches his hand back, palm open toward me in a silent indication he wants my digits locked with his. I slip my hand into his grasp and we all walk back to my car, with Zoey now babbling a hundred miles an hour.

“I cannot wait to get on the beach. Oh, and I read online that they have wild horses up in Corolla. Can we go see those? And I’d like to try to surf… that looks really cool, and Dad said your brother was a professional surfer, right Casey? So maybe he can teach me. And Dad… I’m kind of hungry. Can we go somewhere for something to eat first? Then maybe the beach.”

Tenn shakes his head with a smirk on his face. He looks over at me and mouths the word, “Teenagers” at me.

“I bet there are a ton of cute boys on the beach, right Casey?” Zoey asks as her dad opens up the passenger door.

“And, that’s my cue to go back and get her suitcase,” Tenn mutters as Zoey hops in the back. He turns and gives me a grave look, “and you better tell her there aren’t any cute boys on the beach.”

Leaning in to him, I give a whisper, “I think she’s going to figure out on her own that there will indeed be cute boys. And trust me… she’s so pretty that she’s going to have them surrounding her.”

Tenn looks perplexed a moment before giving a confident shake of his head. “Nah… those boys will be too busy ogling you in your bikini and too busy being intimidated by her big biker dad to come anywhere near her. She’s safe.”

Sweeping his hand up to the passenger seat, Tenn says, “Hop in. I’ll drive.”

“Alpha man,” I quip as I jump into the passenger seat.

“Your man,” I barely hear Tenn say before he closes the door on me and heads toward Zoey’s suitcase.

“I’m so glad you’re dating my dad,” Zoey says from the backseat. “He really likes you.”

“Oh yeah?” I twist in my seat so I can see her.

“Yup,” she says with a grin as she leans forward over the center console to get closer to me. “Talked about you a lot. He wanted to make sure I was cool with him spending time with you while I was visiting, and also that we’d be staying at your house.”

“Um… yeah, about that,” I stumble a bit. “Your dad and I… we um… that’s to say, he’ll be sleeping on the couch.”

I have no clue if that’s true or not. Tenn and I didn’t discuss it much other than to agree that we’d have to be very discreet when we had sex, and we’d also have to be a whole lot quieter than we normally were.

Zoey rolls her eyes and gives me an admonishing look. “Puh-leeze. I know you’re having sex. It’s what adults do when they’re together. Plus, I heard my mom say that Dad was probably only interested in you for the sex.”

I blink at Zoey hard, trying to figure her out. My head spins a little. Did her mom really say that about me? Does Zoey believe that?

“But I think my mom’s full of horse shit,” she continues rambling on just as Tenn opens the back tailgate to put her suitcase in there. Zoey leans in a little bit closer to me and whispers, “I can see the way my dad looks at you. He’s never looked like that with any other women he’s dated. Oh, and I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention to Dad I cussed just now.”

Wow. Just wow. She’s like a little supercharged dynamo.

Tenn throws the suitcase in and slams the tailgate shut, walking toward the driver’s side. I quickly whisper to Zoey. “I want to hear all about the women your dad dated in the past, okay? In return, I won’t tell him you cussed. Deal?”

I reach my hand back and hold my pinky out. She grins and loops her pinky with mine. “Pinky swear,” she giggles as Tenn opens the driver’s side door.

“What’s so funny?” he asks as he pushes my seat back and climbs in. He’s in uncharacteristic shorts today since he’s not on the bike and his powerful legs look magnificent as he folds into my Jeep.

“Nothing,” Zoey says coyly, shooting me a wink before sitting back in her seat.

I think it’s going to be just fine… having Zoey here. We’re off to a pretty damn good start.

Chapter 18

Tenn

The pounding on Casey’s bedroom door jolts me upward and out of bed. Before my eyes are even fully focused, I know… just by sensing… that Casey’s not beside me. Rubbing my eyes, I turn to her side and yup… she’s gone.

“Come on, Dad,” Zoey yells through the closed door. “Get up. Casey and I are ready to go down to the beach.”

Christ… what do the women in my life have against sleeping in?

“I’m coming,” I grumble as I roll off the bed and because I’m a complete dude and Casey’s not around to laugh at me, I go ahead scratch my balls as I lurch into her bathroom.

Of course, I scratch my balls through the pair of workout shorts that Casey insisted I put on last night before we went to bed, just in case Zoey came into our room unannounced. Fat chance, since I locked the door, but it made Casey feel better.

I made sweet love to her last night with my hand clamped over her mouth to keep her quiet and moving extra slowly so the bed wouldn’t creak or the headboard slap against the wall. Zoey had been asleep for a few hours, having been exhausted from the afternoon we had spent out on the beach together, but I didn’t want to take any chances she’d hear us. She’s a smart kid. She knows what’s going down between Casey and me, but I don’t want her hearing what goes on between us in private.

After doing my business, brushing my teeth, and not bothering at all to try to tame my hair, which is sticking up all over the place, I decide against shaving and get dressed. A pair of swim trunks I had bought last week and a t-shirt are good enough for someone who promised to spend all day on the beach with his daughter.

When I get out into the kitchen, I see Zoey sitting at the kitchen table eating eggs and bacon and chattering at Casey, who is leaning back against the counter, holding a cup of coffee, and smiling down at my daughter. And I’m not sure how it’s possible, but Casey actually looks more beautiful right now than I’ve ever seen her before. No makeup… hair piled into a messy bunch on top of her head, a ratty old t-shirt, and a pair of shorts. And yeah, Casey is such a gorgeous woman, even without paying any attention to herself, she’s ten times more beautiful than most women.

But what really strikes me this morning is the way she’s looking at my daughter. A mixture of genuine interest and amused delight. She really, really likes Zoey, and there’s something about that right there that makes me very possessive feeling. Like I want to drag her down to the nearest tattoo parlor and have my name tattooed over her heart. And maybe her name over my heart.

Shaking my head, because fuck… I’m a putz to be thinking those things… I walk into the kitchen.

Walking up to Zoey first, I lean over and kiss her on the top of her head. “I can’t believe you’re waking me up so early, brat.”

She smiles while she happily chews her eggs, cutting a sly grin at Casey, which means she was behind this devious plot to get me out of bed.

Turning to Casey, I walk up to her, place my hands lightly on her hips, and lean in to brush my lips over hers. I slide my mouth over her cheek, right up to her ear where I murmur, “You were in on it too. Gonna make you pay for that later.”

And she fucking shivers… right there, over the promise in my voice. When she whispers back, “Lucky me,” I have to abruptly let her go and turn toward the coffee pot before I start to get a boner.

“Why are we up so early?” I ask curiously.

“Because… we want to get down on the beach,” Zoey says.

“And I’m needed for that because?” I prompt.

“Because we both want to spend time with you,” Casey says as she slaps my shoulder, “and I have to go into work at twelve today, so my time is limited.”

“Oh, yeah… right,” I say with a grin as I pour my coffee. “I’m made of so much damn awesomeness that my girls can’t get enough of me.”

Casey snorts, and Zoey gives me an eye roll.

I lean back against the counter, my own hip bumping up against Casey’s. Looking over at Zoey, I say, “You know… instead of the beach, maybe Casey could take you shopping this morning for a few new bathing suits.”

Casey remains noticeably quiet but Zoey gives me another eye roll, and then pins me with a look that says, “Seriously, Dad?”

“What?” I ask defensively. “What’s wrong with that? And what girl doesn’t love getting new clothes?”

“I have a bathing suit,” Zoey says before turning her eyes back to her eggs.

Since subtle didn’t work, I go for overt. “It’s too revealing,” I say pointedly. “Your mom shouldn’t have bought that for you.”

I expect Zoey to start a full-blown argument, so I’m surprised when Casey says, “I thought it was lovely.”

“See,” Zoey says as she shoots Casey an adoring look. “Casey thinks it’s fine.”

Yeah, well Casey doesn’t have a fourteen-year-old daughter who had plenty of boys on the beach looking at her yesterday. They were looking at Casey too, but that didn’t bother me. If I was going to beat up some punk kid for ogling, it will be for ogling my daughter, not Casey. She can hold her own.

Now, if it’s a full-grown man… maybe one with a big, fat wallet… then yeah, I wouldn’t mind stomping his ass into the sand if he ogled Casey, but that, thankfully, didn’t happen yesterday.

My head turns slowly to look at Casey, one eyebrow cocked. “You think it’s okay? What she had on yesterday?”

Casey looks a little torn, now that I’ve put her on the spot. I know she wants to stand by my side, and I’m sure she understands the parenting is left up to me, but I also know she wants to give her own opinion.

“Just give it to me straight, Goldie,” I say.

“Um… I think I’ll just stay out of this,” she says hesitantly, and I know her need to appease me is winning out over her need to bond with Zoey. She averts her eyes and turns to pour the rest of her coffee down the drain. “I’m actually going to go get my bathing suit on and I’ll be ready to go.”

Zoey doesn’t look back up at me but continues eating. I watch Casey walk away, and I’m stuck not knowing whether to argue with Zoey or not. I’m a little out of my depth here. It’s the first time I’ve had to worry about these things with my daughter, and I don’t want to fuck up. I want to be protective, but not stifling.

Pointing at the sink, I tell Zoey, “Wash your dish when you’re done.”

I follow Casey back into her bedroom, where I find her tying the strings of a tiny, white bikini at her hip. For a few moments, I get sidetracked, watching her work… looking at the narrow waist, the way her hips swell out beautifully, then her long, toned legs. When she finishes, she pulls her t-shirt off, and then I really get distracted by her beautiful breasts as they swing free. She pulls her bikini top on quickly over her head, the top strings already tied.

Casey shoots me a taunting look and says, “Want to tie the back for me?”

I stride over to her as she turns her back to me. I run my eyes down the golden skin of her back, focus in on a tiny mole she has just over the back of her right hip, and then to the beautiful ass below. I reach up, pull on the strings to make sure the cups are adequately covering her breasts and tie them at her back.

Stepping in closer to her, I bring my arms around and cup her breasts with my palms. She presses back into me and lets her head fall back onto my shoulder. I pinch each nipple between my thumbs and forefingers, relishing her whimper and the way they harden under my touch.

“Did I ever tell you how sexy you are?” I ask, tilting my head to run my lips up her neck.

She nods, and I can hear heat and longing in her voice. “You tell me a lot. You show me just as much.”

Releasing her breasts, I wrap my arms around her waist and squeeze her tight, resting my chin on her shoulder. “Seriously… tell me honestly what you think about Zoey’s bathing suit. You copped out in the kitchen.”

Casey turns in my arms and loops hers over my shoulders, letting her fingers play in the hair at the back of my head. “Honestly, Tenn… her bathing suit is fine.”

“It’s a two-piece,” I point out.

“And a modest one at that. It adequately covers her boobs and her butt, and even has a ruffle on the back end. It’s sweet. I wore suits like that at her age.”

“But she’s exposed,” I grumble. “And boys… did you see how many boys were vying for her attention out there yesterday?”

“I hate to tell this to you,” Casey says with a sympathetic smile, “but your daughter is stunning. Doesn’t matter if she’s wearing a two-piece or a one-piece, they are going to swarm.”

Lowering my forehead to hers, I let out a sigh. “She’s growing up too fast. Makes me feel old and prudish.”

Casey laughs, tilts her head up, and touches her lips to mine. “You are most definitely not prudish. Have you even listened to yourself when you talk dirty to me? You’d make a porn star blush.”

I grin at her, kiss her quickly, and say, “I do like me some dirty talk.”

“I like it when you talk dirty too.” She grins back.

“So the suit is fine?” I ask again, just to verify one more time.

“It’s fine. Besides, it’s not like they’re going to try anything with you sitting there.”

“Fine,” I say before kissing her one last time, thinking to make it quick, but when she slips her tongue in my mouth… well, there’s no disregarding that move. So I kiss her deep instead but ultimately pull away when I start to feel lust stirring me below the waist.

My phone starts ringing, so I release Casey and walk over to her dresser where I had left it charging last night. I see it’s Nix calling.

“What’s up, man?” I ask as I connect the call.

“Looks like Emily and I can come down this weekend. Would that be good?”

On the heels of my visit to see Nix in New Jersey, we’ve continued to brainstorm over my business idea. I told him about the garage for sale here in Nags Head, and while he’s questioning the locale, he did agree to come down and see it.

“Yeah, that sounds great, man. How long can you stay?”

“We’ll stay a few nights… make it a mini vacation,” he says. “Emily’s dad actually has a friend with a house on the island, so we have a kickass place to stay.”

Nix’s fiancée Emily has connections. Her dad is a U.S. Senator, and the rumor mill is he’s looking at a presidential run. Her family also comes from insane money, which gives me a little pause for concern, but I don’t say anything about it just yet with Casey standing in the room with me. That’s not a beast I’ve figured out how to tackle, because I do think some of Casey’s views about rich people could be a little skewed.

“Okay, man… why don’t you text me the details of when you’ll be in and we’ll arrange a time for you to see the garage, and then I figured we could get together one night and pound some beers,” I tell Nix as Casey sashays past me into the bathroom.

“Works for me,” he says and then disconnects after a quick, “Later.”

“Nix coming down to visit?” Casey asks from the bathroom as I watch her take her hair down and rearrange it back up into something that looks just like the tousled pile she had up there before.

I walk over to the doorway and lean my shoulder against the jamb. “Yeah… this weekend.”

“Cool,” she says. “Although, I wish I had room to let them bunk here.”

“They were able to get a place for a few days,” I say vaguely and luckily, she doesn’t ask me more details. I figure in the circles that Emily Burnham travels in, the house that was probably loaned to them is a mega-mansion like her friends Gavin and Savannah live in. I haven’t seen it yet, but Casey tells me it’s monstrous.

I’m not sure why I’m reticent to bring up the fact that Emily comes from a powerful family and lots of money. Casey has friends that are rich… Gavin, by way of example. And Brody’s fiancée Alyssa is an heiress as well. But those are her friends… she knows them in the context away from their money, so I’m assuming Casey makes exceptions. But past that, Casey is admittedly judgmental when it comes to the power money gives people and the way in which it changes them.

Based on her experience with Jeff, she intimately ties money and power with a man’s character, and that totally gives me concern because I haven’t been overly forthcoming with Casey about my own background.

In a cowardly maneuver, I’ve glossed over a lot of the details about my family when Casey’s asked. It’s not because I’m necessarily hiding it, but it’s that I don’t want to give her any room to be skittish with me. After the “Jeff” ordeal, there’s no telling what will come into that head of hers and her fragile sensibilities regarding relationships.