We wove our way through the parked cars and four-wheel drives and made it to the covered entrance. I held the heavy door open so Peyton could step inside. The layer of smoke wasn't quite as dense as usual, and the crowd remained thin. When the steel door slammed behind us, she jumped and grabbed my hand. Her eyes widened in surprise."I promise, no one here bites."She nodded but didn't let go of me. It didn't take long for me to spot Masyn and Beau in a booth in the corner, and I pointed them out to Peyton. She took that as her cue to move away from the door and in the direction of my friends. "Hey, Lee." Sherry, one of the waitresses who'd been here since she could legally serve alcohol, stopped us. "Good to see you. Who's your friend?" Her mouth kept moving even after she quit speaking-gum. Bless her heart; her mama had never told her that a cow chewing cud wasn't an attractive thing to mimic. "Sherry, this is Peyton; Peyton, Sherry."Peyton extended her hand, not expect
Turning to Peyton, I explained, "Masyn and I tried to talk Beau out of proposing last Christmas. It didn't have anything to do with Felicity. We didn't know her. We just thought they were rushing things." That was a nice way to put that we believed she was after his last name and bank account."Anyway," Beau continued, "if her parents don't fight it, and Josten doesn't believe they will, then I'm just stuck with legal expenses for his time."Josten White was the only lawyer in town. He'd graduated from high school with Masyn's oldest brother, Ty. Once he passed the BAR, he came back to Harden to set up practice. We all thought he was crazy at the time-nothing happened in Harden to need an attorney, people didn't even get divorced. Oddly enough, once he'd opened his doors, business started flowing through. Workers' comp, farmers with land disputes, child support-he did it all. And made bank."I can't imagine my parents fighting any of this. My mom won't want the negative publicity
The second I laid eyes on what he gaped at, I nearly lost my shit. Toby's hands were all over Masyn's ass, and his thigh was between her legs. This wasn't Dirty Dancing, and he sure as shit wasn't Patrick Swayze. But the longer I watched, I noticed she wasn't trying to get away from him-she was encouraging it. Her head dipped to his chest, and she rocked her hips on his jeans. Any second now, she'd toss her hair back and release the sounds of an orgasm, like Meg Ryan in When Harry Met Sally. That would undoubtedly get the town talking. Staring at her, I realized I'd let her pick way too many movies over the years, when all my film references came from sappy chick flicks with happy fucking endings.When the song ended, I went back to the booth, and Peyton went in search of the bathroom. I warned her to squat and not sit, but she just looked at me like she didn't understand-she would when she got there. Masyn stayed on the dance floor with Toby, not once looking in our direction. "What
"Everything okay in there? Masyn didn't seem very happy when we were leaving." Peyton didn't have a clue what was going on, although I couldn't really speculate myself. "I'm sure she's fine. I don't know what her deal was tonight. It's been a weird day all around.""Are you surprised Beau wasn't more upset?""About?"She laughed, and I drove. "My guess is this isn't how he envisioned his wedding night going.""You're right, this was a hell of a lot better." Thankfully, she felt the same way about her sister that we did. "But to answer your question, no. Beau was a mess when I got to his parents' house this morning. I think he's relieved at this point." I wasn't sure any of this had really hit him, either. Right now, he felt relief, but that didn't mean over the next few days he wouldn't crash into a pit of despair, cradling a beer in one hand and Felicity's picture in the other."Yeah, you haven't really told me what happened. I've kind of drawn my own conclusions." Peyton
I finally hit a switch so she could see where she was going. "Masyn's room is on the right. Check the dresser-I'm sure there's something in one of the top drawers.""She has her own room?" "More often than not, she stays here on the weekends." "And you're sure she won't mind me wearing her swimsuit? That's kind of personal-like sharing panties.""If she cares, I'll buy her a new one. Your other options are swimming in your bra and underwear...or nothing at all. Take your pick." We didn't have to get in the pool, but the cool water and a beer called my name. After a day like this, there was no place I'd rather be. And since Peyton didn't argue or take me up on another suggestion, I went with it."I'll see what she has."That's what I thought. "I'm going to put on some shorts. Meet me in the kitchen once you've changed."I closed the door behind me and went to my room. Early June was the perfect time for swimming at night. The water was warm, the air wasn't sweltering, an
"I don't think most families are like yours."She flipped over onto her back and kicked her feet to move her body through the water in graceful, swanlike motions. "More are like mine than you'd think.""Then you definitely need to move out of the city and find your tribe.""I have a tribe. I don't have a village." She'd moved back into the shallow end of the pool less than three feet from me. Peyton stood, and the white bikini top left absolutely nothing to the imagination.My dick stirred in my shorts. I hadn't thought this through. At all. "You want a beer? I don't have any wine." I needed a breather, and cold air would kill any chance of my admiral standing to salute. "No, thanks. I need to be able to drive back to the hotel."To keep from embarrassing myself, I turned around first, then I stood and pulled my shorts away from my body. They clung to me the same way that bikini did on Peyton's curves. Just as I'd predicted, once I got inside, the air-conditioning squashed
I snatched another beer while I was inside. When I returned and sat next to her, I pulled up an image of the wild fig trees in South Africa near Echo Caves. "Looks like an ordinary fruit tree, right?" I was about to get all philosophical-not really my cup of tea, but this was one thing I firmly believed. I'd heard it years ago, and it had stuck with me."I suppose. I don't see a lot of those in the city.""Point is, it doesn't look like anything great. I mean it's a big tree, but what you see above the surface isn't what makes that tree so different from any other. To anyone who doesn't have knowledge of just how special it is, it looks like any other tree."She nodded, even though the confusion in her expression indicated she didn't have a clue where I was going with this. "Roots. That's what makes it extraordinary."Her brow quirked and her head tilted to the side. "Most trees have root systems that spread out like a fan under the dirt." I talked with my hands to indica
"I hear you had an eventful night." Beau's shit-eating grin had me concerned."No clue what you heard or who you heard it from. I went home.""Yeah, with Peyton.""You knew that. You watched me leave with her, moron." Beau hadn't even let me get out of the truck at Ty's house before he bombarded me. As tempted as I was to accidentally shove the door into him when I hopped down, I refrained and glared instead."Yes, however, you didn't mention a night-time swimming excursion under the stars."I slammed the door behind me. "You sound like a travel agent. Don't you have something other than me to worry about? Like a lawsuit.""Yeah, that's being taken care of, and since I now have no life of my own, I'm interested in yours.""Don't be. Nothing happened.""There's a pissed-off brunette who disagrees." He nudged his head toward Ty's house where Masyn stood with her hands on her hips, glaring at me."Oh, that's rich. She's ticked? Did she mention who brought her by my ho