Eleusis (Stacked Deck Book 9)

by Emilia Finn

  I move deeper into the water; knee-height, then thighs. The water feels like ice when it gets to my balls, but by the time I’m up to my stomach and Giselle is forced to swim rather than walk, everything has descended and gone back to normal again.

  Giselle swims close by and studies me with soulful eyes, so when she aims for my chest like she wants me to hold her up, I take her weight and let her tread water.

  “I’m gonna say Grumpy is a toss-up between her cop dad and her cop uncle.” I glance toward the group of gun-toters, expecting to find Olivia with the grumpies, only to frown when I don’t find the black and white bikini-clad body I was hoping to see.

  I shoot my gaze across the crowd for a moment – how hard is it to find two exceptionally white people? – only to stop on my very own patch of shade. The patch I scouted out an hour before anyone else arrived here today. Jamie and Quinn remain exactly where I left them, but now Olivia sits on my fucking towel, with her creamy white legs stretched out ahead of her, her ankles crossed over so a silver chain glints in the sun that sneaks through the tree’s foliage. And Fuckface stands over them, more out of place than a virgin inside the Playboy mansion.

  “She’s sneaky,” I tell Giselle with a distinct growl in my voice. “She did that on purpose.”

  I scowl when Quinn’s eyes come to me, and a second later, Olivia’s follow.

  “They’re talking about me. And Olivia damn well timed her visit for when I wouldn’t be there.”

  I release the dog on a huff, and let her scramble for a moment, but then she begins paddling when she remembers her two hundred pounds will sink if she doesn’t do something about it. “Of all those folks over there.” I glance back to the cops. “Which one is Doc, and which one is Dopey? Fuck,” I swipe a hand over my sweating brow, “there are so many people here, Giselle. This was a dumb idea.”

  “Not working out quite how you expected it to, huh?”

  I spin at a woman’s voice, and lift a brow when Evie Kincaid stands nearby with her baby floating on his back. She holds one hand under his head, another under his torso, and together, they rest and barely disturb the water’s surface. “You figured you’d see her in a bikini, and that’d be good enough.”

  “I see the bikini,” I grunt out. “But it’s not enough.”

  She snorts and brings her son a little closer to her body. The boy is more trusting of her than I’ve ever been of anyone – ever – in my life.

  “She waited for me to walk away before going over to Jamie and Quinn.”

  Evie lifts a shoulder, careless, carefree. “She likes Jamie. Not like,” she shakes her head, “she doesn’t like-like him. But he’s a sweetheart, and they’ve hung out a bit over the years.”

  “So her being over there has nothing to do with me or my towel?”

  Evie smiles and catches Wes when he decides he’s done with the trust exercise and tries to roll over in the water. She grabs him with sure hands, pulls the chunky boy up to sit on her hip, and together, they work on tilting his head and dislodging water from his ears. “I suspect her being over there has a lot to do with you, but there was no way she was heading over while you were there. And even if she wanted to, Oz would have hounded her steps, and Brenten would have whined about it the whole way over. But since you got up and opened that space for her…”

  “She got to visit her buddy and gossip about me.”

  “Nah.” She stares into her baby’s eyes and smiles when he shows her a single-toothed grin. “I doubt they’re gossiping too much. Whatever they’re saying, the dude lawyer can hear it all. I suspect they might be chatting about Giselle, and slipping the odd, occasional question about you in every now and then.”

  “What’s the guy’s deal?” I hold Giselle’s weight and turn in slow circles so she can get her exercise without having to do it herself. “He looks like a douche.”

  She snickers and tickles the baby’s stomach when he smiles. “Ah, let’s see. Lawyer, douchebag, spoiled brat, family money, but not a lot of family to speak of. Highly strung, doesn’t like the sunlight, seems to genuinely enjoy working a desk and snitching on people.” Her eyes come back to me. “Like, his job is literally to be a snitch. And that’s gross. Also, he might be a vampire, but I can’t confirm.” Then she lifts a brow. “What’s your deal?”

  “Mine?”

  “Mm. You see a pretty girl one time a few years back, decide you’d like to see a little more, now you think you get to ask questions about the man she’s been dating for months. What makes you think you deserve answers?”

  I think on her words, and shrug when I can’t come up with a decent justification that doesn’t invite more questions. “I’m just curious. I never said I’m entitled to the answers, but I’m gonna ask questions anyway, and if someone just so happens to feel chatty…”

  “What would you do if we all decided to shut our traps and not create lake days to facilitate a meet?” She looks back to Olivia and waves when their eyes meet. It’s not a delicate finger wave typical of sneaky women, but an arm-in-the-air summons that draws eyes. “You mentioned a week ago you’d like a lake day,” Evie continues, “so I made a lake day happen. But you’re here, she’s there, and maybe I’ve decided I don’t think you’re good enough for my little Livi.”

  “Well, first of all,” I huff, “I didn’t realize your idea of a lake day would include a hundred people, two-thirds of whom are guys who want to protect her innocence, and many of which carry guns.”

  She shrugs and inches around in the water so I have to turn to follow her with my eyes. “It’s inevitable in this town. If you want one, you get all. If you think you have a thing for Olivia Conner, then it’s best you get used to the idea of crowds now.” She smiles and holds baby Wes out a little so he can kick in the water. “It’s why the dude lawyer is here; if he wants her, he’d better pony up and get used to having the family around.”

  “You called, Smalls?”

  I spin so fast that water splashes high, Wes giggles, and Giselle panics and scratches my hip with her sharp toenails. But then I’m left facing those bright blue eyes, the sparkling black hair, the perfect, white skin, and a friendly enough smile. “Olivia.”

  She looks me up and down for a moment; a fast peek at my chest, a glance to Giselle, then up to my jaw, my chin, my eyes. Her expression flickers between disconnect and pure torment. I hate both. “I’m sorry for interrupting your discussion. Smalls called me over, so…”

  “She called you over?”

  “Yeah, well,” she indicates toward Evie and takes a step back so we stand in a triangle, but with a baby and a dog between us. “She signed for me to come over.” She shows me a hand signal – letters in sign language – and smiles. “She said my name, but without shouting about it.”

  I frown and look to Evie. “You can sign?”

  The blonde smiles. “I can do the alphabet. Alyssa has a friend at school who can’t hear, so she’s learning how to communicate with her hands. And since she’s learning—”

  “We all learn things because of Lyss,” Olivia finishes. “And she’s so smooth about it, we don’t even realize she’s teaching us until we’re doing it on the sly.” She looks to Evie. “You wanted something?”

  “Yeah, you know in that movie… which one is it?” Evie pauses for a moment and frowns. “Maybe Bad Boys, where that hot chick is working for the bad guys, but she’s pretending to be on their side? The bad dude wants to talk to her – the chick from the cheerleader movie – so he leads her into the water in case she’s wearing a wire.”

  Olivia’s brows wing up first with surprise, then confusion. “What?”

  Evie snickers. “This is me getting the beautiful woman into the water, and since Brenten Pierce is a bit of a pussy—” She looks to the baby, and tickles his fat chin, “Never say that word, baby. It’s disgusting and derogatory.” Then she looks back to us. “It was a safe assumption he wouldn’t follow you in. He’s the wire, in our case. He wants to be around you allllll,” she
rolls her eyes, “the time. But I figured he wouldn’t get into the water freely. So now you have a minute to hang out.”

  “Why only a minute?” I ask. “If the Gremlin’s not coming into the water, I figure, as long as I stay this deep and Giselle isn’t gonna slice me up with her feet—”

  Evie clears her throat, and glances across the water to the Gun-Toting Psychos. “Brenten Pierce doesn’t wanna swim. But Oz and Ben have no problems wading in. The only reason they’re not already in is because I’m here. They figure I’ll take care of any problems that arise while Livi Conner is so near the big bad wolf.”

  “You know I’m right here,” Olivia drawls. “I can hear everything you say, starting with your disrespect for my boyfriend, and ending with your disrespect for me, like you think I need protection from a guy I don’t even know.”

  My eyes snap to hers and narrow.

  “It’s actually the opposite.” Evie walks closer to us, and passes the baby through the water. She’s painting a picture of friends hanging out together; family, kindness, trust. “I don’t think you need protection at all. I think perhaps people underestimate your fire, and William seems to have a thing for fire.”

  “So why the chaperone and sign language?”

  “Because it’s not you who needs protection. It’s him.” She looks to me and smiles. “Me being here buys him a minute longer. Me not being here? Ben would already be in the water. So go.” She flicks her wrist, a dismissal, and zooms in closer to play with her baby. “I’m not listening. Well,” she laughs. “I am. But you don’t have to worry about me judging or whatever.”

  “Why’d you bring Brenten today?” I shoot straight to the heart of things, since we all know I have thirty seconds. A minute at the most. “He’s a loser.”

  “Fairly certain I don’t owe you an explanation about my love life. In fact, I don’t owe you anything. Next.”

  “So you do have a love life?” I push. “Brenten Pierce isn’t an innocent?”

  She rolls her eyes. “Next. And if you don’t raise the bar and be more respectful, I’m done.”

  “Okay.” I throttle back my curiosity, and ask something a little more innocuous. “How are you?”

  Too innocuous, too bewildering.

  Olivia’s sharp eyes whip to mine. “What?”

  I smile. “How are you? Good? Bad? Healthy?”

  Her brows furrow together as confusion plays through her every expression. “I’m well, thank you.” She’s so fucking proper, I’m certain Pierce is a virgin. No way would she know how to take a man’s pants down. “It’s been a big year for you,” she continues. “A big few years,” she concedes on second thought. “How are you?”

  “Better now that I’m home,” I answer honestly. “Home is wherever my sister is, and a whole year apart is unheard of for us. I missed her.”

  “Yeah,” she grumbles. “Sure does suck to miss someone. You’ve been back for a week? Settling in?”

  “Getting there. I still have to move out of Kincaid’s place. I said a week, and my week is up.”

  Her eyes flicker between mine. She’s curious, and she’s not snapping at me. And for as long as Evie plays with Wes between us… win-win. “Where will you go?”

  I lift a chin in the direction of town. “I got an apartment not so far from here. I sign the lease on Monday, and then I’ll head over. It’s just a little place, one-bedroom, but it’s all I need, and there are no holes in the floors, so it’s actually an upgrade for me.”

  “Oh, well…” She reaches up and tucks a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “That’s nice. Do you have everything you need? Is the apartment furnished?”

  I smile and take a step closer until Evie lifts a brow.

  “Cool it, big boy,” she warns.

  I stop and glance at Olivia’s cleavage shimmering under the summer sun, and the reflections playing off the water. “You offering to help?”

  “Are you asking for genuine help?” Olivia counters. “Or are you being a pig? Because I have a different answer depending on your question.”

  “Well, it could go either way.”

  She purses her lips and takes the baby with smooth movements when Evie passes him. “If you need genuine help, or don’t have cooking utensils or whatever, I can fix that up for you. I can’t handle people going hungry, especially when fixing it is in my power. If that’s the case, then sure, I’m offering. If your intention is to simply goad me and shit on my boyfriend, then I’ll skip straight to the end and say no thanks.” She lifts Wes and presses a noisy kiss to his chubby cheek. “I’m busy, and I like my boyfriend. I don’t want to piss him off.”

  My smile turns to a scowl as I look back to my patch of shade and study Jamie and Quinn, and right beside them, the pasty one that somehow won this woman’s allegiance. I look back to Olivia. “Does he hurt you if you annoy him?”

  She snorts. “No man hurts me, William. Ever. I’m armored up.”

  “That’s my girl,” Evie snickers.

  “I don’t do the mind games either – the pouting, the gaslighting. Brenten isn’t as outgoing as my family,” Olivia explains. “And he likes to whine sometimes, because he’d rather stay in and watch a movie. But I’m the wrong girl to try that shit on. So while he may prefer to stay in, I give him two options; he can come with me and hang with my family, which is something extremely important to me. Or he can stay in on his own, and I’d be back later. What he doesn’t get is me ditching my family just because he’s not in the mood to socialize. I will not be played with or isolated from my family, especially not by a guy I met only a few months ago.”

  “What about a guy you met a few years ago?” I flash a wide smile that only increases when Olivia’s eyes narrow. “In the most technical sense, I met you years before he did. I have a claim, Olivia. He’s the one stepping on toes. And hell, I wouldn’t mind isolating you for a few minutes here, a few minutes there.”

  “Or,” she counters, “I’m a grown woman with free will and all that feminist-yahoo nonsense those women fought so hard for a few years back, which means no one gets to claim anything from me. Not anymore. Once bitten, and all that. If I want to offer a little help to the new guy in town and buy him a spatula, then that’s what I’ll do. But if I don’t want to speak to him ever again for the rest of my life…” She arches a dangerous brow and stares right into my soul. “Then that’s what I’ll do.”

  “Firm.”

  “Unshaking.” She looks to Evie. “Are we done here?”

  Evie looks to me. “Got what you wanted?”

  I scoff. “Not even close.” I look to Olivia. “This thing you have with the douche; exclusive, or is there room for one more?”

  “Oh damn,” Evie hisses. “He just goes for the throat.”

  Olivia purses her lips and passes the baby back. “You’re saying you’d like to jump into bed with me and Brenten?”

  “No, I’m saying I’d love to jump into bed with you. On my way in, I’d pick that pussy up and toss him out a third-story window.” I look to the baby and smile. “Don’t say ‘pussy’. It’s a bad word.”

  Olivia snorts. “Lovely offer, William. Very chivalrous and all, but I’m going to pass. But the spatula thing…” She shrugs. “I’m inclined to tell you to fuck yourself, but if you ever need a genuine friend or a meal, give me a call. Keep the innuendo out of our friendship, and I’ll come to the table.”

  “Well…” I draw a breath, then offer a hand, and exhale when she accepts it. “That’s more than I had twenty minutes ago.” I hold on to her for a moment longer than is socially acceptable. “Can I ask you something before you go?”

  “Sure.” She tugs her hand from mine, rests it on her hip, and meets my gaze. “What’s up?”

  “That thing about me jumping into bed with you and Fuckface at the same time. You saw it, didn’t you? In your head, you thought about it for just a second. Two men, one beautiful girl.”

  She takes a step back, then a second. Ben is sick of waiting, and O
z is ready to blow a gasket. So Olivia backs away with slow steps. But on her way, she smiles the smile of a vixen. “It might have passed through my mind for a sec.”

  “Olivia!” Evie gasps. “What in tarnation?”

  “Eve?” Ben stands on the edge of the lake and shouts for his girl as Olivia backs away and heads toward my sister and Brenten. “Eve!” he shouts again. “Come here for a second?”

  Evie looks back to me with pink cheeks and wide eyes. “Little Livi just said something super filthy. I think I’m in shock.”

  “I’m not,” I declare on a low murmur. “She wears filters, Kincaid. But who she shows the world and who she actually is are two entirely different people. I think I’ll make it my business to peel back each layer.”

  “Eve?”

  Evie starts backing toward the lake’s edge. “You need to be gentle with her, Will. Maybe her mouth is writing checks she can’t cash.”

  I shrug, because maybe I disagree. Maybe I know Olivia better than anyone else here.

  “You coming out?” she continues.

  I shake my head. “I’m gonna need a minute longer.” I wave her off, and let my eyes track over to Olivia at the very same moment she arrives back at my shade and uses my towel to dry her stomach. My cock swells with want, and it grows worse when she bends over to dry her legs.

  Nope. I can’t get out of the water just now, because if I do, we’re all about to rumble.

  Olivia

  Scandalous

  “I can’t believe you,” Evie hisses, despite the fact we’re the only two people in this room inside the Rollin On Gym. The soft, monotonous sounds of rain and wind play through speakers I have set up ten feet away, but outside, the summer sun is doing its thing and melting faces. Together, in sync, Evie and I transition from one yoga pose to another so we can stretch our shoulders. “I can’t believe you said you thought about a three-way with Will and Brenten.”