Scandalous Series Starter Set: Books 1-3

by R. Linda

  I burst out laughing, falling back onto the bed. She was quoting The Simpsons to me. I could have a kissed her right in that moment, but common sense prevailed.

  She smiled and shoved half the pizza slice in her mouth. The girl could eat. In fact, she could eat more that Nate or I, and the idea that Jack-ass was controlling everything pissed me off. Hence the mini buffet now.

  “What are you watching?” I asked, indicating the paused television.

  “Nothing, just flicking. Wanna watch a movie with me?”

  “Sure.” I tried to act like it was no big deal, but it was. Watching movies with Indie—and Nate—in the basement of their house was my favourite thing to do growing up, scary movies, in particular. “Any good horror movies on?”

  “You know I don’t like horror movies.” She groaned through a mouthful of pizza and threw the remote control at me.

  “You love them,” I argued, knowing how much she hated watching them. She always closed her eyes and blocked her ears through most of the slasher flicks we watched, usually burying her face in my chest to shield herself from seeing something that would give her nightmares. I hated the thought of her being scared, but I lived for those nights where she’d eventually fall asleep in my arms, hiding from the monsters on the screen.

  “Whatever. Just know I’m blaming you when I get nightmares.” She stabbed her fork at me. “And I’ll wake you up in the middle of the night to check under my bed for monsters.”

  I grinned at her and pushed the room service cart aside. I was counting on it.

  I shuffled back on the bed until I was leaning against the headboard.

  “What are you doing?” Indie looked over her shoulder at me.

  “Getting comfortable. Obviously.”

  She dropped her fork onto her plate and stood to place it on the cart out of the way before climbing back on the bed beside me. “Shouldn’t you put a shirt on or something?”

  “Why?” I hadn’t even thought about throwing on a shirt after the food arrived. I was in too much of a hurry to see Indie and make sure she was okay after the way Jack-ass treated her. “It’s hot, and I never wear one when I go to bed.”

  “We are not going to bed. We are watching a movie,” she clarified, her eyes dropping to my bare chest and stomach before flicking straight back up to my face.

  “On your bed, so I’m wearing something comfortable. Shouldn’t you get changed out of your dress?”

  “Oh, uh…yeah, I guess.” She stood and lifted her suitcase onto the bed and began rifling through it, a frown forming on her face the longer she searched. “You know what? I’m okay in the dress.”

  “Indie, get changed. You’re going to fall asleep like you always do when we watch movies, and you cannot sleep in that.”

  “Fine,” she huffed, grabbing something out of her case and balling it into a tight wad of material before storming into the bathroom.

  Five minutes later, she returned nervously and took my breath away. Damn it. Why did she have to get changed? Her legs looked killer. Smooth and creamy and lean, stretching up to her low-slung black shorts that barely covered the curve of her ass. I gulped, my eyes dragging up her body unhurriedly, taking in every detail from the sharpness of her hipbones, and the thin strip of skin that was exposed below her bright pink cropped pyjama top.

  “Kiss my…?” I asked, referring to the black glitter writing that stretched across her chest.

  With a playful smile, she turned and gave her hips a little shake. A laugh rumbled from my chest. Where the hell did she get these pyjamas? Plastered right across her butt were giant, glittery, pink lips.

  “Is that an invitation?” I asked, unable to take my eyes off her shorts, until she turned around with a scowl on her face. I would happily kiss her there…everywhere.

  “Not funny, Linc. It’s not my fault. I packed completely different clothes.”

  “What do you mean?” That got my attention at once. I reached out and pulled her onto the bed beside me. “These aren’t yours?”

  She shook her head. What the fu…?

  “Well, I mean, I guess they are. They’re just not what I bought myself.” She sighed and took a deep breath. “Jack repacked my bag, replacing all my clothes with…this.” She ran her hands down her body, making me wish she’d either put a robe on or take everything off.

  I stared at her, trying to choose my words carefully. I knew if I said the wrong thing, she’d get pissed off and likely kick me out of her room. I wasn’t ready to leave yet. It’d been so long since I saw her last that I wanted to spend every free minute I could with her, without that idiot around. I was quietly grateful she came back up here alone.

  “Look, it doesn’t matter. One week, and I’ll be home with my own clothes, and things will be back to normal. I can tough it out for a few days,” she said when I failed to respond. “Let’s just watch this movie.”

  “Gimme a sec.” I jumped off the bed and ran into my room. I pulled out a pair of basketball shorts because they were the only things I had with a drawstring that could be pulled tight enough to fit her waist and took them back to the room. “These might be more you.”

  She smiled that smile, the one that stopped my heart every time, and ran to the bathroom, only to come back in my shorts. As good as she looked in the tiny black shorts, I liked her better in mine.

  “Thanks. So what are we watching?”

  “You’ll see.”

  I pressed play and settled back against the headboard. We were watching Saw. Indie sat forward with her legs crossed, watching intently, showing no fear, and I wondered if she wasn’t scared of these movies anymore. But then her hands crept up to her mouth, and she began chewing on her fingernails. After she jumped the first time at a scene that wasn’t even scary, she was back against the headboard with her hands covering her eyes, peeking through her fingers.

  “I hate you,” she breathed, turning her head to my shoulder when the creepy puppet-doll thing filled the screen.

  “No, you don’t.” I smiled and lifted my arm to wrap around her shoulder, knowing there was no way she was moving from the position until the movie finished or she fell asleep.

  She fell asleep.

  Chapter Seven

  Indie

  I woke at some point during the night to a light tickling on my skin. I didn’t want to open my eyes. The last thing I remembered was burying my face in Linc’s shoulder because of that stupid doll with the red cheeks. I wanted to enjoy the moment, bask in the feeling of his fingertips tracing over my skin, breathe in his scent, listen to his heartbeat. Because who knew when I’d get this chance again?

  “I know you’re awake, Indie,” he whispered, and I froze. Well, I wasn’t moving anyway, but I held my breath and waited. “I could always tell when you were asleep or just pretending to be. Your breathing changes.” He stroked my hair. “Your body tenses, and you tighten your arm around me. Why is that?”

  Dammit. He noticed everything. What did I do? Act dumb and still fake being asleep, or admit I was awake and listening to everything he said? Admit he was right. I did tighten my arm around him whenever we found ourselves in this position. Every. Single. Time. Which was surprisingly often. I’d always hold him a little tighter for fear of him leaving or it being the last time he’d let me sleep on his chest. Nate was usually long gone by then. He always bailed early and left Linc and me to watch movies together.

  “Is it because you don’t want to let me go?” His voice was low, fingers still combing my hair and trailing gentle patterns on my waist. “Or because we only get these stolen moments when everyone else is asleep?”

  I didn’t answer. I could barely form a coherent thought as I tried to process his words. They had to mean something, but I didn’t know what. He was being cryptic. Or he believed I was asleep this time. I tightened my arm a little more and felt Linc shift down on the bed until he was lying flat beside me with my head on his chest.

  “I’m not going anywhere. Sleep, Princess,” he murm
ured, placing his hand over mine on his chest.

  His heart was beating as fast as mine.

  ***

  The sound of the phone ringing woke me up. Stretching my limbs, I rolled over and realised my bed was empty.

  Was last night all a dream?

  The phone kept ringing, so I reached over and answered it.

  “Indie, sweetheart,” my mother’s voice echoed down the line. No good morning. No hello. Nothing but, “I need you and Lincoln to meet me downstairs at nine a.m. We are going to get you both fitted for a suit and dress. Nate is going to pick up Kenzie from the airport with Ryder and Bailey, so he’ll meet up with us later.”

  “Okay.” I yawned.

  “Do you know where Lincoln is?”

  Not anymore. He was with me most of the night but gone now.

  “His room, I guess. I don’t know. I haven’t seen Linc this morning.” I frowned and swallowed the lump in my throat. I couldn’t have dreamt last night. It was too real.

  “I’m right here, Princess.” Linc strolled back in with yet another room service cart and a smirk on his lips. “Nice hair.”

  My hand shot up to my head and tried to smooth out what was no doubt a bird’s nest in my hair. “Lincoln is here. I’ll tell him now.”

  “Great. See you soon.” With that, she hung up.

  “Miss me?” Linc came over to the side of the bed and brushed a strand of hair out of my face.

  “Nope. I was asleep.” I stood and stretched.

  “Looks like it was a good sleep. Come outside. I thought we could eat this on the balcony.”

  I followed him out. It was warm already, and the sun was barely up. Did I mention I hated hot weather?

  “You didn’t have to do this.” I looked at all the food in the cart. Bacon, eggs, cereal, toast, fruit, juice, coffee. Coffee! I wasn’t a morning person until I’d had at least two coffees.

  “I didn’t,” he said simply. He reached for the coffee pot and poured a cup before handing it to me.

  “Oh.” I sipped the coffee and tried not to look dejected that he hadn’t done this for me. But what did I expect? He came in last night with food because Jack wouldn’t let me eat. I didn’t really expect him to feed me this morning too, did I?

  “The hotel arranged for a free breakfast delivered to our room every morning because they stuffed up and gave us joint rooms by mistake.” He shovelled bacon, eggs, tomatoes, and toast onto his plate.

  “Mistake.” It was all I heard. Our rooms were a mistake.

  “Yeah. They were meant to book us singles but had double booked or something. So we were given these.”

  “Why didn’t they put Jack next to me?” It was strange since Jack and I were technically supposed to be in a relationship.

  “Beats me. You better eat before we have to leave. Make the most of all this food.” He grinned through a mouthful of toast.

  He didn’t bring breakfast because he wanted to. It was because it was free. My stomach dropped. “Right. Umm, I’m not really hungry, so…” I trailed off, not knowing what else to say. I suddenly felt cold and alone. Which, rationally, I knew was stupid, because things hadn’t changed. I was still Indie, Linc’s friend’s kid sister, and I’d never be any more. But something about last night—movies, dinner, his basketball shorts, sleeping together—gave me a flash of hope, only for him to ruin it this morning. I stood, and before I walked back inside, I said, “You eat, but we need to meet in the lobby at nine a.m.”

  ***

  It was nine o’clock, and my mother was nowhere to be seen. Neither was Linc. I sat on the sofa in the lobby, impatiently tapping my silver-sandaled—no thanks to Jack—foot, and waited. I had so many other things I could have been doing this morning rather than waiting in the front of the hotel. Where were they?

  Playing with the key card to my room, I decided I’d give them ten minutes. If they didn’t show, I’d go for that walk through the hotel grounds that I wanted to do. Explore the island a little. There were meant to be caves and waterfalls nearby that I wanted to visit as well.

  “Baby cakes,” Jack called across the lobby from the elevator.

  “Hey.” I stood and walked toward him.

  “Your mother couldn’t make it, so I’m here instead.” He threw his arm around my shoulder and rubbed his knuckles in my hair.

  “What? Why?” I shoved him away and tried to smooth out my hair.

  “Something came up. Where’s lover boy?” He looked over his shoulder and peered around the foyer in search of Linc.

  “Not here yet. Let’s just go.” I turned and began walking toward the door.

  “Not so fast, sugar plum. What happened last night?” He reached for the room key in my hand and slipped it into his wallet so I wouldn’t lose it. I rarely carried a purse. It was usually just my phone and my credit card.

  “I should ask you the same thing. You were out of line last night.” I poked him in the chest.

  “Me?”

  “Yes, you. You called me fat!”

  “Oh, baby cakes. You’re not fat. You know that. I know that. He knows that. It was all part of the plan.”

  “What plan?” I folded my arms across my chest and waited.

  “I’m sorry for calling you fat. But, look, I might not be your fun-loving, easy-going, life of the party Jack for the next few days. I’ll probably be an asshole most of the time we’re around him, because he has some sort of saviour complex when it comes to you, and I want to bring it out.”

  “What?”

  “He always has to save you. Protect you. Be your knight in low-slung board shorts.”

  “Right.”

  “And I want him to save you…from me, your asshole yet devastatingly good-looking boyfriend who should model underwear or something.” Jack walked away a few steps and turned with a hand on the hip, pausing for a moment before strutting back to me. Just like a catwalk model.

  I couldn’t help it, I laughed. He always knew how to cheer me up.

  “Did it work?” Jack bounced on his toes excitedly. “Did he save you?”

  “Umm…” Was feeding me the same as saving me? I guessed, maybe if I was starving, which I was. So…

  “Tell me about last night.” Jack grabbed my arms and made me uncross them. I glared at him, remembering how hungry I had been after dinner. “What happened?”

  “Nothing. He fed me because you wouldn’t let me eat anything but a salad.” I crossed my arms over my chest again and raised an eyebrow.

  “Yes. It worked.” He pumped his fist in the air. “He came to your rescue with food. See, he couldn’t let you go to bed after only eating a salad.”

  “A salad, Jack? Really? When have you ever known me to eat a salad?” I growled.

  “I couldn’t resist. You looked like a dying man in the middle of the desert desperately searching for water when they brought out all the food. It was hilarious. Then what happened?”

  “No, it wasn’t. Then we watched a movie and fell asleep.”

  “Asleep?”

  “Yes.”

  “That was it? No hanky panky? No tumble in the sheets?”

  I shook my head.

  “At least tell me he tried to cop a feel?”

  I groaned and looked at the roof before levelling him with my gaze. “No. Nothing. Just sleep.”

  “Well, that’s no fun. No wonder you’re so grumpy this morning. Come on. Let’s go shopping.” He linked his fingers through mine and pulled me outside into the blinding sunlight. “By the way, I love you in that dress.”

  It was sunflower yellow and dropped to below my knee, but the neckline was a little too revealing for my taste. “I hate it.”

  “You’ll thank me one day. Oh, hey, look, there’s lover boy now.” Jack lifted his chin, indicating straight ahead. And sure enough, there was Lincoln Bloody Andrews, leaning against a white sports car with his shades pulled down over his eyes, typing away on his phone.

  “Let’s go shopping!” Jack lifted me up and threw me ove
r his shoulder as he ran down the steps toward Linc.

  “Jack! Put me down. Now.” I slapped his back. I pinched his sides, but it was useless. He didn’t release me until we reached the car.

  “Hey, man,” he greeted Linc, who only scowled in response. “Let’s go. I have things to do this afternoon and don’t want to be shopping all day.”

  Lie. That was a complete lie. All Jack did was shop. He lived for it.

  Jack climbed over the door and into the back seat, stretching his arms out wide along the backrest with a grin. “Where are we going?”

  “Dress and suit fittings,” Linc replied. He opened the door to the passenger side and ushered me in.

  “Thanks.” I smiled gratefully at him. He was always the gentleman, unlike Jack. I didn’t miss the way he eyed my dress. Did he think I looked stupid wearing it? He did give me shorts to wear to bed last night, so I was covered up. He scowled at Jack as he rounded the car and climbed into the driver’s seat.

  “Okay, so, Mrs K. called this morning when you were in the shower,” Linc said, flicking his eyes to Jack in the rear-view mirror. He was trying to get a reaction out of him, because as far as he knew, Jack didn’t know we had adjoining rooms. Not that it mattered, because I locked that door from my side this morning, but Jack just acted clueless. “She said something came up but for us to go to this address and ask for Lavenia. She has my suit and your dress ready for us to try on.”

  “What about Nate?”

  “Nate will go later after he picks up Kenzie from the airport.”

  “And you, why are you here?” I turned in my seat to look at Jack.

  “Like I’d pass up the opportunity to see you trying on clothes.” He gave me an exaggerated wink. “Especially if there’s enough room for two in the change room.”

  Shaking my head, I turned back around to the front, taking in the view of the beach on the right as we drove. The island was beautiful. I couldn’t wait to dip my feet in the ocean and relax on the sand for the afternoon—I’d go exploring another day.

  After only a few minutes, Linc pulled the car up to the front of a different hotel.