He claimed another bottle of water, twisted the top off, and drank a long swallow of water to wet his parched throat. Ethan appeared beside him, his gaze settled on the quartet spread across the lawn. "I wish I could work on my tan," he grumbled as he grabbed a water bottle.
Stefan nodded his agreement as he took another swig of water. "Why isn't Isabelle with them?"
Ethan laughed. "Isabelle, work on her tan? That's a joke."
Stefan looked at him in surprise. "Why is that?"
"Isabelle is one of those people who is always on the move. Plus, she's a bit of a tomboy, lounging around in the sun is about as appealing to her as eating a box of ants," Jack answered as he appeared beside Ethan.
The last thing he would have pegged Isabelle as was a tomboy. She was too much of a temptation to ever be pegged as anything else. He pictured her spending hours brushing her hair to get it to shine like it did, painting her nails, and flipping through fashion magazines to keep up with the latest styles. The picture they painted of her didn't fit in with his image at all.
"Plus, she's cleaning the house," Ethan added.
"What?" Jack roared.
"I told her not to bother, but apparently, and I quote, 'We're all filthy slobs.'"
"I like being a slob!" Doug declared as he dropped his hammer and stormed over to Ethan. "Go over there right now and tell her to stop!"
Ethan laughed as he shook his head. "While I'm at it why don't I jump in front of a charging bull, wave my red flag, and hope he stops," he retorted. "Besides, what harm can it do?"
Jack and Doug’s scowls deepened. "She'll have us smelling like women!" Jack protested.
Stefan stifled a laugh as he turned away from them. "How much do you expect her to get done in one day?" Ethan retorted.
"Knowing Isabelle that house is already repainted with scented candles and potpourri everywhere!" Doug yelled.
"Why is she all by herself?" Stefan interrupted.
"Vicky and Abby had enough of work yesterday," Ethan answered.
Apparently, they were all used to Isabelle being on her own and not having help. He didn't know why, but for some reason, it didn't sit well with him. "And Jess?" he asked.
They all looked at him as if he were crazy.
"I don't think she wanted to help," Jack answered.
Stefan nodded but didn't say anything. Of course, Jess wouldn't want to help; the idea of getting her hands dirty was enough to make her squirm her way out of anything. He groaned inwardly, wondering for the thousandth time why he was still with the girl in the first place. He knew his answer almost immediately; she was good in bed. She was also whiny, clingy, and grating on his last nerve. The sex was quickly becoming not worth the trouble.
A flash of violet eyes unwittingly blazed through his mind, and to his amazement, he found himself hardening instantly. He could recall how Isabelle felt when he’d taken hold of her tiny waist, a waist so small his hands had nearly encircled it. Her skin had been warm, silky smooth, and utterly tempting.
She smelled of apples and fresh dirt, and her underlying natural scent had assaulted him and aroused his baser instincts. He hadn't wanted to release her, and since then, he hadn't been able to get the feel of her out of his head... or his cock, he thought ruefully.
He shifted uncomfortably as the force of his erection became almost unbearable. "Go stop her, Ethan," Jack ordered briskly.
Ethan ran a hand through his tangled hair. "Leave her be, Jack. It's not going to hurt us to have a clean house and clothes. Besides, Jess is staying there too, and Isabelle is the one who realized if there's no human food in the house, Jess will think it's odd. You know none of us would think about it. She sent David and dad shopping for groceries."
"That's fine and dandy, but—"
"Jack," Ian interrupted as he approached them. "Leave her be. You know how Isabelle is when she's upset about something; this is her way of working things out."
Jack's scowl faded as he nodded. "What is she upset about?" Doug demanded. "Oh, Julian."
"Yeah," Ethan said tiredly. "I had a long talk with the four of them last night."
"Did you tell your parents?" Doug demanded.
"I wouldn't have, but..."
"They could have both been killed," Ian finished for his brother.
Stefan glanced back at the four people stretched out in the sun, his aggravation mounting. He was half-tempted to walk over there, drag Jess up, and force her to help Isabelle. The house was obviously a bachelor's place, and even he'd been a little amazed by the amount of dust and filth in it. Jess had complained about it endlessly yesterday, so the least she could do was help clean it today.
"Yeah, so if this makes her happy then let her be," Ethan said firmly.
"Anything for Isabelle," Jack muttered, but he was smiling.
"What, are you scared of her?" Stefan tried to sound light, but there was a tension in him he'd never quite experienced before.
"Of Isabelle?" Doug snorted. "She growls like a grizzly, but on the inside, she's as mushy as a teddy bear. We just hate seeing her unhappy."
"Isabelle's our favorite," Jack joked.
"Hey!" Ethan and Ian objected.
Jack laughed at them as Doug nodded his agreement. "Well, she is," Doug said, biting on his lip as he attempted to keep from laughing at them.
"That's good to know," Ethan mumbled.
"Oh, she's your favorite too, and you know it!"
Ethan grinned as he ran a hand through his hair again. "What is this, break time?" Mike demanded as he strolled over to them. "Someone could have told me."
"Trust me, this isn't a break you want to be involved in," Jack muttered.
"Why is that?" Mike inquired.
"We were talking about Isabelle cleaning the house."
Mike grimaced. "It needs a good cleaning; we've been over here so much it's filthy, even by our standards. Leave her be; she's upset about Julian. They could have been killed."
"Both?" Stefan inquired. "It was Julian hanging inside the pit."
They turned to look at him.
"She would never let go of him," Ethan said with a shudder. "She'd have followed him into that pit first."
Stefan opened his mouth to protest his statement; no one would follow someone else to their death, no matter how much they cared for the person. Then he thought about Isabelle hanging over the side, holding onto her brother for dear life. She wouldn't have let go, he realized with a start. A shiver raced up his spine as he recalled the deadly spikes at the bottom of the pit.
Suddenly, he understood why the men gathered around him were so determined to make sure she was happy, why they capitulated to her wishes. He didn't know anyone else who would go over that edge. They would try to save Julian, yes, but fear for their own life would cause them to release him before they went over too. It was astounding to realize he respected and admired her for it. He couldn't recall a woman he’d ever felt that way about.
"It's a good thing you were there," Ethan said.
Stefan nodded briskly. They had already thanked him more than enough for his liking. "Yeah," he replied absently. He didn't know why he went back to the house yesterday, but he'd suddenly felt a compelling urge to make sure everything was all right. He'd run into Willow along the way.
"So, how serious is it with you and Jess?" Ian asked with a sly grin.
"Not at all, why?"
Ian shrugged as his gaze wandered out to the field. "She's kind of hot, but I thought because you guys were dating it was serious. I know I don't stick around with one woman."
Stefan laughed as he ran a hand through his hair. "Neither did I, but when you get to be my age, one night stands become tiring. It’s more convenient to just stay with one woman for a little while."
Ian grinned. "Tiring? I think not."
"Oh, trust me, they do." He knew how Ian felt; he’d felt the same way for over two hundred years. Then, things had changed, and not for the better. Stefan forced his mind away from the past; it
was better forgotten anyway. He forced himself to focus his full attention on the disbelieving faces surrounding him.
"Never!" they all declared loudly.
They couldn't put a dent in the amount of women he'd had, so there was no point in trying to tell them they were wrong. They would learn it eventually. "If you want a turn at Jess…"
"Thanks, but no,” Ian said. “She's sticking around here a little too long for my liking."
"There's the queen of clean now," Jack muttered.
Stefan's gaze drifted toward the house. Isabelle was outside and making her way toward the group gathered on the lawn. The gold highlights in her chocolate hair flashed in the light. Her long, bare legs were delicately curved, and gleaming in the sun as she rapidly covered the ground toward the quartet on the lawn.
To his amazement, he found himself growing even harder as he admired the sway of her hips, the subtle bounce of her full breasts. She stopped by her sisters, and one of the twins dropped their legs down for her to sit at the end of the chair. When she bent forward, the curve of her back and the patch of creamy skin she revealed caused his mouth to water.
Isabelle closed her eyes and took a deep breath as she allowed some of the tension in her shoulders to ease. She was tired, achy, and filthy from attacking the house with a vengeance. The bathrooms were done, the kitchen cleaned, the living room dusted and vacuumed. She only had the mound of laundry left to get through, and the dusting in the dining room. She desperately needed a break first, and some fresh air.
"You look beat, Issy," Abby said tenderly.
She nodded tiredly and shifted her weight as the plastic of the chair bit into her upper thigh. Giving up on getting comfortable, she slid off the chair to sit on the ground. Her fingers instinctively curled into the prickly grass. Inhaling deeply, she savored the fresh scent as the sun beat warmly down on her. She tilted her head back to get the full extent of its soothing rays.
"Do you want help?" Vicky asked.
"No, that's all right; I'm almost done. What are you guys up to?"
"Working on our tans," Jess replied, her tone stating she thought Isabelle was an idiot for asking the question.
Most of her tension came flooding back as she opened her eyes and turned to look at Jess. She was leaning back in the chair; her long legs stretched out before her as she tilted her head to stare at Isabelle disdainfully. Her resentment notched a level higher as she met Jess's clear blue eyes. She remembered Jess as being fun, energetic, and mischievous. She didn't know what happened to the little girl, but she was beginning to greatly dislike the woman.
When she’d asked Jess if she would help her clean the house, Jess had sniffed contemptuously and informed Isabelle she didn't clean her own house; she wasn't going to clean someone else's. Isabelle managed to keep her temper then, mostly because cleaning the house was the only hope she had to keep her mind focused on something other than Stefan.
However, her mission failed, and her anger mounted with every passing minute she scrubbed, cleaned, dusted, and vacuumed with him consistently filling her thoughts. Jess's attitude, on top of her misery, was pushing her very close to a breaking point.
"We were talking about how Jess and Stefan met," Vicky said quickly, apparently detecting Isabelle's mounting ire.
"Go on, Jess," Abby urged eagerly.
"We met at a bar, by my school," Jess said, yawning as she stretched her arms before her.
"How long have you been together?" Vicky inquired.
"Three months."
"So it's serious then?" Abby's eyes took on a dreamy look.
Isabelle felt her tension growing again as she gritted her teeth and tried to remain relaxed. She was determined to try and forget about him; she didn't want to hear about him now.
"I guess so," Jess replied absently. "I mean, he did come here with us."
"He is so hot!" Vicky gushed.
Isabelle shifted uncomfortably as a flash of black, piercing eyes swept through her mind, bringing with them a wave of heat far exceeding the warmth of the day.
"He's even hotter in bed," Jess replied slyly.
Isabelle's eyes flew open as a wave of something like jealousy swept through her. Never had she felt jealous of anything, but she was fairly certain it was the emotion clutching at her chest. It scared her, but at the same time it made her want to rip her hair out in aggravation. What was the matter with her? She wanted nothing to do with him.
Delia laughed while Abby and Vicky stared at Jess in disbelief. Their gazes shot to Isabelle. They weren't used to hearing such blunt statements, and by the blushes creeping up their cheeks, they weren't comfortable with them either.
"Uh, yeah," Vicky muttered shyly.
Jess and Delia laughed. Isabelle felt her hackles rise at the obvious enjoyment they took in her sisters' discomfort. Isabelle opened her mouth to let loose with her anger, but Abby grabbed hold of her shoulder. Gritting her teeth, she turned to look at Abby, who shook her head discreetly. It took all she had to remain silent, but in the face of Abby's pleading, she managed to do so. They were Kathleen's daughters, and her mother wouldn't be at all happy if she started a war with them.
Even though she didn't say a word, her moment of relaxation was ruined. "The laundry should be done by now," she mumbled.
"Did I make you uncomfortable, Isabelle?" Jess asked with false sweetness.
Isabelle's temper flash boiled as her gaze locked on Jess's. A mocking smile curled her mouth as she stared down at Isabelle with malicious amusement in her eyes. Isabelle was about to let her temper fly when a shadow fell over her. Her mouth instantly went dry as apprehension seized hold of her. Instinctively, she knew who it was, knew he was there without having to look at him.
"Stefan!" Jess greeted. "We were just talking about you."
"I heard," he replied icily.
Isabelle's face flooded with color at the thought of what he’d overheard. She realized the sounds of the saws and hammering had ceased. Her face grew even redder as she wondered if everyone at the building site had heard too. She forced herself to look at him.
His shoulders were so broad they blocked out the sun behind him and threw him into sharp relief against its bright rays. Damp and tussled, his hair fell boyishly across his dirt-streaked forehead. Isabelle couldn't breathe from the force of his dominating presence, and the hungry gleam in his onyx eyes.
"Good thing it was nothing bad," Jess said laughingly.
Stefan forced his gaze away from Isabelle's violet eyes and beautifully blushing face. He folded his arms over his chest as he turned his attention to Jess. She smiled slyly at him, a seductive twinkle in her blue eyes. The small blue bikini she wore revealed almost every inch of her long, slender, tanned body. She was sleek with sweat and suntan lotion, a condition that would turn him on at any other point in time but did nothing for him right now.
He’d been on his way over here when he'd overheard the conversation. For some reason, instead of laughing at it like he normally would, it had irritated him. The discomfort he’d felt radiating from Vicky and Abby, and the joy pouring out of Jess and Delia, hadn’t helped to quell his anger.
If he were honest with himself, he'd admit he didn't want Jess telling Isabelle about their relationship, and what went on between them. Which was ridiculous, considering they were staying in the same room and arrived together.
His gaze returned to Isabelle as she climbed gracefully to her feet. Her hair, damp with sweat, was a tangled mess in its loose ponytail. Dirt streaked her delicate nose and high cheekbones, emphasizing her tomboyish nature. The filthy clothes she wore accentuated her full breasts, slender waist, and round hips.
Even though she was a mess, she was still exquisitely beautiful, and the most tempting thing he ever laid eyes on. The erection he'd managed to rid himself of suddenly reared back to life.
Isabelle stared back at him, her heart hammering as she fought to breathe normally. She was acutely aware of how awful she looked, especially compared to Jess,
and for some strange reason, it bothered her. She didn't want him to see her looking like this. Silently, she cursed herself for behaving like an idiot. She didn't care what he thought of her, or how she looked; she wanted absolutely nothing to do with him or his bitch of a girlfriend.
The gleam in his eyes left her breathless and trembling. A gleam telling her he didn't think she looked as awful as she felt. In fact, he looked as if she was the most desirable woman in the world, as if he wanted to devour her. A shiver made its way down her spine; it caused her to tighten in places she’d never felt sensitive before. Part of her desperately wanted to be devoured by him, while the saner part wanted to run screaming for help and never look back.
"You look tired, Stefan, why don't you take a break?" Jess's voice was so chilly Isabelle finally tore her gaze away from Stefan.
Apprehension filled her as she turned to look at Jess. The girl was focused on Stefan, but her amusement had vanished as she stared at him with a locked jaw. When she glanced back at Isabelle, her eyes flashed with malice before she turned back to Stefan. Isabelle stepped to the side, eager to get away from all of them.
"I have to get the laundry," she said, desperate to escape.
"Why don't you wait, I'm sure Jess will help you," Stefan said coldly.
"I offered, but Isabelle said she didn't need my help," Jess replied sweetly.
Isabelle's mouth gaped open in disbelief as she spun back around. Jess batted her lashes as if she were the most innocent thing in the world. Exasperation blazed to life in Isabelle as her hands fisted at her sides.
"The hell I did!" she retorted, unable to keep her temper under control for a second longer. It usually took a lot to annoy her, but when she did blow, she could put Mount Vesuvius to shame with the force of her explosion. Jess's lie, on top of everything else, was the final straw.
Stefan tried to suppress a smile of amusement. The teddy bear Doug described was gone, and the grizzly bear took its place. He'd seen her sister subtly tell her to keep her mouth shut before, and felt Isabelle trying to control her temper, but it seemed as if her control finally snapped. The fire in her eyes, and her rigid stance, were both fetching and appealing.
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