Cathy had been told only a little about who the men were and why the sisters didn’t want to wait on them. They’d said the men had gone too far in their advances last night. Cathy was perplexed at why that would make her nieces so mad.
As she gave the guys another round of beers, she asked, “So, what actually happened last night between you all? My nieces are as mad as old wet hens over you three.”
“I have no idea,” Ethan answered. “We all got along great. Then the girls ran out on us after asking us all to call cabs. This is most likely more than they want you to know but I’m going to tell you anyway. They all had agreed to get hotel rooms with each of us.”
Cathy’s hand flew to cover her mouth. “No!”
Griffin jabbed Ethan in the ribs. “Too much info, Ethan!”
“Well, they did,” he went on.
Phoenix was in agreeance with Ethan. “The ladies must’ve gotten cold feet. And that’s okay. We just want to talk to them to get them all to understand we didn’t mean to make them feel forced. Shit! The truth is they were the ones who asked us, not the other way around.”
“Oh, my God!” Cathy mumbled in disbelief. “So, it was them who asked you three to get rooms and, and, oh Lordy, and fornicate with them?”
Griffin gave Phoenix and Ethan deep frowns as he said, “No! No, that’s not how it was at all. Look, we each want to get the chance to talk to the lady we came to like very much last night. We want an opportunity to let them know we meant them no harm. That’s all, really. Could you be a peach and let them know that, Cathy?”
“I can,” she said as she fanned herself. “You’re all so handsome and sweet. I think they must’ve misunderstood you guys or something. Let me go see if I can get to the bottom of what their problem is.”
And with her retreat, the men finally felt like they had a chance of smoothing things over with the girls. Phoenix leaned in to whisper, “Should we end the bet and confess?”
“God, no!” Both Ethan and Griffin said.
And with that, the men were going to continue with their bet. “We knew this might be hard,” Griffin reminded his friend.
“We’ll continue just like we planned. Unless you want out, Phoenix,” Ethan said.
Phoenix looked at the others and shook his head. “No, I’m still in. I just didn’t expect this kind of thing to happen. I thought they might play hard to get. But I never saw them getting mad at us. It’s just throwing me off my game is all. I’ll get back on the right track.”
They all clinked their mugs of frothy beer and stayed firm on their bet. Without a clue, as to what the women were aware of.
14
Pots and pans clanked as the kitchen staff shouted orders to one another. Jess, Cait, and Kel stood to one side, in a huddle, discussing the audacity of the men who dared to show their faces at their pub again.
“In the ladies’ room?” Kel asked Jess after she’d told them where Griff had cornered her. “Well, that’s too much! I’ll tell the man he’s overstepped his bounds!”
“No!” Jess argued. “I’m not a little kid anymore, Kel. I can take care of myself. I did manage to get out of there with my panties still on, you know.”
Cait laughed as she cut her eyes to look at their Aunt Cathy who was coming into the kitchen, looking for something. When she saw her three nieces, she came straight to them. “We need to talk girls.”
Their rotund aunt’s cheeks were red which meant she’d been embarrassed. The girls’ ire was up already. If any of the men had anything to do with what was wrong with their aunt, then the men had it coming to them in spades.
“Did anyone speak to you in an improper manner, Aunt Cathy?” Cait asked her.
When she nodded, Kel grew furious. “Tell me who and I’ll deal with him!”
“Well, my darling nieces, my demeanor is off as I’ve heard some… Well, some news that quite frankly I don’t understand,” Cathy said as she fanned herself. At fifty-one, Cathy wasn’t exactly inexperienced in the ways of love, but she’d been married to the girls’ uncle for twenty-five years. She wasn’t used to hearing sexual things about any of her family.
Jess’ hand went to her hip as she asked, “What did you hear and who did you hear it from?”
“Your men,” Cathy said.
Kel’s hand went up as she said, “They are not our men! But what did the asses say?”
“They said that you three asked them to get cabs and take you to hotel rooms for the night to fornicate like animals!” Cathy blurted out, making the entire kitchen go silent.
Kel looked around as everyone was staring at them with gaping mouths. “No! No, that wasn’t how things went! And you all get back to work, we have hungry customers out there. Mind your business!”
Jess’s cheeks were scarlet as she asked her aunt, “Did they actually say those exact words, Aunt Cathy?”
“No, no they didn’t mention the part about fornicating like animals. That’s my personal spin on it. But they did say you all were coming on to them,” Cathy explained.
“We did,” Cait confessed. “We had our reasons, though.”
“Well, reasons or not,” Cathy told them as she shook her finger at them all. “You should never toy with people. You all were raised better than that. Now, I want you all to give those men at least ten minutes of your time. I want you all to explain why you did what you did to them.”
“No,” Kel said, stubbornly.
“You will, or I’ll tell your grandmother what you’ve done, and we all know how long that sermon will be,” Cathy threatened.
“Damn,” Cait muttered under her breath. “That woman will give us all brand new Bibles with the sections, she’ll make us read out loud to her, paperclipped so we can find them quickly.”
“And then we’ll have to attend Mass with her for a solid week, every dang morning,” Jess added as she kicked the floor with her black non-slip shoe.
Kel stuffed her hands in her apron pockets as she griped, “And go to confession every evening. It’ll cost less of our time to let the guys talk to us for ten minutes.”
“That it will,” Cathy said as she huffed, knowing she’d won the battle. “You all are officially on a fifteen-minute break, my darlings. Make it count.” She herded her nieces up and pushed them all out of the kitchen. “Get to cleaning up your messes, girls.”
Kel saw the smiles on the men’s faces as they left the sanctity of the kitchen. “There they are. And look at those shit-eating grins they’re all wearing.”
“I’m just going to let Griff talk, but I’m not going to say a word about why we ran out on them,” Jess said.
“Come on, girls,” Cait said. “Let’s toy with them some more. They want to come this far for us and their stupid bet. Let’s act as if we’ve all had a change of heart. We can blame it on Aunt Cathy.”
Kel turned around to look at her sisters with an evil grin on her lips. “Tell your man you’ll accept a daytime date tomorrow if he cares to make amends. At least we can all get a free meal and maybe some flowers and candies out of the bastards.”
“I’m going to tell Griff the date needs to be something pretty spectacular,” Jess said as she made her way to the table where the men were waiting for them.
Griff got up and met her halfway, taking her hand and kissing it. Ethan kept his seat, making Kel come all the way to him. Phoenix tried to wait but found he couldn’t and got up just as Cait got to him. He picked her up in his strong arms and kissed her. Then carried her off to a secluded booth.
Running his hand through her auburn ponytail, Phoenix whispered, “I’m sorry, Cait. Whatever it was that I did to make you feel uncomfortable, I’m sorry. I’ll be a gentleman tonight.”
Cait’s heart melted as he looked at her with puppy dog eyes. “Well, it’s not all your fault. Maybe my sisters and I were kind of wrong to get our panties in a bunch about you three. Aunt Cathy talked some sense into us.”
“Can I make it up to you?” Phoenix asked her as he ran his hand o
ver her cheek.
With a smile, Cait said, “You can take me on a real date tomorrow. But only in the daytime. I can’t trust you at night. Not yet.”
“Nor can I trust myself to keep my hands off you at night,” he said then kissed her with a sweet kiss. “I’ll make it a very special day for you, Cait. A date you’ll never forget.”
She sighed and leaned in for another kiss. “Good. Now, how about one more kiss before I have to get back to work?”
“I’d love to oblige you with one,” he said then planted another kiss on her delicious lips.
Jess found herself pinned against the back wall as Griff leaned his body on hers. “Baby, you look like you have something you’d like to say to me,” Griff said as he played with her long ponytail.
Her body was quivering with him all over her, but she swallowed and shook her head to clear her brain. “We’ve talked, my sisters and I. We’ve decided that we can accept dates from you guys. But daytime dates. And I expect something out of the ordinary. If you still want to see me, then you’ll agree to it.”
She shuddered as his lips brushed the area just behind her ear. “K.”
Placing her hands on his chest, she pushed him back a bit. “What time should I expect you, tomorrow?”
Griffin held out his hand. “Give me your cell.” She did as he’d asked and he called his number. “Now we have each other’s numbers, and I’ll call you in the morning to let you know what time I’ll come for you.”
“My father will be waiting to meet you, Griff,” Jess told him, trying to intimidate him a bit.
“Great, I’d love to meet the man who raised such a spunky woman.” He kissed her then, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, involuntarily.
Meanwhile, Kel took a seat across the table from Ethan as she eyed him, warily. “So, you think that you can tell our aunt some lies and get us where you want us, do you?” she said with a smirk.
“Lies? We told no lies, love. So, why the teasing last night?” he asked her as he leaned forward and took her hand which laid on the table top. His thumb stroked her palm, making her stomach go tight, and heat flood her entire body. Warmth pooled in her nether regions and Kel knew things would be harder for her than she was used to handling.
“Why the rush to go to a hotel?” Kel volleyed back.
“I do recall that you were in every bit as much of a rush as I was. Your body told me as much. Your soft skin was begging for my touch,” he said with a husky voice that made her ears ache to hear more.
“Did it ever occur to you that I might’ve been testing your character, Ethan? I told you about my heartbreak and gave you the opportunity to do the right thing, and you didn’t do it,” Kel said. “So, I’m willing to give you one more shot.”
“You are?” he asked as he moved his hand up her arm in a slow and deliberate motion. “And what kind of a shot are we talkin’ ‘bout here?”
“You can take me on a legitimate date. One in the light of day. One where you can show me you’re a gentleman and not some fly by night rogue who wishes to give me a toss in the hay then you fly away, like a thief in the night, taking my heart to a new low.”
His eyes lit up as his lips curled into a smile. “I’m in your heart?”
Kel wasn’t happy with how her words had betrayed her. “You could be. If you play your cards right.”
“Then I’ll play them right, my love. Your heart is right where I long to be. You’ve kind of broken into mine as well.”
Pulling her hand to make her stand up, he pulled her to him and then down on his lap. His mouth took hers and found it wanting as she kissed him back and wrapped her arms around him.
She’d be putty in his hands after he showed her a bit of gentlemanly behavior. Kel would be easy to get into bed, of that Ethan was sure.
15
Thanks to the women’s aunt and uncle at the bed and breakfast, the men were privy to information that had them planning dates that would definitely encourage intimacy. Griff had a rental car delivered to him and had set out to pick Jess up. He was set to impress the young woman.
Pulling up to the curb in front of their modest two-story home, Griff found it was quaint and homey. The porch was simple, cement stairs that led to a green door.
Griff carried the box of dark chocolates and a bouquet of a dozen yellow roses with him as he went to ring the bell. It was her father who opened the door. White hair, a wrinkled face, and a frown greeted him. “And you are?”
“I’m Griffin Houser, Mr. Flannigan. I’m here to pick up Jessica for our date.”
The door was pushed open as Jess’ father took a step back. “You may as well come inside. She’s not ready yet.” Mr. Flannigan was an abrupt man, none too happy looking. “They told me about you men. I can’t say I agree that any of them should be going on a date with you. We know nothing about any of you except you’re not from around here.” He took a seat in an old, beat up plaid chair and set his light blue eyes on Griffin. “So, why bother with my daughters?”
Griffin wasn’t used to being talked to in such a way. Being from a prominent family, he was always treated with a certain amount of respect. Most fathers would’ve been over the moon if he wanted to date their daughters. But he had to remember that no one in the small town knew a thing about who he really was. He took an unoffered seat on the old sofa, sinking into the deep recesses of the cushion that had seen better days.
“Mr. Flannigan, my friends and I were in Boston for a funeral. We wanted to put a spin on the sadness and make a trip through New England to check out the beautiful scenes there’re so many of in this part of the country,” Griffin said as he smiled. “When I saw your daughter in the pub, well, I knew she was an exceptional person and that I’d like to get to know her.”
“Who died?” Mr. Flannigan asked, making Griff freeze.
He wasn’t sure if he should reveal that information as it might not set well with the man. But he had no choice. He couldn’t lie to him. It was likely he’d be asking his friends the same question.
“Julia Loveless was a client of mine. She was killed in a hit and run accident. Very tragic. I was sent by my company to pay our respects to her family.” He nodded, sadly as he looked at the floor that was covered in old, rust-colored carpeting.
The house was lovely outside but dated inside. It needed a renovation pretty badly. He wondered if he paid to have that done if it’d win him some brownie points. Then he remembered the spending limit and knew that was out.
“She was your client?” Mr. Flannigan asked. “Anything more than that? Your lover perhaps?”
Griff choked as the man hit the nail on the head. “Um, uh…”
“Hey, Griff, you ready?” Jess asked as she came down the stairs that creaked under her light weight.
He jumped up, extending the box of candy and the flowers. “I am! Wow, you look beautiful!” He hurried to meet her as she stepped off the last step. “I got you these.”
Dressed in jeans and a T-shirt and a pair of tennis shoes, she hadn’t tried to impress Griff. Her long, dark blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she wore a bit of mascara and nothing else.
Jess took the box of chocolates as she leaned in to smell the roses. “My fav color, Griff. How’d you know?” She looked Griff over and found him wearing something similar, a pair of faded blue jeans, a nice pullover and a pair of Nike’s.
“Oh, are they?” he asked as he smiled shyly at her. “This is my favorite color of roses too. How interesting. Don’t you think?”
She nodded as she looked at the box of candy. “And dark chocolate is my fav too.”
“Another thing we have in common,” he said as he extended his arm for her to take.
She tucked her hand into the crook of his arm as she went to place the candy on a small table. “Put the vase of flowers in the center of this table. I think they’ll look pretty here, Griff.” She sat the box of candy next to them and kissed his cheek as her father made a huffing sound. “Thank you, I
love them.”
“You’re very welcome, Jess. Are you ready to go?” Griff asked.
“Take him to meet your mother,” her father directed. “She’s in the kitchen.”
“Come on, Griff,” Jess said as she led him out of the living room, down a dark hallway.
Griffin had to admit to himself that he was feeling a swarm of butterflies. “Is she as nice as your father is?” he asked with a little chuckle.
“You knockin’ my dad, Griff?” Jess stopped and asked him as she looked him in the eye.
“Hell no!” he said with a high voice. “I love him!”
“Good,” Jess said then continued down the hall. She pushed open a galley style door where there was an older woman with grayish hair kneading a large ball of dough. “Mom, this is Griff.”
Wiping her hands on her white apron, the woman smiled as she approached them, extending her hand. “You can call me, Mrs. Flannigan, Griff.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he said as he shook her hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“You think?” she asked with a wink. “Let me see if ya still think that after I tell you what I have to say.” She pinched his cheek. “This girl is my baby girl. If she gets hurt, then I get pissed. And I don’t handle anger very well. I tend to take it out on the flesh of who’s pissed me off. Do you understand what I’m sayin’ boy?”
Griffin nodded and thought to himself that she was much scarier than Jess’ dad. “I do, Mrs. Flannigan. I’m just going to be taking Jessica out for the afternoon. No hurting involved.”
“I want to know where it is you’re takin’ my daughter, boy,” she said then went back to beating the hell out of the dough ball.
“Lunch and a movie,” he said as he looked at Jess with wide eyes. “Is that okay with you, Jess?”
“It’ll do. Do I get to pick where we eat and what we see?” Jess asked.
“And the movie better not be one of those nasty, dirty, smutty ones, boy!” her mother warned him as she gave him a wink. Her mother’s body language was just the opposite of the words that came out of her mouth. It was amazing and frightening at the same time.
Billionaire Games Page 7