Emily let out a gasp, spitting water from her mouth. She shot Gavin a smirk and splashed him back. With all his little might, Timothy tossed the beach ball over the net, scoring a wicked point for the boys. Startled by the sudden attack, Theresa began to cry out in hysterics. Without hesitation, Gavin swam over to her and scooped her into his arms.
Perched on the pool stairs, Gavin cradled her. “Theresa, Uncle Gavin’s sorry, honey. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Uncle Gaffin, you hurt Emm-mi-me,” she sniffed.
“No, Theresa, he didn’t hurt me.” Emily held out her arms, coaxing her to sit by her. Theresa sat herself in Emily’s lap. “He just splashed me, that’s all.”
Theresa sniffed again. “Uncle Gaffin is a meanie; you should hit him.”
Gavin playfully frowned as his eyes widened. “You think she should hit me?”
Theresa giggled and nodded.
Gavin looked to Emily and shrugged, pointing to his arm. “I guess Colton and Melanie are raising some hostile children,” he laughed. “Take your best shot, doll.”
Smiling, Emily acted as though she hit him, and Gavin howled out in his best wounded voice.
Theresa laughed, quite satisfied by the blow.
“Mom said you made my daughter cry, Gavin?”
Gavin turned around and smiled. “Hey, Mel. Yeah, I scared her a little, but she’s okay now. Aren’t ya, squirt?” He tickled Theresa’s toes.
She laughed and kicked her feet away from him. “Uncle Gaffin’s girfend hit him for me.”
With a sweep of her arm, Melanie motioned to Timothy to get out of the pool. She then tossed her long blonde hair over her shoulder, quirked a curious brow, and smiled in Gavin’s direction.
“She’s not my girlfriend,” Gavin laughed, standing up. “She’s Dillon’s girlfriend. Emily, this is my wonderful sister-in-law, Melanie.”
Holding Theresa’s hand in hers, Emily rose to her feet and smiled. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“The pleasure’s all mine,” she said, returning the smile.
“Your children are adorable,” Emily said.
“Thank you, but I bet you’d beg to differ when they’re screaming and fighting with one another over a box or something crazy like that.”
Emily laughed.
Turning to Gavin, an impish grin slid across Melanie’s mouth. The threat in his eyes told her not to even go there—but she would.
She turned back to Emily. “Emily, do you have any available sisters or friends that Gavin might be interested in dating?”
Emily looked to Gavin. “Ongoing family thing?”
Crossing his arms, Gavin shook his head and smiled. “Bingo.”
Emily laughed and looked over to Melanie. “I do have a sister, but she’s married already. I can call a few friends though.”
“Perfect,” Melanie replied, placing her hand on Gavin’s arm.
With that, Theresa tugged at Melanie’s leg as she rubbed her sleepy eyes. Melanie picked her up. “Emily, make sure to call them soon. My brother-in-law’s getting too old to still be single,” she quipped and took off in a pretty fast pace toward the backdoor.
Letting out a sigh, Gavin smiled and handed Emily a towel. “She’s a…difficult one, my sister-in-law.”
“She seems nice though.” Emily accepted the towel from him as she tried to drag her gaze away from his tattoo that was now wet and glistening in the sunlight. Blowing out a breath, she swallowed hard and refocused her eyes back on his face. “I find it funny that everyone’s trying to get you hooked up with someone.”
“Yeah, tell me about. They have this odd thing about me being single right now.”
As Emily was about to ask him if he really wanted her to call some friends for him, Dillon snaked his arms around her waist from behind and kissed her neck. Surprised, she jumped and laughed at her sudden shock. The rest of the anglers strolled into the backyard looking sunburned, tired, and just a tad intoxicated. After some light conversation regarding the amount of fish that each man caught and a little more teasing of Gavin not being able to attend, the group dispersed as everyone went to take showers.
“So you went swimming I see,” Dillon remarked, peeling the shirt from his body as he and Emily entered their room. Closing the door behind him, he shed the rest of his clothing and tossed them into a pile.
“Very good observation,” she laughed.
Dillon walked into the bathroom, turned on the shower, and got in. “I hope you kept the body that belongs to me covered up around my friend,” he called out.
Emily rolled her eyes and searched her bag for a particular red gauzy sundress that she’d brought along. It was one that her mother had purchased for her on their last trip to see her sister in California. She smiled when she found it, holding it up against her body as she looked into the mirror.
“You’re not answering me, Emily. Did you cover yourself up?”
Walking into the bathroom, she let out a frustrated sigh. “Dillon, what do you see right now?” she asked, motioning her hand over her body, her voice a touch irritated by his question. It was clear to her that she wasn’t baring too much skin.
“What do I see right now? I see my hot girlfriend’s ass hanging out from beneath her college T-shirt. So why don’t you get in the shower and give your man what he needs?”
“You think I’m having sex with you right now?” she asked, her eyes bulging. “There’s a shitload of people downstairs.”
“Get in the shower, Emily,” he commanded simply.
“What the hell’s wrong with you, Dillon? I said no.”
“Come on, Em. It’s just hard for me to see you looking like that and not want to fuck around,” he calmly replied as he got out of the shower. He walked over to where she was leaning against the vanity. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you while I was gone.”
Pressing his body against hers, he quickly dipped his hand into her bikini bottom, making sure to slide his fingers inside her.
A faint moan escaped her lips as she tried to push him away.
“See, you like that.” His voice notched down huskily as he grazed his lips over hers. Sliding his fingers in and out, he used his other hand to glide her bikini bottom down past her thighs. “This pussy’s mine. No one else’s, Emily. Mine,” he groaned against her cheek.
As she pushed him away again, a knock came at the bedroom door. Shooting Emily a hard glare, Dillon yanked a towel from the rack, tossed it around his waist, and leisurely strolled over to answer it. It was Trevor, letting him know that a potential client eager to speak with him regarding a commodities plan was downstairs. Within five minutes, Dillon was dressed and out the door to go talk business. Emily was left alone in the room, wondering what the man—whom she desperately loved—was really morphing into.
By the time Emily calmed her nerves, showered, and got ready, it was a quarter past seven, and the party was in full swing. True to Dillon’s words, there had to have been at least 150 people scattered throughout the property. She wove through the crowd of unrecognizable faces as she searched for him. When she couldn’t find him among the masses, she took a seat at one of the bars set up on the patio.
After downing a shot of tequila, a slight pang of guilt for not giving Dillon the little he had asked from her hit the pit of her stomach. He’d emotionally taken care of her through the most difficult time in her life, constantly complimented her on a daily basis—whether it be about her physical or educational attributes—and made her want for nothing financially. Sex in someone’s home—be it crowded or not—shouldn’t have been an issue in her mind.
Before the shortcomings she felt about herself regarding their relationship cut deeper into her heart, Emily caught a glimpse of Gavin from across the pool, talking with a group of women. As he made conversation with them, he used his hands in intimate ways—a slight touch on the nape of the neck to get their attention, a casual brush on the arm as they spoke, or a light press against the small of the back when he would laugh—and the women fell all over themselves when he did. Emily swallowed hard when he glanced in her direction, essentially catching her staring at him. She watched him excuse himself from the eager wannabe-future-Mrs.-Gavin-Blake group as he made his way toward her.
Casually dressed in a white linen shirt and khaki shorts, he approached her with a smile and leaned against the bar. “I find it impossible that a woman as beautiful as you look this evening is sitting here alone.”
Without missing a beat, Emily laughed. “You’re truly a connoisseur of knowing what to say and do to women.”
He cocked a smug brow and smiled. “I don’t know about that; however, I
am
a connoisseur of making the world’s most delectable ham sandwiches,” he laughed and so did Emily. Holding her gaze, he took a long pull from his beer. “But, really, where’s the man that should be sitting by your side at this very moment?”
She surveyed the crowd again. “He’s around here somewhere.”
As Gavin’s eyes roamed over his guests in an attempt to locate Dillon, his eyes locked on Monica Lemay. She was making her way over to him and Emily, a malicious grin smearing across her face. He hastily excused himself from Emily, letting her know he’d be right back.
Monica rolled her eyes as Gavin approached. “Have you come to give me a warning as well?” She pushed up on her tiptoes and nipped on his earlobe. He recoiled, pulling away from her. “Because there’s no need to do so. I’ve already been
thoroughly
warned by Dillon to act as if I don’t know him for the evening and to also stay away from his little girlfriend over there, too.”
Gavin glared at her, angling his head to the side, his eyes hard. “Oh, have you? Then why did it just appear as though you were going to say something to her?”
“Can a girl not get a drink from the bar?” she asked, affecting a venomous sneer.
“Go to one of the other bars, Monica.” He leaned down to her ear, lowering his voice to an icy whisper. “You’re a fucking snake. Don’t think I can’t see through you.” He took a step back. “You stay the fuck away from her. Do you understand me?”
She tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder and crossed her arms as she looked away.
“Monica, look me in the eyes and tell me if you see a man who’s easily deterred from ripping your whole world to shreds.”
She drew up a brow, her hazel eyes wide. “What the fuck is that supposed to mean, Gavin?”
“It means that Blake Industries is a major benefactor in your father’s company. I hold more than seventy-five percent of its stocks. I’ll sell off every single one of them on Monday with a quick phone call.” He leaned in closer, and she took a step back. “Wall Street will have a field day, and by Tuesday, you and your family will be scrounging for scraps in the alleys of Harlem.”
She sucked in an indignant breath as her lips pulled down at the corners. “You wouldn’t!”
“Fucking try me.” He turned away and ran smack into Colton.
“Whoa, little man, you look furious.”
Gavin glanced over to where Emily remained seated at the bar. “I’m fine. What’s up?” he sniffed.
“Mom needs you in the kitchen,” he said, raking his hand through his hair. “I don’t know—something about someone down by the gates, trying to get onto the property that’s not on the authorized list.”
Emily nodded in Gavin’s direction when she caught his gaze from across the pool. He was holding up a finger to her as though letting her know he would be right back. She watched as he quickly vanished through the crowd, making his way into the house. She recognized the woman he was speaking with from the bar a few days before. She wondered why he would invite his ex to the party or why she would show up. It was obvious to Emily that they still had ongoing issues.
As Emily ordered a drink, a tall muscular man around her age approached her, the smell of booze seeping clear out of his pores.
Smoothing a piece of his brown hair away from his forehead, he gave her a crooked smile. “Pretty cool party, right?”
Emily glanced at him as she accepted her beer from the bartender. “Yes, it is,” she smiled.
“So are you here with anyone, or am I just the fucking luckiest guy at this party to have stumbled upon a hot-looking single girl?”
That’s a killer pick-up line, asshole
, she thought. “Sorry, I’m here with someone.”
He let out a superior huff. “Who? Cause I know everyone here. I just may have to give him a beat down.”
This is getting better by the minute.
“Dillon Parker.”
The man furrowed his brows. “You’re not with Dillon Parker. He’s still with Monica Lemay.” He took a large swallow of his drink. “At least I thought he was.”
Now you have my attention, jerkoff.
“Who’s Monica Lemay?”
“Do you know Gavin?”
Emily quickly nodded.
“She’s the piece of blonde-haired prime meat he was just talking with by the pool.”
This moron is definitely drunk.
“No, you must be confused. The woman Gavin was just speaking with is his ex-girlfriend—not Dillon’s.”
The man adamantly shook his head. “Gavin’s never dated Monica. We grew up together; he can’t stand her.” He downed another shot before continuing. “I’ve spent many Fourth of July parties at this house,” he pointed a finger across the yard. “And I’ve witnessed Dillon and Monica stumble out of that very guesthouse many mornings after, barely dressed. They definitely fucked.”
As she stood up, dazed at what he had just revealed, Emily tried to swallow. Her throat felt like razor-sharp blades were sliding into her esophagus.
“Hey, so you wanna give me your number or what?”
Without a backward glance, Emily pushed her way through the crowd. Their screeching voices, laughter, and jovial faces were a distant blur—a complete fuzz in her mind. A thin sheen of sweat beaded over her flesh as panic set it. She made her way toward the beckoning glow of the house. Walking past the kitchen, she spotted Gavin talking with his mother. He looked in her direction as she stormed into the living room.
When Emily rounded the corner to the hall, air whooshed from her lungs as her heart imploded into a gut-wrenching burst of effervescence upon seeing Dillon with Monica. The organ suffered another devastating blow when she saw Monica snaking her arms around Dillon’s neck, drawing him into her, and then it happened—the kiss. Unable to fully comprehend what was going on, Emily cupped her hand over her mouth as tears welled in her eyes. Incapable of witnessing their exchange any further, she spun herself around, her body colliding against Gavin’s chest. He caught her by the arms, flicking his eyes down to her face and then over her shoulder as they narrowed on Dillon and Monica.