Cherished (Masters and Mercenaries #7.5)(43)

Will frowned. “She’s had way too much of it. And what’s wrong with her eyebrows?”

“Ah, the great brow lift of ’02. They tweaked it a bit too much and it won’t go down now. She thinks it makes her look intellectual.”

“You’re kidding.”

“Welcome to my family.” She glanced around at the usual suspects. “That’s Uncle Andrew on my mother’s side. He recently got out of jail for defrauding investors to the tune of a hundred million. He did a total of six months due to his incredibly good lawyer, and now he’s shopping a book based on the ‘enlightenment’ he found in prison. He’s talking to my Great Aunt Vespa, who is being investigated for having not one, not two, but thirteen undocumented workers living in her pool house. Yes, she had one poor girl who did nothing but take care of her hair and nails. I don’t know what she did with the rest of them. I think she tried to tell them one was a chef, but I happen to know she doesn’t eat. If you look to your left, those are my cousins, Violet and Meryl. Between the two, they’ve gone through five husbands, each older and richer than the last. No children though. That would ruin their figures. I’ve heard a rumor they’re doing a show next year called The Real Cock-Sucking, Gold-Diggers of Malibu. Or something like that.”

“Are you sure it’s not housewives?”

She rolled her eyes. “Trust me. Those two are professionals. There’s nothing stay-at-home about them.” She flipped them the finger because they were already talking behind their hands, and she knew exactly who they were talking about.

Will grabbed her hand and his eyes narrowed. “No. Bad girl. Down.”

Asshole. But he’d made her smile. “I’m not allowed to bite then?”

“Or bark.” He brought the hand to his mouth and kissed her middle finger before easing it down. “We’ll get through this my way and that means you are going to play nice. Can we do that? And I promise when you turn the other cheek because these people don’t matter and you’re better than them, I’ll give you a treat. I’ll start carrying chocolates around in my pocket.”

He’d changed into slacks, a dress shirt, and a sport coat. His hair was still slightly wet from taking over her shower. That had been one of the five times since the damn plane that he’d decided to show her his deep affection. She couldn’t help but laugh at him. “I am not your puppy, Will. We are not going there.”

He’d been teasing her about puppy play. She was so not tempted.

He leaned over and whispered in her ear. “But then I could pet you and rub your sweet belly, and when you’re good, I could give you a treat to lick.”

Yeah, she could imagine exactly what he would offer her. “But I’m a puppy who buries her treats, babe.”

He sent her a wounded look. “That’s rude. Bad puppy. Puppy wants a spanking.” He leaned over and kissed her. “Puppy’s going to get one.”

“Well, that looks like it worked.” Chris strode up looking spectacularly handsome in slacks and a polo. He also looked like he hadn’t spent the day being penetrated by a horny doctor. He had a glow about him that spoke of a day in the sun. “The evil twins are shooting you nasty looks.”

She glanced over and sure enough, they were staring at Will and then back at her like they were trying to figure out what had happened to the universe that she’d landed such a hottie.

Her first instinct was to shout out something like “look what my porn money bought,” but she decided Will would likely view that as misbehaving. She was going to be a good puppy. For now.

Not that she was going to do the puppy thing. Not at all. Most likely.

She settled for what she hoped was a serene smile.

“Oh, shit, who did you kill?” Chris asked, his eyes wide.

Will waved him off. “She didn’t kill anyone. She’s taking a ladylike approach to her relatives.”

Chris stared at her like she’d grown horns. “What kind of drugs did you give her and can I get some?”

“Jerk.” She was sure her good behavior would throw Chris for a loop, but she was willing to try it Will’s way. She usually attended these events with full on rebellion and defiance, but he was right. They weren’t worth the effort. She smiled her cousins’ way.

“Oh, god. Are you going to kill Violet?” Amy was standing in front of her, shaking her head in horror.

Did no one really believe she could smile simply because she was happy? “I’m not going to kill anyone. I’m happy to see you. How’s the corporate world treating you?”

Her baby sister was a VP at Slaten, and from what Bridget had heard, she was one of the smartest young executives in the business. With a slender form and chicly cut black hair, she could pass for a model, but there was no doubt about her brainpower. She’d graduated from Wharton School of Business. She hugged Bridget warmly and then kissed Chris on the cheek. “It would be wonderful if I liked my boss.”

Their father. The bastard. “Why don’t you quit? Why are you doing this? Amy, we can get on a plane today and I’ll help you until you find your feet.”

“We can find you a place to live in Dallas, and I have no doubt you can easily get a job there,” Chris said.

Her sister had a great resume. She could do it. It would be hard for Amy to leave everything behind, but Bridget had done it.