Banking the Billionaire (Billionaire Bad Boys, #2)(60)

Unhappy with that line of thinking, I shut it down completely before it  could get carried away. I had enough baggage working against me on this  trip. I didn't need anything extra weighing me down.

"Come on, Frankie," I grumbled. "Help me set this shit up."

The sound of Cassie's laughter finally died down as I stepped outside  and shut the door. That could have been the soundproofing of my Range  Rover, though.

"Why does Cassie look like she swallowed a clown?" Georgia asked from  across the site. Kline had her holding one corner of their tent while he  staked the one opposite. Tall trees shot up around the entire  perimeter, and pine needles made a bed on the ground in between. It was  big enough to hold six or seven tents, thankfully. Of course, Wes was  late like always, so if we somehow managed to run out of room, the joke  would be on him.

Frankie was all too eager to share the cause of Cassie's near on fit of hilarity. "Thatch just showed her his science boner."

"It was bound to happen sometime," Kline shouted. "I think it's some  kind of mathematical certainty. After he showed her his other boner so  many times, he was contractually obligated to show her this one."

"There!" I pointed as though there was some high court in the woods that  would come down with an explanation or ruling. "Jesus. Why doesn't  anyone make fun of Kline for being smart?"

Kline smirked and gave me an innocent shrug while Georgia leaned down to whisper something in his ear with a blush.

Fucking hell.

"Come on, Thatcher," Cassie called, having finally exited the car with a  squirming Phil in her arms. "Come set up our tent so you can show me  your thunder down under!"

Crazy.

Mine.





"Let's take a hike!" Georgia stood in front of my lawn chair and held  out her outstretched hand. "Come on, lazy bones, let's get some fresh  mountain air." Phil tugged at the leg of my chair in an attempt to go to  her. Fucking Georgia. The Animal Whisperer.

Thatch had been right about the rain yesterday, and truth be told, I'd  been impressed as hell by his plethora of random knowledge. I mean, the  guy hadn't gone to school for that shit, but still, he had a real  understanding of it.

After I buttered him up with some bedtime boning, he'd finally told me  that late in college, he'd been restless and searching for things to  drown out the white noise. When he wasn't getting Kline and Wes into all  the trouble he could think up, he was studying all kinds of things  until his mind started to wander again.

The result was one really fucking smart fiancé.

My face scrunched up in annoyance. "Ugh, Wheorgie," I muttered and  wished I was anywhere but in the hot heat of the midafternoon sun in the  middle of the goddamn wilderness. "It's hot. I'm annoyed. And you're  too fucking perky."

Camping was one of those things that was a good idea in theory. But when  you actually experienced it-the bugs, the heat, sleeping on the hard  ground of a tent-you realized it sucked donkey dick.

She laughed. "Shut up and come with me."

"Why can't Big Dick go hiking with you?"

"Because he just walked down to the water with the guys and Claire to fish."

I slipped my sunglasses over my eyes and leaned my head back, hoping she'd eventually go away if I fell asleep.

"That's not going to work," she declared, and I heard her footsteps  crunch against the gravel as she moved behind me. "Get your ass up!" she  exclaimed as she gripped the top of my chair and pushed forward. Phil  took off as soon as the end of his leash cleared the bottom of the leg.         

     



 

I fell out of my seat, and my ass hit the ground a few seconds later.

"What the hell!" I shouted and looked up to find my asshole of a best  friend grinning down at me with a hand on her hip. "My pig is on the  loose now!"

"Might as well give in now. You have to go catch Phil anyway." She held  her hand out again, and I eventually took it and got to my feet.

"For the record, you're my least favorite person on this camping trip."

"That's okay, Casshead." She wrapped her arm around my shoulders and all  but pushed me toward the trails. "I'll win your love back before the  hike is through."

I snorted. "Don't hold your breath."

For maybe the fourth time in my life, I broke into a jog before Phil  could wander off to some deserted section of the woods where inbreds  lived.

"Which trail do you want to take?" she asked when Phil and I came back a few minutes later.

I had two options, go up or go down, and for some insane reason, my  belly didn't drop to my feet at the thought of facing a few heights. I  had a feeling this had everything to do with Thatcher and his need to  desensitize me to things. I pointed toward the one that led up rather  than down. "Let's see what kind of views we can catch above the water."

She grinned.

"Don't take that as me getting excited about this."

"Oh, I won't," she said but continued with her perfect fucking grin.

As we made our way up the trail, I couldn't help but get lost in the  lush views of trees and nature as far as the eye could see. It was a  different world from the hustle and bustle of the city. And if I was  being a little honest, I was enjoying the change of pace. Besides the  mosquitos buzzing and the dirt kicking up into my face and the overall  sweaty quality my skin tended to take up in this heat-infested shit  forest, it was really kind of nice.

We passed through a clearing and I stopped, staring in the direction of  the edge of a cliff that jackknifed straight toward the lake. Slowly, I  inched forward until I could peek over and catch sight of the sun  glistening off the water. My head spun a bit from the abrupt drop, but I  had the overwhelming urge to strip naked and jump in.

"Holy shit, this is gorgeous," Georgia said, taking in the view. "Are  you okay, Cassie? I know heights aren't really your thing."

"I'm good, actually." My feet inched a little closer to the edge. "I  feel like that water is calling my name right now. It's so hot out here I  swear I'm going to end up choking on air."

She held her hands above her eyes to block out the bright rays. "Hey, isn't that the guys and Claire?"

I glanced toward the left and saw our group kicked back on the rocky  edge, fishing poles in hand. They were definitely within yelling  distance. "Yo, Thatch!" I shouted, and he glanced up in our direction.  "Take off your pants!"

"Show me your tits!" he called back, and I could see his wide grin.

Georgia laughed, and I had the overwhelming urge to do something a  little reckless as I continued to stare down at the water. Fuck it, you  only live once, I thought as I toed out of my shoes and took off my  T-shirt and jean shorts, leaving me in only my bra and panties, and  handed Phil's leash to Georgia.

"Whoa, what are you doing, Cassie?" she questioned in confusion.

"I'm going to jump in," I told her.

Thatch's booming voice caught my attention. "Cass! What are you doing? Put your clothes back on!"

"I'm going in!" I pointed toward the water.

"Cassie!" He abruptly stood up from his spot on the rocks and waved his  arms in the air frantically. "Don't jump, honey! It's not safe!"

"It's fine, Thatcher!" I responded as I moved even closer to the edge.  My bare feet scraped against the dirt until they hit the final rocks  that led to a possible death. Or a good time laced with an adrenaline  rush.

"Cassie!" His voice grew louder as he tried like to hell to get my attention again.

"I don't think this is a good idea," Georgia said from behind me.

My heart felt like a sports car speeding from zero to sixty in three  seconds flat. It had revved up to an overwhelming speed, and I slowed my  quick breaths in an attempt to calm it down.

Man, that's really fucking high. Hell, I must be high to even be considering this.

I probably was high. High on life. High on Thatch. High on every insane  yet amazing thing that had happened in the past few months.

Even though my stomach had taken up residence in my feet, I didn't want  to walk away from this silent challenge I had given myself. I hated when  something could control me, prevent me from doing something I'd  probably end up loving.         

     



 

Yeah, go fuck yourself, heights.

I convinced myself I wasn't a total ball sac. I could handle this. I  could do this. Thatch had talked me through the last few  accomplishments, but this one would be all my own.

"It's not that far down," I pointed out. "People cliff jump out here all the time."

"Thatch looks really upset."

I glanced back down at him and saw he was booking it up the small trail  that led to their fishing spot. His eyes stayed locked in my direction  the entire time.

"Shit," I muttered. "He's a man on a mission."

"Um, yeah, I'd say he doesn't want you to cliff jump," she announced, her gaze moving with Thatch as he got closer.