I bit the inside of my cheek to stop a giggle escaping. Of course, he'd notice her wording on that.
Parker held up his hands which did absolutely nothing to distract me from the vein that curved down the inside of his left bicep, disappearing briefly before snaking down his inner forearm. "I'm only an asshole to people who make a point of being an asshole to me." His dark gaze landed on me as a flash of amusement crossed his expression.
"Yeah, right, I started it," I snapped back at it. "Who pulled the head off my favorite Barbie and flushed it when I was three?"
"You're the one who kicked a ball into my guinea pig."
"Accidentally. I was aiming for your fat head."
"You had a shit aim."
"Yeah, well, your ego was a lot smaller than it is now."
"You're right." He grinned. "Now, it'd probably bounce right off it without touching me. You'd need someone to hit you in the ass for you not to feel anything."
"I wish someone would hit you in the ass. With a bullet." I turned around, sticking my middle finger up over my shoulder.
Annoyance tickled down my spine. I didn't give a shit that he'd basically called my ass fat-he'd been saying that since I hit puberty. I was annoyed because once again, I'd fully risen to the bait and given him the satisfaction of knowing he'd pushed my buttons.
"See?" Lani whispered not-so-quietly to Brett. "Real hatred or sexual tension hatred? We can't decide."
"The most sexual thing about our relationship is the pleasure I'll get when someone finally rams their fist in his face," I ground out. Then, to the tune of Brett's attempt to cough over his laughter, I spun back to look at Parker. "Aren't you supposed to be working?"
He shrugged. "Technically, but since nobody has ordered food in over an hour, I closed the kitchen."
"And you didn't think to ask me if you could do that?"
"Contract says I can do that since I run it. Would you prefer I asked you for permission?"
"I'd prefer to be informed," I said sharply.
"All right." He stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Raven, it's been over an hour since anyone ordered food and it doesn't look like it's getting busier, so I closed the kitchen."
"It's a miracle you've made it this long without someone breaking your nose."
"It's a miracle nobody has suffocated you with a sock to shut you up."
"No wonder my brother is still single. His taste in the people he surrounds himself with is shit."
"At least his taste is the problem. Your personality is yours."
"Definitely sexual," Camille butted in. "No doubt about it. I'm starting to get jealous."
A breathy 'ugh' sound escaped me as I once again righted myself to look out to the water. "Give me a break."
"We tried," Lani reasoned quietly. "Then the testosterone arrived."
"I don't do well with walking cocks," I said, grabbing my tumbler and putting my straw in my mouth. I knew there was a reason I'd been drinking this slowly.
All right, so part of it was because I'd have to go back to the bar to get another drink, but whatever.
"I have a question," Brett said after a moment of mutual silence from us all. "He's your brother's best friend, right?" He looked at me. "How have you not killed each other?"
"We're generally kept apart, so this new arrangement is very...testing," I answered. "The hatred is almost biological."
"It's the Karras blood," Parker added. "It's more prevalent in the women than it is in Ryan."
"So help me, Parker Hamilton, or I will unleash the full extent of that blood on you," I warned him.
Brett glanced at me. "You're Greek?"
"No, I'm from Russia."
"That explains the temper." He slowly nodded.
I wasn't going to dignify that with a response. It was quite simple. If you pissed me off, you saw my temper. The solution was to not piss me off. So, really, the fact that the I was sometimes...hot-headed...had nothing to do with it. Other people being idiots had everything to do with the fact I had a bit of a hot temper.
"I feel like so much of the past two years make sense now," Brett continued.
I pinned him with a hard stare.
"I'm gonna take him home before he keeps talking himself into his hole." Lani jumped up and brushed sand off her butt. "Will Sienna give me the key to grab my laptop?"
I nodded as Camille and Brett both stood. "Keep the tumblers. I have tons."