ROYAL ROCK(91)

“Can’t lie to daddy, or just feel like fucking with me?”

“A little bit of both.”

“Harsh.” He grinned at me. “Okay then, I guess I have no other choice.”

“Great. Tomorrow?”

“Cool. How about you, Lydie?”

She smiled stupidly. “Tomorrow. Sure. I’d love to get with you tomorrow.”

He raised an eyebrow, smiling.

“Go you with, I mean,” she said quickly. “Go with you tomorrow.”

“Great. Sounds like a little threesome.”

I rolled my eyes at him. He stood up and stretched, and I could have sworn he gave me a little wink. Lydie, meanwhile, was practically fingering herself.

“See you girls later.”

“Bye, prick,” I mumbled.

“Bye, Nate,” Lydie chirped.

He turned and walked away. I stared at the muscles in his back, shocked that there could even be so many.

“Get yourself together, Lydie,” I said to her after a minute.

“Did I just get in the pool? Because I’m soaking wet.”

“Gross. He’s a total asshole.”

“Are you kidding? He seems amazing.”

“You don’t know him.”

“Maybe.” She looked at me seriously. “Can I go for him?”

I blinked at her, surprised. I shouldn’t have been, but part of me was assuming she wouldn’t go any further than making stupid jokes and comments. Then again, she didn’t know what had happened between him and me, and as far as she knew we were just stepsiblings. He was technically fair game for her.

And yet why was I so annoyed? I didn’t want Lydie anywhere near him. She was my best friend, but she had always been the popular one. She had blond hair, big boobs, a nice body, and a bubbly, out-going personality. She was basically the opposite of me, except for maybe the boobs. The thought of her with Nate made me somewhat angry, although I shouldn’t have been.

“Sure, whatever,” I said, looking away. “He’s just my stepbrother.”

“Are you positive? Seriously, Claire, I won’t do anything if you don’t want me to.”

What was I supposed to say? Sorry, Lydie, I want to suck my stepbrother’s cock so bad it makes my pussy practically burn with desire. That would be stupid. If I told her not to, I’d look lame and petty.

“Go ahead. Do you.”

“Thanks, girl.” She turned over, laying facedown.

I turned myself over, too, annoyed. I pulled out my phone and began to scroll through Facebook, trying to ignore my own feelings. Meanwhile, Lydie seemed to fall asleep. More likely she was having a wet dream about Nate pulling his Navy SEAL magic on her overused pussy.

I stopped myself mid-thought. I shouldn’t be unfair to her. She had always been a good friend. It wasn’t her fault that I was too much of a chicken to tell her the truth. I needed to get over my own insecurities and move on.

Besides, maybe it was better this way. If Lydie kept Nate entertained, he’d stop messing with me. Really, it was a win-win for everyone. Nate got the sex he so obviously craved, Lydie got the hot Nate body she so clearly was obsessing over, and I didn’t have to worry that my drop-dead gorgeous stepbrother was going to try to get me off again.

Tomorrow was going to be okay. We’d get through it and make it work somehow.

I sighed, relaxing, letting the bright sun warm me to sleep.





NATHAN

Jonathan gestured at a boat with the words “Sea Fairy” in red on the side.

“There she is,” he said proudly.

“Sea Fairy?” I asked him.

“My second wife picked the name,” he grumbled. “Felt wrong to change it.”

“Sure. Of course.”

I would never own a boat with a name like that, I thought to myself, trying to keep from laughing. I’d rather sink the damn thing.

It was around ten in the morning and the girls weren’t ready yet. The marina was walking distance from the house, and so Jonathan had insisted on bringing me down early to show me the boat.

As if I’d never been on a boat before. I could pilot his piece of shit yacht through a hurricane if I had to. Sailing it around the bay was something I could do blackout drunk and blind. But Jonathan clearly cared a lot about his Sea Fairy, and I didn’t feel like pushing the point. He probably wanted to impress me, but it was really just a giant, glorified party boat with a slightly bigger engine and a much nicer décor.

“She’s one of the biggest here,” he was saying as we climbed aboard. “Fully stocked, so don’t worry about that. Take whatever you guys want.” He motioned toward the aft. “Bar over there, if you feel the need.” He winked, and I almost wanted to punch him.