The Wright Mistake(2)

He grinned, not at all sheepish. “Can’t blame me.”

“Not in the least.”

Heidi appeared then in tiny white cutoffs and her hot-pink bathing suit top. She had a huge floppy hat on her head, her long blonde hair falling to her waist, and sunglasses to cover her entire face. “I’m so fucking ready!”

She clobbered me on sight, planting a kiss on my cheek.

“You’re insane,” I told her.

“And you are wearing too many clothes.”

“Don’t say that around Emery. She might get jealous,” I said about Heidi’s long-time best friend.

“Can I watch?” Landon asked from where he was standing with his arms crossed, eyeing us.

“You can join in,” Heidi said with a wink. Then, she smacked my ass and hopped into the front seat.

I climbed into the back, and once Landon was in the driver’s seat, we were off and away.

It was only a twenty-minute drive to Ransom Canyon, and Heidi kept me from brooding too much about my recent breakup. Not that I was actually upset about leaving Trevor. I was more upset that he was right. I liked uncomplicated fun. Preferably with a lot of mind-blowing sex.

“So, who all did you say would be here?” I asked again.

“Um…” Heidi trailed off.

Landon shot her a look of frustration. “My family mostly.”

“Mostly?”

“Heidi and Emery and her sister, Kimber, and her husband, Noah, and their two kids will also be there.”

“And?” I added.

“And Patrick,” Landon said, adding Austin’s best friend as an afterthought.

“What happened to all the hot, eligible bachelors, Heidi?”

She chewed on her bottom lip, and her big blue eyes searched my face. “About that—”

“Oh, you’re such a bitch.”

Great. I was going to be the only single girl there who wasn’t related to the Wright family. And the two single guys there were totally off-limits. Just perfect.

Heidi laughed and just shrugged. Clearly, this had all been part of her evil plan. The little witch.

Landon parked his Jeep next to a giant truck, which I vaguely recalled belonging to the eldest Wright sibling, Jensen.

Landon waved us off when we tried to help. “Go on and check out the lake. I’ve got this.”

“Thanks, Landon,” I said.

Heidi kissed his cheek, grabbed my hand, and dashed down the hill to the dock below. Ransom Canyon was a town of only about a thousand people, but the lake filled up all summer. And it was busiest on Fourth of July and Memorial Day. As in…today. Boats were everywhere with parties happening all up and down the lake. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a loss after all.

We skipped to a stop when we got to the end of the dock, and Heidi laughed before peeling her shorts off.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Taking a swim. Come with me, lover.”

“Uh, no. I do not have a swimsuit on.”

“That’s no fun.” She handed me her floppy hat, tied up her blonde hair, and then cannonballed into the water, as if she didn’t have a care in the world.

I laughed as she splashed water up on me and took a step back. “You’re crazy!”

“Oh my God, get in! The water is amazing!”

“No chance in hell. I have to change first.”

Heidi pouted as she treaded water. “You’re missing out. Emery would do it.”

“Don’t care. You can’t goad me into this.”

“Aw, I just want you to have some fun. Since you finally ditched Mr. Boring.”

“He was not boring.”

Heidi rolled her eyes and ducked underwater. “He was so boring,” she said when she came up for air. “My girl is fire and passion and tattoos and top-shelf whiskey.”

“You must be thinking of someone else,” I teased.

“Come on. Show me those tattoos!”

“Later! When I have a freaking swimsuit on. Unless you are just dying to see my thong.”

Heidi raised an eyebrow. “I bet everyone here would die to see your thong.”

“You’re incorrigible.”

“Would you rather talk about Trevor?”

I shook my head. “Let’s go back to my thong.”

“Did someone say thong?” a voice called from behind me on the deck.

I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and then exhaled slowly. Exactly what I didn’t want to deal with. I turned and came face-to-face with Austin fucking Wright.

He looked…fucking gorgeous. His almost-black hair was sharp on the sides but longer in the front. He had haunted dark eyes and a smile like a razor blade. His cheekbones were hollow and jawline chiseled out of marble. And he was fucking shirtless.

His swim trunks rode low on his hips, revealing the carefully maintained six-pack and the sexy V. I didn’t know how he managed it with the amount of alcohol in his system, but he was cut as fuck. Bulging biceps and ripped pecs with a half-sleeve bleeding into his chest. Ink that I had touched every inch of.