“Mom—”
She shook her head. “I never said anything and I know this isn’t the place, but I’m sorry. Sorry I stayed. Sorry I thought I could temper his personality with you boys.”
“Don’t go there. It’s in the past.”
“But it made you tough, and because of that, I know you’ll handle this.” She managed a smile. “That said, I also notice you aren’t doing it alone. Who’s the woman I saw you kissing, hmm?”
“Yeah, Damon. Who did we see you kissing?” His brother, Jaxon, put one hand on their mother’s shoulder and another on Damon’s.
“Go away,” he jokingly said to his brother.
“No can do. I’m in town so here I am. Well? Who is she?”
Deciding he might as well introduce everyone, Damon gestured for Evie to come join them. She walked over, that long hair hanging over her shoulders, her brown eyes wide with curiosity.
“Evie Wolfe, I’d like you to meet my mother, Christine, and this moron is my brother, Jaxon. Mom, Jax, my … girlfriend, Evie.”
While everyone, including Evie, digested that introduction, Damon merely grinned. Sure, Evie probably thought his declaration was for show as they’d agreed while she investigated, but Damon knew it was fucking real. Otherwise he’d never introduce her to his mother as his girlfriend. He’d have fudged the wording and explained later. At least he didn’t feel like he was lying to his mother. Not on his end, anyway.
“Oh my goodness. It’s nice to meet you!” His mom pulled a shocked Evie into a hug.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, too, Mrs. Prescott. Jaxon.” Evie smiled at them, but Damon knew she wasn’t sure of herself. Which was fine. He had enough confidence for them both.
His mom frowned. “None of that Mrs. Prescott stuff. Call me Christine.”
“Hi, Evie. What do you see in my jerk of a brother?” Jaxon grinned. “I’m kidding. Damon has great taste.”
Evie blushed and Damon pulled her into a hug.
“And I can’t wait to get my girl alone. Dinner next time you’re in town?” Damon asked his brother. “Lord knows I have the time.” His stomach churned at the reason.
“You’d better believe it.” Jax stared at him, and Damon knew it was because he couldn’t believe his one-and-done brother had found and claimed a woman.
“I’ll call,” Damon promised.
Christine glanced at Evie. “I’d love to have lunch and get to know you better.”
“Oh. I…”
“I’ll give her your number,” Damon said, relieving Evie before she stuttered over her answer. “Listen, guys, I want to say goodbye to Austin and Quinn and get going. Talk to you both soon.”
“It was nice to meet you,” Evie said.
“Call me,” his mother reminded her. “Or I’ll get your number from Damon and call you.”
He grinned. Christine Prescott was persistent. Like it or not, Evie was in for a nice prying lunch with his mother.
After extricating themselves, he grasped Evie’s hand, and they made their way back to Austin and Quinn. “Welcome to the family,” he said, giving her a hug.
“Thanks, Damon.”
“How are you doing?” Quinn asked, looking at him with concern in her eyes.
He forced a smile at the unspoken reason for the question. “I’m okay. Really.” He didn’t want anything ruining her day.
After a few more minutes, someone pulled Quinn away.
Damon turned to Evie. “Ready to go?”
“More than ready. Who knew meeting all these people was going to be ridiculously exhausting?”
He took her hand. “Then let’s go home.”
As they approached the car, with the sun shining overhead and Evie looking gorgeous, he turned and pulled out his phone. “Let’s take a picture,” he said with a grin.
She stopped and met his gaze. “What? Why?”
He laughed, knowing this was a complete role reversal. Damon Prescott taking a selfie. It was enough to make him gag. “We need to make us Instagram official.”
Her eyes opened wide. “But we aren’t a couple!”
“We are in the eyes of everyone in my world, aren’t we?” And the deeper he could embed her in his life, the harder it would be for her to dig her way out.
“Won’t this piss off John? Push him into doing something else?”
He’d considered that. “Or maybe it’ll force him to come out of hiding. And make a mistake.”
With a shrug, she came to his side. He wrapped one arm around her, held up the camera with the other, and snapped the perfect shot.
Then he took the time to upload to social media.
* * *
Meeting Damon’s family. Being invited to lunch by Damon’s mother. Damon taking a selfie to make them Instagram official. What world had Evie landed in? This was all more than she’d anticipated when she’d agreed to this charade, and she was exhausted.
“You okay?” Damon asked as he pulled the car into the driveway.
Oh. Maybe she should add to her bizarre list getting used to riding in a two-hundred-and-fifty-thousand-dollar vehicle. She glanced at her slacks, bought on sale at Marshalls, the blouse she’d found at Target and sighed.
The sound of a car horn had her jumping in her seat.
Damon turned and let out a whoop, turned the vehicle off, and practically flew out the door. Evie climbed out in time to see him engulfed by three large men, their laughter and joy in seeing each other obvious.
She walked over and waited for the back slapping and brother-like hugging to end.
Finally, Damon stepped back and caught her gaze, gesturing for her. “Evie, come meet the guys!”
She looked up and into the startling blue stare of Harrison Dare, A-list actor, action movie hero, and eye candy for most women in America. With his jet-black hair and muscled body, he had presence most other guys would envy.
“Hi … I … I’m—” She stuttered like any normal woman would.
“Evie, I take it you recognize Harrison Dare. Am I going to have to beat up my cousin?”
Harrison laughed, dimples framing his mouth. “Nice to meet you, Evie.”
“Nice to meet you, too,” she managed.
“I’m Nick,” another good-looking, dark-haired man said.
Evie shook his hand.
“And this bozo is Asher,” Damon, looking more relaxed than she’d ever seen him, said with a smile.
Asher, also gorgeous, grinned and, without warning, pulled her into a hug. “Hey, pretty lady.” He released her. “Are you why Damon’s been ducking my calls? He’s too busy with a new girlfriend?” He looked her over in what she’d call a respectful way. “I wouldn’t blame him.”
Evie felt a blush rise to her cheeks. “He’s got enough on his plate without worrying about romance, wouldn’t you say?”
“That’s why we’re here.” Asher, who had darker hair, hooked an arm around Damon’s neck. “We’re going to take his mind off his problems. Zach and Emery are sorry they couldn’t make it, by the way.”
“It’s all good.”
Damon ushered them into the house, handed out drinks, and soon they were sitting around the family room. The guys had beers, and Evie, still wiped out after the day she’d had, just kicked back in one of the recliner chairs at the end of the couch.
“How’s your head?” Asher asked Damon. “And don’t fucking lie to me.”
“I got the green light to start light workouts this morning.” Damon took a pull of his beer.
Asher glanced at Evie. “He’s okay?”
She nodded. “He is.”
Damon scowled. “Since when isn’t my word good enough?” he muttered.
“Evie, what’s your story?” Asher cocked his head to the side, those golden eyes focused on her.
She shrugged. “I’m—” She glanced at Damon for permission to tell the truth and he nodded.
“I’m a private investigator. I’m looking into who could have slipped Damon performance-enhancing
drugs and caused him to test positive,” she admitted.
Harrison frowned. “Fucking sucks, man.”
“So that means you guys aren’t a real couple?” Asher asked.
“We’re together for now,” Evie said before he could answer.
Asher glanced between them. “Okay.” He grinned, then tipped back his beer bottle and took a sip. “You’re staying here, though?” He looked at Evie. “I mean, you two changed into more casual clothes upstairs.” Asher pressed her for answers. He seemed the closest to Damon, the most invested in his life.
“I’m having some issues Damon’s helping me with.” She had no intention of getting into her personal life and admitting her vulnerabilities.
She glanced at Nick. Obviously the quietest one, he channel surfed while they talked.
“So, Evie. Did Damon ever tell you about the time he came out to Hollywood and he was a walk-on in one of my movies?” Harrison asked.
“Get out of here.” She leaned forward in her seat, crossing her legs.
“Deadly serious.”
“Tell me more.” She rested her chin on her hands, focused on the man who knew how to command attention even in a room full of other hot men, one of whom Evie couldn’t get out of her head.
Damon took a swig of beer. “Can we not go there?”
Harrison grinned. “He told his family and friends he had a walk-on. Got everyone together to watch. But when the director did his thing, all you could see on-screen was the back of Damon’s head.” He, the other two men, and even Evie burst out laughing.
“I can only imagine the shit your family gave you,” she said.
The men continued to tell old stories, kid pranks to adult brotherhood-type tales. Even Nick chimed in. These men had a bond. That much was obvious and they cared about Damon.
“So Damon, we were thinking.” Asher leaned forward in his seat. “You’ve got time to kill while you’re off. Let’s take a couple of days and go down to my place in the Bahamas. Evie, you, too.”
She blinked in surprise. She wouldn’t have expected to be included. “You have a house in the Bahamas?”
“On Windermere Island. It’s connected to Eleuthera and it’s private and secluded. You can really get away and relax there.”
She did her best not to moan at the thought of some time on a beach. No John. No threats. Nothing but water and peace.
But these weren’t her friends and she didn’t belong. In fact, she needed to remember her place. She was on the clock with Damon. She belonged here, working on his situation. Not galivanting on a private island with billionaires.
“You should go,” she told Damon. “Get away from the stress for a while.”
He narrowed his gaze. “And who’s going to watch out for you?”
“I am. And if you’re that concerned about the safety angle of my place, I can stay here. But you should get away with the guys.”
He shook his head. “I need to work out and be ready for when I can return.”
Asher turned to Damon. “I have a private gym and a trainer on call. You can work out there and not worry about slacking off. Get checked again by your team doctor when you get back. And Evie, you’re coming, too.”
Damon leaned back in his seat, his gaze steady on Evie’s. “I’ll go if you come with me.”
She closed her eyes and groaned. How was she going to keep her distance if he insisted on pulling her deeper and deeper into his life? First his mother, now his cousins?
When she didn’t answer fast enough, he jumped up, put his beer on the gorgeous rock-like table, strode over, and grabbed her hand.
“Come on. Let’s talk.” He pulled her to her feet.
She shook her head. “They’re your cousins,” she said quietly. “And they missed you. Go and—Ack!” she screamed as he knelt down and hefted her over his shoulder.
“We’re going to talk,” he insisted, striding out of the room to the sound of laughter from the guys.
* * *
Damon wasn’t one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Asher wanted a trip to his vacation home? Damon had every intention of using the time to get closer to Evie. Yeah, he was still playing the we’re pretending to be a couple game, and he would until her asshole ex had been caught and locked up. He wanted her mind free and clear to focus on them. But that didn’t mean he’d lose this opportunity to be with her.
Not wanting to bicker like an old married couple in front of the guys, he did the only thing he could think of to stop her arguing that he should go by himself. Picked her up and carried her out of the room.
Reaching the kitchen, he slid her down his body and lowered her to her feet. Before she could steady herself, he braced his hands on her waist.
“What the hell was that for?” she asked, outraged.
He shrugged. “I got tired of listening to you insist I go alone. Tell me what I’m going to do by myself on an island when we could get away from the stresses here together?”
She pursed her lips, and it was all he could do not to lean forward and kiss that sweet pucker.
“Damon, I think you’re forgetting some important facts.”
“Tell me so I can dispute them.” He grinned but she didn’t smile back, ignoring his attempt to charm her.
“One, you hired me to do a job. And I need to be in Miami to accomplish it. Two,” she said before he could open his mouth to dispute her words, “I had a few phone messages that are about upcoming jobs.” She folded her arms across her chest, her expression smug and cute, sure she’d made her point. “And three …” She trailed off.
“Out of arguments, huh? Okay, look. I heard you and I respect all your points. But I have a reply for all of your objections. One”—he held up a finger—“I hired you and I can create the parameters of the job. I know you need to find the connection between Emerson’s parents and Doc, and you can do that from your laptop in the Bahamas.”
She frowned at him but remained silent.
“Two, return the job calls and set up appointments three days from now. And since there is no three, we’re going to the Bahamas.”
She narrowed her gaze, and he could almost see the steam building inside there. He needed to cut off her anger at his highhandedness. “Don’t you want a few days on the beach? Away from our problems?”
She paused at his question. “Well, if you put it that way… But—”
He leaned in and covered her lips with his, kissing her long, deep, and extremely thoroughly. Enough to give her a taste of what their island getaway could be like before raising his head. “So, we’re good?”
She cupped his face in her hands. “Do you always get your way?”
He shrugged. “Most of the time. But in this case, it’s only because you really want the same thing. You just think you need to argue.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re crazy.”
“About you.” Yeah, he said it, but before she could question him, he yelled to the next room. “We’re in! Book the plane.”
“Book the plane? What does that even mean?” Evie asked, grasping on to the counter as if she needed to hold on.
“Harrison travels on his private jet. Do we need to go back to your place for bathing suits?” he asked.
She stared at him with those big brown eyes. “What world have I landed in?” she muttered more to herself than to him. “Yes, I need bathing suits.”
Shaking her head, she pushed herself off the counter and headed back into the other room.
He knew he’d been fast and her head must be spinning, but he also understood that was the only way he’d get her to go along. Was he still pissed about his career? Yes. Did he still want answers? Of course. But nothing was going to change in a couple of days.
And he could use that time to cement his relationship with Evie.
Chapter Eight
Evie stretched out, relaxed and utterly content. She couldn’t remember being anywhere and hearing nothing but crashing waves and blissful silence broken only by occasional
masculine laughter or rumbling voices. The beauty of this island defied description. From the blue waters and white sand to the glorious pale-colored mansions, she’d entered heaven on earth.
Although she’d had to be coerced into going, she was happy to be here now, along with the man lying beside her on a double recliner that was as luxurious as any inside bed.
She’d let her family know she was going away for a few days and not to worry if they didn’t hear from her. And when she arrived, Damon had encouraged her to shut down her phone and disconnect completely except for the times she chose to work on her laptop.
The guys had sat around most of the day, alternately drinking beer, not their vodka, and lazily tossing a football, Damon watching out for his injury.
She’d dozed off and on to the sound of their laughter and stories, and she was glad Damon had such solid friendships in his life outside of football. Evie had Quinn, a few acquaintance friends she could go out with on a girls’ night, and her four overprotective brothers. All in all, she’d take it and admit to having a good life as well. If not for the return of the jackass she’d been engaged to, that is.
She must have fallen into a deep sleep, because she woke up to the feel of Damon’s lips on hers, a low groan reverberating through his big body.
“I thought they’d never leave,” he said into her mouth before sliding his tongue between her lips.
“Where’d they go?” she managed to ask.
“Into town for happy hour,” he said, delving back in.
“Mmm. Malty. Like beer.” And she was a beer drinker. No frou-frou wine for her, and she tangled her tongue with his, tasting her favorite taste.
“I’ve been watching you in that barely there bikini all day. Hoping the guys were blind. Wanting to throw them into the ocean so I could be alone with you.”
She tangled her hands in his hair and pulled on the silken strands. “Then kiss me again.”
“Where? Here?” He licked her lips and thrust his tongue inside once more, greedily taking her mouth. “Or here?” He dipped lower, nipping at her collarbone. “Or would you prefer I kiss you here?” He slid the cup of her bikini over her breast, revealing her skin to the warm island air and his waiting mouth.
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