She looked at me like I was something she’d just scraped off the bottom of her shoe, and Roy raised his eyebrows.
“You two know each other?” he asked.
“Yeah, we met at that fundraiser thing Mom sent me to. Arizona was working there,” I replied. “The uh…Wormwood Hotel?”
“Did we?” Arizona said, her expression impassive. “It’s Rosewood.”
My grin faded. “Er…yeah. It was only two weeks ago.”
“I served a lot of customers at that job,” she replied, throwing a rueful smile at Roy and my mother. “Sorry, I can never remember all the faces and names.”
Bullshit. There was no way she didn’t remember me. The disdainful look she’d thrown at me when I’d first said hi to her was enough evidence of that, so clearly she still couldn’t stand me. Jesus Christ, what the hell had I done to her? Surely she wasn’t that pissed that I’d tried to hit on her and slipped a note with my number into her friend’s hand to pass on to her. I mean, come on…she was hot as hell. She probably had guys hit on her all the time, so it wasn’t like it was a huge deal.
Whatever. If she wanted to be a bitch, then so be it. Two can play at that game, princess, I thought, cold seeping into my eyes as I watched her chat away with my mother about some old movie. After all the shit she’d been through with discovering she was secretly the daughter of a billionaire after being kidnapped as a baby, she was probably going to need years of intense therapy to get over it. So now she wasn’t just a bitch, she was a crazy bitch.
And yet I still wanted to fuck her brains out.
It was obvious what was wrong with me now. She was like the forbidden fruit; the one girl who I couldn’t have, not just because she was my long-lost stepsister, but because she’d made it abundantly clear that she would rather lick razor blades and swim with sharks than go within fifty feet of me.
“Well, it’s been great playing happy families, but I have somewhere to be,” I said curtly, turning on my heel and striding out.
“Mason! Get back here!” I heard my mother call out after me, but no one actually followed. Hmm, yeah, seemed like they really cared whether or not I stayed. Sarcasm aside, they were too busy fawning over the magical Arizona to worry about me.
I got into my car and tore out of the estate, seething. It was one thing fantasizing about a chick who’d straight up rejected me, but having to live with her for an undetermined period of time? Fuck. It’d be like having a daily reminder of that rejection and failure, as hot as my forbidden fantasies of her might be. Prissy bitch. I didn’t want her there. Maybe I’d have to move out.
I pulled out my cell phone and called up my best buddy, Anders.
“What’s up?” I asked when he answered.
“Hey man, not a lot. Just finished work for the day.”
“It’s one o’clock,” I said with a snort. “Already finished for the day?”
“Hey, you’re one to talk. At least I have a real job.”
I chuckled. He had a point. I’d dropped out of college when I was nineteen, much to my mother’s chagrin, and in the year since then I’d sorta just drifted along, occasionally helping my mother and Roy out with her charity stuff or his company. Roy always offered to pay me for the work I did, but I’d said no every time. I already had more than enough to live on courtesy of my trust fund. No pay was fine for me until I figured out what the hell I actually wanted to do with my life.
“Meet me at Clancy’s,” I said to Anders. “I have shit to tell you.”
“Guess I could go for a drink,” he said. “See ya there in half an hour, man.”
By one-thirty, Anders and I were seated at our favorite spot on the strip for afternoon drinks, and I filled him in on the situation with my stepfather and Arizona.
“Dude…the hot waitress turned out to be your sister? Oh man, that’s fucked up.”
“My stepsister,” I corrected him. “We aren’t related. I’m still allowed to think she’s hot.”
He shot me a warning look. “Yeah, it might be okay between us friends, but can you imagine what other people would think if you actually fucked her? You know what your Mom’s like, always trying to look all kosher and sweet for the media. I can see the headlines now. Layla Wade Crest Lets Own Son Bang Stepsister – Has She Fallen From Grace?”
I snorted with laughter. “Yeah, I guess. Arizona’s a bitch, anyway.”
Anders gestured to a table of giggling girls, all clad in tight jean shorts and tiny tops. “Plenty of pussy in the sea,” he said with a smirk. “Fuck Arizona. I mean, don’t actually fuck her. You know what I mean.”
I took a sip of my whiskey and nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. Fuck her.”
“I’ll be back in a sec.”
He headed over to the table of girls and said something to them, and they giggled even more and came over to our table with him a moment later.
“Mason, this is Ally, Caity, and Beth,” Anders said, throwing me a sly wink.
“I’ve seen you before, Mason,” Caity simpered. Her eyes were ringed with far too much black eyeliner. “There were photos of you in the paper the other day, with your Mom. I’ve always wanted to meet her.”
I gave her a tight smile. Of course she wanted to meet my mother. They always did. Fuck, it’d be nice if a chick wanted to actually get to know me for once. Like really know me, not just hang on for a while in an attempt to meet my mother or get their picture in the society pages.
“Gotta go,” I said, abruptly standing up.
Anders gave me a withering look. “What? We only just got here. And these three seem like they have a lot to talk about.”
He pinched Beth on the thigh, and she giggled like some kind of schoolgirl caricature.
“Yeah…sorry, forgot I had some shit to do,” I lied.
He shrugged and mouthed ‘your loss’, and I nodded and walked away. Yep, my loss. It was the second time today that I’d given up on a chance to get my dick sucked or whatever those girls were willing to do to me, but I just wasn’t feeling it. Fuck. Maybe my new stepsister wasn’t the only person who needed therapy.
Whatever. I’d get back into the game soon. Hopefully Arizona would stay the fuck out of my way, and I’d be back to screwing chicks on a rotating schedule in no time at all. Once I was back in my car, I checked my phone. Seven missed calls. All from…well, you can guess.
“What?” I barked into the phone as I called my mother back.
“Mason,” she hissed. “How dare you storm out like that? We’re supposed to be making Adriana feel welcome!”
“It’s Arizona,” I said. “Maybe she’d feel more welcome if you could actually remember her fucking name.”
“I said Arizona,” she replied, her tone haughty. Oh, of course. Layla Wade Crest was never wrong. “Now, as you can imagine, once the media picks up this story, it’s going to be big news. We need to put on a united front and show them what a happy, well-adjusted family we all are despite the circumstances. That means spending lots of time together.”
“I was waiting for you to bring up the media,” I said in an acid tone. “Is that all you care about? What about the fact that your husband just found the daughter he thought he’d lost forever? He had no idea if she was even still alive…and all you’re thinking about is what the press thinks of you and your alleged family values?”
“Stop being dramatic, Mason. We’re having a family dinner at seven, and I expect you to be home for it. No excuses.”
With that, she hung up in my ear, and I fumed as I headed back home. I couldn’t figure out what was worse - sharing a house with Arizona, my bitchy new stepmonster who hated me for no reason, or having to deal with my mother’s incessant media whoring. It was really starting to get old.
Anders texted me as I drove, and I glanced at it briefly. Man ur missin out. This Ally chick jst tld me she likes it up the ass. Guess who I’m takin hm tonight? Haha.
His message looked it had been hammered out by a masturbating orangutan, and I rolled my eye
s. He’d probably catch chlamydia even if he double-wrapped his junk. Those girls had looked pretty skeezy, and I didn’t regret leaving for a second.
Arizona was nowhere to be seen when I returned, and I assumed she was unpacking and getting settled into her room. Hmm. That gave me an idea. I checked my watch and saw that I still had almost four hours till this bullshit family dinner thing.
Yep, that was definitely enough time to get something done. If I couldn’t fuck her, then I could at least fuck with her….
CHAPTER SIX
ARIZONA
I was so nervous I could barely eat as we all sat around the formal dinner table. Roy and Layla had insisted on having a big family meal for my first night here, and just the idea of having to be in the same room as Mason sent shivers down my spine. Ugh. He was such an asshole, and now I had to share a house with him. On a positive note, though…I was also living with my favorite freaking actress in the world! I was still star-struck just being around her, but so far she’d made it all easy for me. She was just as lovely in person as I’d always imagined from all the interviews and articles I’d seen and read in the past. No wonder Mason had a problem with her – he was a total ass, so he probably only liked the company of other asses.
Roy had spent the afternoon showing me around the place before taking me to my new bedroom, and I’d almost needed a dentist to come and pick my jaw up off the floor when I’d seen the size of it. It was enormous with bay windows overlooking the terrace outside, and in the middle of the room was a four-poster canopy bed, just like I’d seen in all the fairytale picture books I’d read as a child. I had a massive walk in closet, and I even had my own bathroom. The closet had golden-plated fixtures, a chandelier overhead and a velvet chaise sofa off to one side. That was all probably nothing to someone who was used to having money and a big house, but to me it was insane.
There was a full staff employed at the house to keep everything running smoothly, and Roy had made it very clear that if there was anything I needed, then I could ask them if he wasn’t around. Anything at all. For a wildly-successful billionaire, he actually seemed quite nervous as he showed me around, and I could understand why. He’d missed out on the chance to be a father to me for the last nineteen years, and now he must have felt like he had to make up for all that now.
I still barely knew what to feel. The rational part of my mind knew that he was my biological father and that this was my home, but I still felt like my real home was back in Leyton, as much as that place had sucked. I felt like a total impostor in this world of mansions, designer clothes and credit cards with no limits. Roy had even given me a card and told me to use it whenever and however I wanted, but I didn’t know if I could. It didn’t feel right. Luckily I still had some savings to tide me over for now.
“Pass the potatoes, please,” Roy said, glancing at Mason.
Mason smiled politely and passed them to him, and I gaped at him. It was like he was a totally different person right now than he had been earlier when he went storming out of the study, but it was all such a sham. He was wearing a perfectly-pressed collared shirt, his hair was neatly combed into place, and he was making genial small talk with Roy and chuckling away like nothing major had changed in his life. Maybe it really wasn’t a change for him. Maybe he simply didn’t give a crap that I’d just been forced into his world.
As I watched him, I wondered how Roy would react if he found out his well-dressed, well-behaved stepson had tried to solicit me for sex just a couple of weeks ago. Bet this family dinner wouldn’t be so fun for him then!
We were just starting our main courses for the evening when I felt something cold touch my shin. I almost jumped out of my chair, and then I realized it was Mason’s shoe sliding up and down my leg.
“Are you all right, Arizona?” Roy asked, peering at me over his glasses.
“Random muscle spasm,” I said with a forced smile.
“You should get that checked out,” Mason said with a slight smirk. “You could have some sort of neurological disorder.”
“Oh, I don’t think I’m the one with the brain disorder in this room,” I shot back before remembering where I was. Oops. I hoped I hadn’t offended Roy or Layla.
Luckily, they raised their eyebrows and then began to laugh.
“That’s funny,” Roy said through his guffaws. “Glad to see you two are already joking around with each other! Just like real siblings.”
“Yes…joking,” Mason said before mouthing something at me. Bitch.
He pretended to drop a fork a second later, and as he reached under the table to grab it, he leaned over and pinched my thigh. Hard. This time I was expecting it, and I didn’t react other than throwing him an icy stare when he came back up. What the hell was the immature brat playing at? Was he trying to embarrass me or something? Well, bring it on, rich kid. I could play that game just as well.
A maid came in to refill our champagne glasses, and I reached across the table for the pepper grinder and ‘accidentally’ knocked Mason’s glass over. It tumbled onto his lap, spraying bubbly liquid all over his shirt and pants, and I felt absolutely no guilt whatsoever as I saw the anger in his eyes.
“Oh no!” I said, putting on a regretful air. “I’m so sorry! I can be so clumsy sometimes.”
“It’s fine,” he said, his face darkening as he grabbed a napkin and dabbed at the front of his shirt. If looks could kill, I’d have been vaporized by now.
“Mason,” Layla said a moment later. “You should invite Arizona to one of those parties you’re always going to. It’d be a good chance for her to get to know you and your friends. After all, she doesn’t really know anyone here except us.”
I could tell from his expression that the idea set him on edge. He didn’t want me hanging around his buddies, and the feeling was mutual. I didn’t particularly want to meet them either…if they were anything like him, that is.
“I dunno,” he replied. “She probably wants to make some female friends, and I don’t really have any to introduce her to.”
“Nonsense,” Layla said. “You always have girls over.”
Something stabbed at my gut when she said that. It felt like a pang of jealousy, but I wasn’t jealous. No way. Mason could do whatever he wanted and whomever he wanted. Nope. I was just angry at the thought of having to live with a giant man-whore and having to see what I assumed would be a veritable parade of slutty girls throughout the house every week that I remained here. Was Layla really so dense that she thought they were all just friends with him? Perhaps she was simply in denial over what a sleazy prick her son was.
He gritted his teeth. “Fine. There’s a party next week. She can come to that.”
“Wonderful.” Roy’s voice boomed out across the table, and he smiled warmly at us. “I bet you two will be inseparable in no time. Siblings are the best kinds of friends you can have, you know. They’re friends you get to keep forever, through rain, hail or shine.”
“Mm. Excuse me for a sec. Bathroom.”
Mason abruptly stood up and exited the room, and he returned a few moments later with that same cocky smirk on his face that I’d seen so many times now. He was up to something. I had no idea what that something was, but I just knew it.
***
We watched a comedy movie after dinner in the home theatre, and I felt the tension slowly leaving my body as we all laughed along with it. It was only my first night here, but Roy had tried to make me feel as comfortable as possible and told me to make myself at home as much as I could, and that was definitely helping. Mason hadn’t seemed too keen on watching a movie with us, but Layla had thrown him a warning look and whispered something to him that made him relent.
I yawned as the credits rolled, and Roy checked his watch. “Well, it’s ten-thirty, and you’ve had a big day, Arizona. I’m sure you just want to relax for a while or sleep. I’ll leave you to it.”
He and Layla said goodnight and headed upstairs to their room, and I stretched and yawned again before
slowly ambling up the stairs and down the hall to my own room. Roy was right – I was exhausted after everything that had gone on in the last week. My life was a total soap opera right now.
Mason overtook me in the hall, and I rolled my eyes as I saw him enter the bedroom just across from mine. Great. Out of all the rooms in the house, his had to be right there? I hoped the doors and walls were thick so I didn’t have to hear him with any of his girls.
As I walked into my own room, I saw something propped up against the foot of my bed. I frowned and drew closer, and then smiled as I realized it was a gift, presumably from Roy. It was large and rectangular, and judging by the indentations on the wrapping paper around the edge, it was a piece of framed artwork. There was a note attached.
A – I know we really got off on the wrong foot, but I hope that can change soon seeing as we’re probably going to be living together for a while. You seem like you might appreciate fine art, so I got you this as a ‘welcome’ present. It’d look nice hanging on the wall across from the end of your bed. Enjoy. – M
Wow. It was from Mason. I wrinkled my nose with suspicion, my mind conflicted. Surely this was some sort of prank. Then again, maybe it wasn’t. Maybe he wasn’t as bad as I thought. Yeah, I’d disliked him after my first few encounters with him, but now I was probably going to be stuck with him for a while, so it made sense to try and smooth things over if he was making an effort to do the same. I actually didn’t know the first thing about art, but I was sure he had good taste given his upbringing.
Eagerly tearing open the paper, I glanced at the alleged ‘fine art’, and every thought about patching things up with Mason flew out of the window again. Oh, that slimy little rat. He was such a dick! And speaking of dick…
In the ornate frame sat a professionally-shot photograph of Mason, stark naked. Yep. He’d given me an ‘artistic’ nude shot of himself. While he was supposedly in the bathroom earlier during dinner, he must have sneaked it into my room. I’d known he was up to something! I didn’t know whether to scream or salivate as my mouth dropped open at the sight before me. He was the worst possible stepbrother, but I couldn’t deny how sexy he was. He was so tall, his shoulders broad and his abs perfection…and don’t even get me started on his perfect face, as smug as it was.
Mine - A Stepbrother Romance Page 5
