Play By Play [6] One Sweet Ride

by Jaci Burton

  “Well, you weren’t happy about it, were you? As I recall, you threw me out the first night.”

  Carolina looked from Evelyn to Gray. “You did not.”

  “He did,” Evelyn said. “Politely, but he did.”

  Gray had to nod and play this game. He knew what Evelyn was doing. “Yeah. I did.

  And then Mom showed up the next day.”

  Carolina looked horrified. “She did not.”

  “She did,” Gray said, then shifted his gaze to Evelyn. “Because someone called her.”

  He still remembered how pissed off he was about that. But he gave props to Evelyn for not taking no for an answer. Her passion was one of the things he admired so much about her. Their gazes met for a few seconds, the attraction between them hotter than the air around then. It was Evelyn who forcibly pulled her gaze away.

  Carolina put her hands to her mouth, stifling a laugh. “You did not.”

  Evelyn didn’t even try to hide her smug smile. “I have an assignment. I had to pull out the big guns. I always get what I want,” she said, directing her attention to Gray.

  If she kept looking at him like that he was going to get hard, and then he’d end up stuck with his hands folded in his lap.

  “Oh, my God, Evelyn,” Carolina said. “You so rock.”

  Forcing in a deep breath, Gray said, “She doesn’t rock. She’s a pain in the ass. She follows me around like . . . I don’t know, it’s like I have an extra appendage.”

  Evelyn rolled her eyes, looking to Carolina. “It’s not that bad. For him, anyway. For me, that’s a different matter.”

  Carolina grabbed Evelyn’s hand and laughed. “Oh, Evelyn. You have my deepest sympathies. I spent sixteen years living with him. I know what it’s like.”

  “Whatever, brat. I gave you rides to school. I made you popular.”

  “I think I had the popularity thing sewn up just fine without your help, dickwad.”

  “Whatever, Pudge.”

  Carolina narrowed her gaze. “Now that was a low blow, Zit Face.”

  Evelyn enjoyed the hell out of watching brother and sister argue. Being an only child, she had never had siblings to fight with, so this was unfamiliar to her. But oh so amusing as they hurled insults at each other like they were both kids again. Still, it seemed like good-natured fun, both of them laughing as each of them tried to one-up the other in the zinger department.

  She was almost sad to see it end when Gray stood. “I need another beer. And to empty the contents of the one I already had.”

  “Way too much information,” Carolina said.

  He laughed. “Can I bring you back something to drink?”

  “I’d love an iced tea, if you don’t mind,” Evelyn said, her gaze lingering on him.

  She tried not to watch him, not to wish they were alone together. She hoped she didn’t give too much away.

  “Tea. Got it,” he said, and she couldn’t help but notice the smile he gave her.

  “Thanks.”

  “I’ll have tea, too,” Carolina said.

  After Gray walked away, Carolina asked, “So how did you get roped into working with my brother?”

  “Actually, it was my idea. I suggested it to your father.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yes. Gray has a potential voter block we could make use of.”

  “Oh. Of course. Him being so popular and all. I forget about that. To me he’s just my annoying, pain-in-the-ass brother that I love more than life itself. I don’t think of him as some hotshot race car driver that has millions of fans.”

  Evelyn laughed. “No, I imagine you don’t see him that way.”

  “So, how’s it going?”

  “We’re still in the getting-started phase, but so far, so good.”

  “And how long have you two been sleeping together?”

  Her stomach knotted. She put on her best blank face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Evelyn. Please. The sparks shooting off between the two of you were like an early fireworks show. I almost had to excuse myself to go inside and cool off.”

  She could lie her way out of it, but this was Carolina. She might be Gray’s sister, and she might be the senator’s daughter, but she was also Evelyn’s friend. She trusted Carolina, so she laid her head in her hands. “Oh, God. Is it that obvious?”

  “To me it is. But Gray’s my brother. And you’re one of my best friends.”

  She lifted her head. “It’s nothing really. A fling.”

  “Obviously it’s something. I’ve never seen you like this about a guy.” Carolina wrinkled her nose. “My brother? Really? Are you in love with him?”

  “Of course not!” Then, realizing she’d denied that a little too vehemently, she said, “Not that he isn’t totally loveable.”

  Carolina laughed. “Please. You don’t need to defend his honor. He can be a real asshole. I just meant, is it serious between you two?”

  “No. It wasn’t supposed to happen at all. But now that it has, we’re keeping it . . .

  simple.”

  “Okay. Well, good luck with that. Things that are supposed to be simple usually end up being anything but.”

  “You aren’t going to say anything to your father, are you?”

  Carolina grabbed her hand. “Look. I will always be honest with my dad if I think something can harm him. But what’s going on between you and Gray doesn’t have anything to do with him. You’re my friend, and in matters of romance, I’m loyal to you. I know this is your job and you want to protect it, so don’t worry about me saying anything. First and foremost, though, I worry about your heart.”

  She squeezed Carolina’s hand. “My heart is fine. I know what I’m doing.”

  Carolina let out a short laugh. “I wonder how many women have uttered those words right before getting their hearts broken?”

  “Too many, probably. But enough about me. Tell me about your enviable career in fashion design.”

  Carolina took a deep breath, then sighed. “It’s been a dream come true. I love what I do and I’m so lucky. And I love New York so much.”

  “And the clothing line? How’s that coming along?”

  “Slowly. I don’t want to make any missteps. I’m still a baby in this industry, so working for David sustains me right now.”

  “But you still want to launch your own line someday.”

  “Of course. What designer doesn’t?” Carolina smiled. “But if you launch too soon, before you’re ready, you blow your one and only chance of success. So I’m taking those baby steps right now and working on a line I believe will work.”

  Evelyn grabbed Carolina’s hands “I’m so excited for you. I can’t wait to see what you come up with.”

  “It’s nerve-racking, trying to design your own line while working for another designer.”

  “Does David know what you’re doing?”

  “Of course not. No designer wants to believe he has competition from within his ranks. Plus, he’s such a paranoid diva. He’d fire me on the spot.”

  Evelyn laughed. “I can’t imagine how difficult that must be. So you work at home on your own designs?”

  “Yes. And as hard as David works me, it keeps me busy at night and on— Oh, hell, no. What are you doing here?”

  Evelyn turned around as a shadow spilled over the picnic table. A tall, mouthwateringly gorgeous man came forward, a wide grin showing off straight white teeth and a devilish smile.

  “Nice to see you too, Lina.”

  “It’s Carolina, you idiot.”

  The gorgeous guy grinned. “Where’s your brother?”

  “It’s not my day to watch him, but you should definitely leave and find him.”

  Tall, tanned, and sexy took a seat next to Carolina. Wow. He was stunning, with shaggy raven black hair and the most unusual gray eyes. And the body. Oh, the body.

  He half stood and leaned over the table, exte
nding his hand. “Since Carolina has decided to be rude, I’m Drew Hogan, a friend of Carolina’s brother.”

  “Evelyn Hill. I work for Senator Preston.”

  “Nice to meet you, Evelyn.”

  “Guard your panties, Evelyn, or Drew will try to get in them within the next five minutes.”

  “Ouch, Lina,” Drew said, before he turned his attention back to Evelyn. “She lies.

  I’m a lot smoother than that, and a gentleman. I’d give it at least a half hour and buy you a drink first before I tried to get your clothes off.”

  Evelyn laughed. “Thanks for the warning.”

  She shifted her gaze to Carolina, who was staring daggers at Drew.

  Interesting.

  “And again, Drew. What are you doing here?” Carolina asked.

  “Gray invited me.”

  Carolina rolled her eyes. “Whatever for?”

  Drew shrugged. “No idea. For some reason, the bastard likes me.”

  “Fortunately for you, someone does.”

  Carolina’s insults seemed to roll off Drew’s back. He looked at Evelyn. “She’s mean to me. You feel sorry for me, don’t you, Evelyn?”

  “Not in the least. I would imagine you could hold your own, even with a prickly female.”

  “Well, Lina has her share of thorns.” He picked up Carolina’s hand, and despite her tugging to release it, held it firm. He pressed a kiss to the tips of her fingers. “But I know for a fact there’s a sweet rose underneath.”

  “You are such a dick, Drew.” Carolina jerked her hand away and shoved it in her lap. “Why don’t you go find Gray and leave me—us—alone?”

  “No need to look for me. I’m right here.”

  Evelyn looked up as Gray took a seat beside her. He handed the women their iced teas.

  Gray shook Drew’s hand. “I’m glad you came.”

  “Me, too,” Drew said with a grin. “Though your sister’s not.”

  Gray shifted his gaze to Carolina and quirked a smile. “Still pissed at him, huh?”

  Carolina lifted her chin. “I’m not pissed at Drew. I don’t feel anything for him at all.” She stood, walked around the table, and pressed a kiss to Evelyn’s cheek. “We’ll chat later.”

  “Okay.” Evelyn definitely wanted to know about Carolina’s past history with Drew.

  But in the meantime, she focused her attention on the two incredible-looking men sitting at her table.

  “I can’t believe you’re here,” Drew said to Gray.

  “Yeah,” Gray said with a half smile. “Me, either.”

  “Is this your doing?” Drew gave Evelyn a brows-raised questioning look.

  “You could say that. My job is to work with Gray on helping his father’s campaign.”

  “No shit.” Drew shifted his gaze to Gray. “So you’re working with your dad now?”

  “Indirectly,” Gray said. “Something about introducing my fans to my dad through social media.”

  “Ah.” Drew nodded. “More voters. Gray has a big fan base.”

  “Exactly,” Evelyn said. “And what do you do, Drew?”

  Drew grinned. “I play hockey.”

  “Oh, I love hockey. Who do you play for?”

  “New York.”

  “Wow, that’s a very successful team. And you went to college with Gray?”

  “Yeah. We go way back.” Drew focused his attention on Gray. “Speaking of, missed you at the golf tournament.”

  “Yeah, sorry man. The schedule just didn’t work out for that. How did it go?”

  “Great. Trevor came in third. I was fifth. Garrett was tenth.”

  Gray nodded. “Pretty good showing. Bet Garrett hated you both beating him.”

  “He did,” Drew said with a laugh. “Lost a thou on a bet we made, too. That one stung.”

  “That’s what he gets for betting on golf with you guys.” Gray looked around.

  “Where are Garrett and Trevor?”

  “Garrett and Alicia had to leave right away, so he sent his regrets and told me to tell you he’d call you later this week. He said they’re going to try and make your race in Kansas City. Trevor’s around here somewhere.”

  “Probably hitting on some poor woman.”

  “Likely.”

  “There are more of you?” Evelyn asked, astounded by two of these gorgeous men.

  That there were four? It wasn’t possible.

  “Yeah,” Gray said, turning to her with that smile that always gave her stomach butterflies. “Trevor, Drew, Garrett, and I roomed together in college.”

  “Here,” Drew said, pulling out his phone. “Here’s a picture from our last get-together at the lodge.”

  Evelyn took his phone and inspected the photo. Good lord. That much gorgeous man flesh in one place should be illegal. She swallowed and gave him the phone back. “Great picture.”

  “Thanks.” Drew turned back to Gray. “Hey, I heard Briscoe was sick.”

  Gray frowned. “How sick?”

  “Pretty bad. They think it might be cancer.”

  Evelyn laid a hand on Gray’s arm. “Who’s Briscoe?”

  Gray turned to her. “Bill Briscoe and his wife, Ginger, were our dorm parents in college. They were like parents to all of us when we were there. We got close to them.

  Nice people. Really nice people.” He shifted his gaze to Drew. “Have you been by to see them?”

  “Not yet. I was going to go tomorrow. You want to come?”

  He nodded. “I need to get back to the track, but we could go in the morning.”

  “Trevor wants to go, too,” Drew said.

  “Good. Have you talked to Haven yet?”

  “Yeah. She’s up from Dallas to be with her folks.”

  “Haven is Bill and Ginger’s daughter,” Gray explained to her.

  Evelyn nodded. She could tell this upset Gray, that he was obviously close to Bill Briscoe. How sad for the family to be going through something so troubling. She hoped he’d be all right. It was hard to care about someone, to know they were hurting and not be able to be there for them. She squeezed his arm and he laid his hand over hers.

  “Whoa. What’s going on here?”

  She looked up to see one of the men from the picture Drew showed her. This must be Trevor, just as devastatingly gorgeous as Gray and Drew. He was tall and well built, with dark hair that fell across his forehead. A woman would itch to brush that hair away from his mesmerizing eyes, just so she could get a better look. And his mouth—oh, he had amazing lips.

  Wow.

  Gray pulled away from her, stood, and shook Trevor’s hand.

  “Trevor, this is Evelyn Hill.”

  She stood, too, and shook his hand. “Very nice to meet you, Trevor.”

  “You too, Evelyn. It’s good to see Gray’s taste in women is improving.”

  Evelyn laughed. “I work for his father.”

  Trevor cocked a brow and flashed those amazing green eyes at her. “So you’re not his girlfriend?”

  “No.”

  “Too bad. The bleached blondes with short skirts and big boobs he tends to drag around are pretty low class. You, honey, are dynamite in a very classy package.”

  She couldn’t help but smile at the compliment. “Well, thank you for that, Trevor.”

  “Knock it off, Trev. I’ve got dibs on her,” Drew said.

  Trevor shot a look at Drew. “My guess is she wouldn’t give you the time of day.”

  “You can both knock if off,” Gray said. “She’s with me.”

  “Which means what, exactly?” Drew asked.

  “It means she’s with me.” Gray gave them both a look and Drew shrugged.

  “Too bad,” Drew said. “Once you get bored with him, Evelyn, let me know. I’m way more fun.”

  Evelyn found this conversation absolutely fascinating. The two of them had agreed to be hands-off today, and yet Gray had more or less inferred that they were . .
.

  together. At least to his friends. Maybe he was trying to keep them from hitting on her.

  She had no idea.

  She excused herself and went in search of Carolina. She found her sitting on the patio talking to Loretta, so she sat with them and visited for a while, until Loretta hopped up to see to a few of the guests’ needs, leaving her and Carolina alone again.

  “So?” Evelyn asked.

  Carolina sipped her drink. “So what?”

  “So are you going to tell me about you and Drew?”

  “Oh. That. It’s nothing.”

  “It didn’t look like nothing to me.”

  “He’s a jerk.”

  “He’s a pretty hot jerk.”

  “Yes, he’s hot. And he knows it, too. He’s always known it.”

  Evelyn sat back and took a sip of tea, studying Carolina, who was searching the crowd. When Carolina’s gaze settled over Drew and lingered there, she knew something was up.

  “Okay, spill. What went down with you and Drew?”

  Carolina sighed and pulled her attention away from Drew, who was currently standing in a group with Gray and Trevor. Admittedly, Evelyn understood the attraction. Drew was incredibly handsome, with a strong jaw and killer smile. And there was no denying he had an amazing body, showcased oh so well in those jeans and that tight T-shirt. If her libido wasn’t already focused on Gray, Evelyn would be very attracted to him.

  But the thing was, she wasn’t attracted to Drew. Or Trevor, despite them both being gorgeous and obviously available.

  She was, however, extremely attracted to Gray, who kept shooting looks her way and smiling at her. Which was very inappropriate considering they were surrounded by a lot of the people she worked with. And despite her being on her best behavior today, she couldn’t help but look back. He was like a giant sex magnet.

  Damn him.

  “Are you sure you want to talk about me and Drew, considering you’re having hot sex fantasies about my brother right now?”

  She jerked her attention back to Carolina. “What? I am not.”

  Carolina laughed. “Yes, you were. Your tongue was practically hanging out. And you might want to wipe the drool from the side of your mouth.”

  She reached up to touch her lips, then gave Carolina a glare. “You are not funny.

  And you’re changing the subject so you don’t have to talk about Drew.”