"Breakfasttt!" Ryan called as she came up the stairs. The very second she appeared, Evan came out of the bathroom. He was obviously fresh out of the shower because steam rolled out with him. He had on cargo shorts and no shirt, and he was towel-drying his long hair. All I could think about was the conversation I had just overheard. How in the world did they expect me to charm someone like him… and did I even want to?
Cody caught sight of me shifting to avoid staring at his brother, and he said, "Why don't you put on a shirt?"
Evan laughed at that. He scooped up Ryan. "Where's this breakfast I heard you talking about?"
"Downstairs in the kitchen," she said, giggling like crazy. She ended on a squeal, because he began tickling her as he carried her down.
"It's probably gonna seem like Grand Central Station in this house for the rest of the week," Cody warned.
"I'm okay with that," I said. "I always wanted a big family when I was younger."
He gave me a half smile. "What about now?"
"It's just me, my dad, and my brother. I've sort of gotten used to it that way. I guess, when I was little, I just thought a huge family would appear out of nowhere if I wished hard enough. My dad was an only child, so I don't have any cousins or anything. I always imagined a ton of us gathered around a big dining room table with a turkey sitting in the middle of it like in the movies."
"I don't think we'll have a turkey on this trip, but you'll get your wish about having a ton of us around. You'll probably be good and sick of us by the end of the week."
I let my eyes drift over him, which was a mistake. He had on a loose fitting tanktop with cargos similar to his brother's. He was a good six inches taller than me, and I sighed as I peered up at his face. He smiled sweetly at me, and my heart was beating like a wild bird because of it.
"I really appreciate you guys having me here," I said. "It's a special treat for me to see the ocean for the first time."
"This might sound silly, but in some way it's special for me to see you see it for the first time," he said. He shrugged. "It's cool for me to watch you fall in love with it—makes me not take it for granted so much."
Just hearing him say the phrase fall in love, made a peculiar feeling wash over me. My first thought was that he was referring to me falling in love with an actual person, not the ocean, and this made me remember the whole conversation about his brother.
"I guess we should go downstairs," I said.
Within minutes, we were all sitting around eating breakfast together. It was just like my childhood fantasies minus the turkey, and as I looked around, I wondered what it'd be like once everyone else got there.
"Evan, you need a haircut," Dan said, during a break in conversation.
"I don't think he does," Mia said. "He's got a good man-bun going on."
"Paige can cut hair," Diane said.
She tried to make it sound like a casual suggestion, but I knew what she was up to. I giggled nervously.
"I'm a business major who happens to like doing hair. My friends just let me mess with theirs because they're in college and too broke to go to a salon. I definitely wouldn't want to give a haircut, especially to someone who doesn't want one." I smiled at Evan. "I think it looks good anyway."
"Thank you!" he said, running his hand through it.
I glanced at Diane just in time to see her give Dan a sly wink. Boy oh boy, did I wish I could have unheard that conversation.
"It's this one who could use a haircut," Mia said, reaching over to tousle Cody's hair. It was cut short, but she managed to mess it up a little.
"She can cut my hair if she wants," Cody said, swiping it back into place.
"I didn't bring any supplies," I said. "And it would just be awkward if I gave you a bad haircut and then was stuck in the same house looking at it the rest of the week."
Everyone cracked up at that, even Ryan. I didn't want Diane to think I wasn't thankful for the opportunity to be there. I was, after all, "working" for her. "I'd be happy to do braids if anyone's interested, though."
"I want one!" Ryan said.
"Me too!" Mia said. "Can you do cornrows?"
"Yeah, that'd be pretty on you," I said. "We could do some cornrows in the front with a bunch of little braids in the back. It'd be perfect for the beach."
Mia started clapping excitedly at the thought. "Can you really do that?"
"Sure," I said. "Whenever you're ready."
"I might want to get some cornrows," Evan said, running his hands through his hair again as if imagining the possibility.
"I'm first," Mia said.
"Not if it's while you're gone to the spa," Christy reminded her.
Mia looked at me sadly. "That's right, I forgot we have a girl's spa day planned for when Charlotte gets here. You should come with us!"
Before I could refuse, Evan said, "You weren't supposed to tell Dee-dee they were coming. It was supposed to be a surprise."
"Oh, I know they're coming," Diane said, throwing a hand through the air nonchalantly. "Denise is terrible at keeping secrets. She just tries to act like they can't make it to torture me."
"You should come with Char and me when she gets here," Mia said. "We'll get a massage and a mani-pedi. It'll be fun."
"Oh, that's okay," I said. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm still trying to make friends with the ocean."
"Ohhh, come on, it'll be so fun. And you'll love Charlotte."
I had no earthly idea what a massage and a mani-pedi would cost, but I was relatively sure the eighty dollars my dad gave me wouldn't cover it. Including the cash he gave me, I only had a few hundred dollars to my name, and I really didn't want to go charging up my credit card.
"You're so sweet for offering, but I'm sure you should have an appointment. I really don't mind chilling here."
"She'll go," Diane said with an assurance I didn't bother contradicting. She smiled at me and gave me a little wink. "You'll have fun with the girls."
After breakfast, Diane discretely called me into her bedroom. I followed her inside and she closed the door behind us. She dug in her overnight bag before handing me an envelope. "I meant to give you this yesterday, and I forgot," she said.
She stood there as I opened it. There was a ton of cash inside. It must have been at least a few hundred dollars in twenty-dollar-bills.
"You don't think I'd bring you on vacation and not give you a per diem, did you?"
"I can't," I said, handing it back to her. "I don't need anything. You're already doing too much. I'm fine with just hanging here at the house. I already feel indebted to you as it is."
"Take it," she said. "It's not going to be enough. You'll probably spend half of it today at the spa. I'll get you some more when I go to the bank."
"That's just it. If it were up to me, I wouldn't spend money on a massage. I'd probably buy a haircut."
"So get yourself a haircut, "she said, pushing the envelope back toward me. "I'm sure they have those at the spa, too. I don't really care what you buy with it. It's yours. I had it in an envelope to give to you yesterday, and I just forgot."
I took a deep breath and stared into her eyes. It was hard not to think about the whole conversation I overheard about Evan. "I brought some money," I said. "I don't want you have to pay my way after everything else you're doing. I haven't even done anything to earn it. I wish I knew what my job was."
"Your job is to have fun," she said with a smile. "Get a haircut, or a manicure, whatever else you want. Think of this as a gift. It's not part of the job." She paused and let out a sigh. "I like you, Paige and I'm glad you're here with our family. That's all there is to it."
In my heart, I was thinking there was a little more to it than that, but I just smiled. "I like you too," I said.
Chapter 10
I tried again to talk Diane out of giving me that cash, but she insisted, and I walked upstairs with five hundred dollars. It felt a bit wrong to take it—like she was paying me to seduce her grandson or something. I had to re
mind myself that I should have never heard that conversation, thus I should feel no guilt or pressure at all. I slid the money into my wallet, thinking about what it would be like to have a spa day.
I never got haircuts as a child, my dad just always did as best he could with a makeshift ponytail and called it a day. By the time I got old enough to want a real haircut, I already wanted to experiment with cutting it myself. I had long wavy hair that didn’t really show imperfections in cutting, so it didn't matter if I messed up a little. I'd literally never set foot in a salon, and was giddy with anticipation at the thought of it. I hoped the spa was the type of place that had salon services because I had no interest in spending my newly acquired financial blessing on having someone rub my back for an hour.
Charlotte, and her parents, Denise and Robert, arrived just before noon that day. Apparently, Logan had a few things to wrap up in LA before he could make it, but they said he'd be there later that evening.
I had been at the beach building sandcastles with Ryan and Cody when they arrived. We were in the middle of some serious construction when Christy yelled at us from one of the balconies. I thought I was about to meet Logan Ritchie for the first time, and my nerves went crazy as we walked up there. I'd already been on edge with Cody, but the idea of meeting someone I idolized as a child was unnerving to say the least. I was actually relieved when we got to the house and found out he wasn't there yet.
Denise's husband, Robert, was blond, and while Logan took more after his mom's side with dark eyes and hair, Charlotte favored her dad. She had blonde hair and light eyes, which made her stand out among her cousins.
I stood back while everyone hugged and got reacquainted. Of course, they went on and on about how big Ryan was, and showered her with kisses and tickles. Denise gave Evan a hard time about his hair and tattoos, calling him a hoodlum, and a menace to society, and other things like that, but all in a joking manner that had everyone laughing.
I could tell they were a really close family, and I smiled internally at my childhood visions of eating a big turkey dinner. After a minute, Cody introduced me as a friend of Dee-dee's, and I was subjected to a round of hugs from the California crew. Diane apologized for not making the introduction sooner, saying she'd been caught up in the moment and forgotten they didn't know me.
Denise, Robert, and Charlotte were as easy to get along with as the rest of the family. We stood there and caught up for several minutes before they took their bags upstairs to get settled in.
"Where am I sleeping?" Charlotte asked as she stood at the foot of the stairs.
"We're in the blue bedroom," Mia said.
Charlotte nodded as if she knew exactly what Mia was talking about.
"We're leaving at two!" Mia called as Charlotte turned to walk up the stairs.
Charlotte stopped in her tracks. "I'm hungry," she said. "Let's go early and get something to eat."
"I'm up for that," Mia said. "I'll go get dressed."
"Are you coming with us?" Charlotte asked, shooting me a sweet smile. I nodded, and she smiled before continuing up the stairs.
"What are you wearing?" I asked, looking at Mia since she said she was going to get dressed. To me, it looked like she was already dressed.
"I'm changing into something easier to get in and out of for the massage."
"I was just going to wear something casual," I said. "Is that okay?"
"Of course. You can come dig in my closet if you want. I always bring way too much, and I probably have something you'd like."
"That's really sweet," I said. "I might have to take you up on that if I run out of clean clothes."
"There's a washer and dryer in the mudroom, sweetheart" Christy said. "Just throw your dirty clothes down there and I'll make sure they get done."
"Yep," Evan said, coming to stand behind his mom with his arms wrapped around her. "Just throw your dirty clothes in there and they magically end up folded at the foot of your bed. It's amazing." He paused, and narrowed his eyes. "But somehow it only happens when Mom's around. Unfortunately, there's no magical clothes pile when I'm out with the EOC."
"That's why you come home smelling like medieval times." Christy said.
He laughed and shrugged. "Gotta do what you gotta do to save the world."
"A little body spray never hurt anybody," Mia said, laughing.
Evan picked up his arm, and put his nose to his armpit to take a whiff. "I smell good, don't I, Mom?"
She leaned in cautiously to put her nose a little closer to him. "Pretty good," she said.
"Pretty good?" he asked defensively, taking another sniff. "Get a good whiff. It smells like Dee-dee's shower gel in there."
He held his arm up and she leaned in a little closer. "Yep, it smells good," she confirmed.
"I can't believe you stuck your nose in there," Cody said, looking in the fridge.
"Can I smell?" Ryan asked.
"Of course!" Evan said.
But at the same time, Cody said, "No!"
Everyone laughed at their contradicting answers, but Evan picked her up anyway, and she put her tiny little nose to his chest and took a big sniff. "You smell good, Uncle Evan," she said.
"See?" he said smiling. "I told y'all." Cody peeked his head out of the fridge. "What do you want for lunch, Ry, a sandwich or some mac-and-cheese and fish sticks?"
She stared at Evan and put her hands on each side of his face. "A sandwich or fish sticks?" she asked, as if it was all up to him.
"A sandwich," he said.
She looked at her dad. "A sandwich."
"Are you gonna eat it, or are you just saying that because that's what Uncle Evan wants?"
"I'll eat it," she said.
"You might as well just get the stuff out, and we'll all make one," Diane said.
Cody started pulling things out of the fridge as everyone began bustling around the kitchen.
"We'll get something to eat with Charlotte," Mia said to me.
I nodded. "I'll go get ready and meet you guys down here in a little bit."
She and I took off to get dressed while the others ate lunch.
The three of us went to a café that was close to the spa. We sat down at an outdoor table with a huge umbrella providing shade. Two guys were sitting at a table next to us, and they kept looking over like they were on the verge of coming to start a conversation.
"Did I hear you ladies say you live on the golden mile?" one of them asked, finally leaning over to speak to us.
"We're there for the week," Mia said.
"We're practically neighbors, then," he said. They both turned their chairs so they could carry on a conversation with us. "I have the white house with lions at the iron gate," he said.
"You mean your parents have that house," Mia said.
He smiled at her tenacity. "I mean I have that house," he corrected.
"You're renting it for the week?"
He smiled. "I bought it, if you must know."
She laughed. "What, are you Bill Gates or something?"
"Something like that," his friend said. We all looked at his friend, who said, "Internet," as a way of explaining.
"Anyway," the guy said. "I thought since we're basically neighbors, you ladies might want to come to a party I'm having this Friday."
"You should come," his friend said confidently. "It's gonna be boss."
"We don't even know your names," Mia said.
"I'm Travis and this is Jackson. We have some friends staying with us from Australia, and we'd like to show them what the fuss is all about with American women."
"Oh, and we make the cut?" Mia asked. Charlotte giggled at that, but I just stared at them, wondering what they'd say.
"You most certainly make the cut," Travis said, letting his eyes fall on all three of us. "In fact, you three will be the standard to which all the others are compared."
"I'm sure you say that to all the ladies," Charlotte said, finally speaking up.
"Actually, he doesn’t," Jackson sa
id. He shot us an expression that seemed to be sincere.
"I'm sure all three of these ladies know how compelling they are," Travis said. "They don't need us to sit here and tell them."
"Flattery will get you everywhere," Mia said.
He smiled. "Good. I hope it will get the three of you to my house this Friday."
"We might just have to walk down and see what these Australians are all about," Mia said.
Travis put his fist to his chest and made a face like he had been stabbed in the heart. "Ouch!" he said, making her laugh. "Are you close enough to walk, or would you like me to send a driver to pick you up?"
"We'll manage," she said.
"Where are you staying?" he pressed, since she didn't offer any details.
"Close enough to walk," she said, challengingly.
His smile broadened as he took her in. I could tell by the way they were looking at each other that they both enjoyed the banter. "I guess we'll see you Friday, then," he said confidently.
"I guess it's a possibility," Mia returned. "Can I bring my brothers?"
"As long as it means you'll be there."
"How about her?" Mia asked, gesturing at Charlotte. "Can she bring her brother?"
It was obviously an inside joke because everyone in America would kill to have Logan Ritchie show up at their party.
"You ladies can bring your brothers, or your uncles, or your dogs for all I care, as long as you get to my house." He slid a napkin onto our table. "Write down your names, and I'll make sure you're on the list."
"How about music?" Mia asked. "What sort of music will you have?"
He smiled at her and shook his head. "Why don't you let me worry about the party planning? All you need to do is show up."
We talked for a few more minutes before our new friends, Travis and Jackson, paid their check and left.
"They were cute," Mia said, once they were gone.
"Yeah, but I'm waiting for the Australians," Charlotte said. "I love accents."
"What if they're lying?" I asked, unable to believe that someone as young as Travis was able to afford one of the houses near Diane's.
"He's not," Mia said. "I heard Dee-dee talking to Dad about that house last night. I was just giving him a hard time when I asked if he was renting it. Dee-dee said it had sold to this young guy who had invented some game for your phone. I think Microsoft bought it or something." She stared at them as they walked to his car, which was a convertible Audi. "He's legit," she said.
Meet Me in Myrtle Beach (Hunt Family Book 1) Page 7
