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“There are plenty of buffets in this city,” Darrin said, standing his ground, “why don’t you go to one of them?”
“We’re not going anywhere. ”
“Umm, I don’t mind grabbing pizza,” she offered, not at all surprised when the men ignored her.
“When you fuck this up, and you will, you better not take me down with you,” Darrin bit out, staring his brother down.
“I’m not the one who’s going to fuck this up,” Danny said, almost nose to nose with his brother now.
Sighing, she glanced over her shoulder, calculating the cost of a taxi ride back to the hotel when a throat cleared. “How many?”
She looked back to find the cashier eying the two large brothers nervously.
“One,” Darrin said tightly just as Danny bit out, “Two. ”
Sighing, she rubbed her temples and accepted the fact that it was going to be a very long night.
*-*-*-*
“Tinkerbelle?”
No response.
“Sweetheart?”
She shook her head, but at least it was a sign of life. “Sweetheart, we have to leave. They’re closing up now. ”
Squeezing her eyes shut tighter, she shook her head. He sighed as he knelt down in front of the booth and reached for her only to have her cringe away from him. He sighed heavily as he dropped his hand.
“Look, I’m really sorry,” he said, having absolutely no idea what to say to make this right for her.
“J-just give me a minute,” she said, licking her lips as she hugged her knees tightly against her chest.
“Sir? We’re closing up,” the waitress, one of the few waitresses who hadn’t run screaming when the shit hit the fan, said, shifting nervously next to him.
“We’re leaving,” he promised her with a smile that he hoped would reassure her that he wasn’t about to lose it like his brother and-
“Please leave now,” the waitress whispered, shifting back away from him.
Sighing, because there was nothing that he could say or do to fix this, he nodded as he reached for Jodi, who thankfully didn’t put up a fight when he scooped her up in his arms and carried her towards the door. She grabbed onto his shirt and held on for dear life as she buried her face against his chest and released a shaky breath.
“Promise me something, Danny,” she whispered against his chest as her grip on his shirt tightened.
“What’s that, Tinkerbelle?” he asked, kissing the top of her head as he walked down the sidewalk towards a line of waiting taxis.
“Promise me that it was all just a bad dream. ”
“Of course it was, Tinkerbelle,” he said against the top of her head, wondering if a few shots of tequila would help her suppress the memory of what happened here tonight.
Chapter 30
“Morning!”
“Kill. Me,” Danny groaned as he turned over onto his stomach and released a muffled groan against the carpet as he tried to push himself up and promptly failed.
“Rough night?” she asked, biting back a smile when Danny turned to glare at her through bloodshot eyes.
“You did this to me!” he snarled accusingly as he blindly reached up and grabbed a pillow off the bed.
“Me?” she asked, frowning in confusion as she looked around the room, taking in the empty liquor bottles, beer cans and-
“I hate you both,” Darrin groaned from where he lay beneath the coffee table, making her wonder how she’d missed him.
“Exactly how much did the two of you drink last night?” she asked, a little startled when both men shot her accusing glares.
“How much did we drink last night?” Darrin repeated in disgust.
“Not half as much as you did!” Danny snapped, blindly reaching up and grabbing the blanket off the bed.
“I didn’t drink last night,” she muttered thoughtfully, although now that they mentioned it, she really couldn’t remember all that much about last night.
“I really hate you,” Darrin mumbled with a pained groan as he managed to crawl out from under the coffee table and get to his feet.
“Where are you going?” Danny asked as he pulled the blanket over his head.
“To my room where I can die in peace,” he said, stumbling his way to the door.
She turned her attention back to Danny to find him curled up in the fetal position. “Kill. Me,” he muttered pathetically, again, leaving her standing there wondering if now was a good time to mention that she had a craving for scrambled eggs.
*-*-*-*
“So, explain something to me,” Jodi said as she folded her arms on the edge of the tube he was floating on.
“What?” he asked, wincing at the sound of his own voice and wondering when the aspirin was going to kick in.
“How exactly is this a family trip when you haven’t spent any time with your family?”
“I’m with them in spirit,” he told her, tempted to pull her up on his lap, but decided against it a minute later since this was a family hotel and they’d probably take exception to him removing that small black top and suckling on her nipples to help him forget about his hangover.
“Uh huh, is that why your mother keeps calling?”
“She doesn’t really expect me to spend every minute of this trip with them. Trust me,” he said, closing his eyes behind his shades, deciding that a post-lunch nap was in order.
“So, you’re planning on seeing your family?”
“Sure. ”
“And when is that exactly?” she asked as he registered the feel of her small wet fingers tracing his jaw.
“Soon. ”
“Tonight?”
“No. ”
“Tomorrow?”
“I’ll still be recovering from this hangover,” he said, opening one eye to glare at her.
“Lightweight,” she said on a drawn out sigh and a shake of her head.
He was just about to remind her that he hadn’t been the one running up and down the hallway last night demanding to know who’d stolen her fairy dust when he saw her lips twitch and heard the telltale sound of a muffled snort of amusement. Opening his other eye, he glared at her as he quickly took in their surroundings. They were alone, probably because everyone else was still at the parks. Whatever the reason, it worked in his favor.
“I never did thank you for the scrambled eggs this morning, did I?” he asked thoughtfully as he slid off the tube and reached for her.
Her eyes widened with a muttered, “Uh oh. ”
*-*-*-*
“Open the door, you son of a bitch!” she hissed as she cowered in front of their hotel door, holding onto the edges of the small pool towel with everything that she had.
She might be small, but the towels were even smaller and barely covered her. She’d discovered just how small they were when the bastard snatched her bikini off and ditched her naked ass in the pool as he’d sauntered away, smiling that smile that made her contemplate murder. It had taken her over thirty minutes to find the courage to jump out of that pool, race across the patio and grab a handful of the thinnest towels known to man and hide behind the dirty towel bin where she’d struggled to cover herself with the towels and failed.
She either ended up flashing her boobs or her ass, neither of which was appropriate for a stroll through the hotel lobby. It had taken her some time and a lot of luck, but she’d finally managed to cover her back and ass with one towel and drape another one in front of her by using her teeth and a lot of prayers and the promise of kicking Danny’s ass. Twenty minutes later and a humiliating wait in the lobby, she finally managed to make it to the sixth floor.