Page 122 of Bridesmaid for Hire
“Reg—”
“Hi—yah,” he shouts as his arm shoots forward, sending the spear right between my goddamn legs.
And just like any other man who has a spear headed right for his penis and testicles, I scream like a banshee.
The cry of a wounded soldier.
A scream so bone-chilling that it scratches my throat on the way out, just as the arrow slices across my board shorts.
“Mother of God,” I shout right before my shorts split open right down the center of the crotch. From the force of my squat and the force of the shorts being impaled, I’m dunked straight into the water.
When I resurface, eyes clouded in salt water, all I can hear is Reginald shout, “Damn it all to hell.” He throws his arms up in the air. “You scared it away!”
“Itbeing my testicles?” I ask. “Because, yes, they’ve been scared up into my abdomen.”
“What’s going on?” Hardy asks, splashing toward us.
“McFadden scared away the fish I was inches from hitting.” Reginald gestures toward me.
“Uh,” I say still holding the spear over my head, though I’m not on my knees, the water lapping at my chin. “Your dad shot a spear between my legs, and I’m pretty sure he shaved off a piece of skin and some dignity.”
“Your dignity has been missing for a while,” Reginald grumbles as he struts through the water, clearly pissed.Sorry for not being happy that you were sending a pointed spear between my legs.
Jesus fuck, man.
“He gets pretty competitive,” Hardy says. “Ignore him.” He grabs me by the elbow and helps me to my feet, only for my swimsuit to gape open.
“Fuck,” I say as I clamp down on my shorts, dropping the spear in the water. I look up at Hardy and he chuckles.
“Did Dad cut your suit open?”
“Seems to be that way.”At least I have two whole testicles.
He slowly nods. “We’ll get you something else to wear.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
MAGGIE
“I APPRECIATE YOU HELPING MEwith this,” Haisley says as we sit in the sand with her notebook and a fruit and cheese platter in front of us. The guys are farther down the beach, playing with what look to be spears, but I ignore them as I try to focus on Haisley and her problem.
“Not a problem at all,” I say automatically as my mind swirls with the conversation I just had with Brody. Yeah, my concentration is shot. How could it not be though…
He told me he likes me.
No, he doesn’t just like me, but he’s liked me for a while, at least that’s what he said. Not sure how much I can believe thanks to the influence of those anti-nausea pills. His eyes were cloudy, like he wasn’t fully there. So how much was true?
“The only thing that I care about is you. I’m distracted by you. I can’t think with you around. And whenever I see you, my mind goes blank, my heart thumps in my chest, and all I want to do is hold you…even when we’re not pretending.”
Nothing about those words match how he’s treated me over the last couple of years though, and that’s what’s tripping me up the most. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought Brody felt anything toward me except contempt. How can he go from that tothe only thing that I care about is you? In a matter of days? Up until today, he’s only ever told me how much I annoy him, how I have ruined his chance to impress his boss, how I’ve disgusted him…
I don’t think I can believe any of it.
Even though he looked so genuinely concerned I wouldn’t believe him.
Okay, it’s better for my heart that I don’t believe any of it.
Because what if all that he said is true? What then? Am I supposed to just fall at his feet and say I’ve liked him for so long that this is the best moment of my life, being able to take what I’ve wanted? That doesn’t sound like me.
