Page 106 of Stone Vows

He looks at me like I’m crazy. “You’ll live in the city,” he says. Then he looks around the apartment. “If I were a betting man, I’d bet you’ll probably even livehere. Or maybe someplace even bigger. I mean, I thoughtIhad money. How rich is this guy?”

“I don’t know exactly. But I think it’s family money. You should see his brothers’ places. If you thinkthisplace is nice, it actually looks like a dump compared to Ethan’s penthouse.”

“You could definitely do worse, sis,” he says, looking out the massive picture windows.

“I’d love him if he had nothing, Caden.”

He laughs through his nose, nodding at me. “I know. That’s why he’s going to come around. He’d be a fool not to.”

Chapter Fifty

“The steak was amazing. Thank you,” I tell Ethan and Charlie. “And it’s so nice of you to hire a sitter to watch all the kids so we can relax.”

“It’s our pleasure,” Charlie says, refilling my glass of wine. “Most of them are watching a movie, the last I checked, and Kiera and Ellie were playing with blocks.”

“What movie? One of mine?” Chad asks, jokingly.

“Of course,” Ethan replies. “Don’t you know by now that we just love to let Eli watch dudes kill each other. Especially if it involves blood, gore, and guts. And drugs. We love to let him watch people do drugs.”

“Oh, and the ones where you shove your tongue in someone’s mouth—those are good, too,” Charlie says. “I think Eli particularly likes the ones where you grab a woman’s bare breasts.”

“That’s my boy,” Ethan says, laughing.

I still can’t believe the incredible people I have in my life now. A famous actor, the starting quarterback for the Giants, a best-selling author. Not to mention all the rest of them with ‘regular’ jobs, who themselves seem larger than life.

How did I ever get so lucky to get Kyle as my doctor so he could lead me to all of these wonderful human beings?

“What do you guys want to do now?” Ethan asks. “The night is still young. Hell, none of the kids have even had an injury yet.”

“Now you jinxed it,” Griffin says. “Better not be one of mine, or I’ll sue your ass.”

Ethan reaches into his pocket and pulls out a few quarters. “This is about as much as you’ll get out of me,” he says. Then he studies the quarters in his hand. “Hey, you guys want to play a drinking game?”

“Quarters?” Charlie asks, looking at his hand. “No way, I was never very good at that game. But I’ll play something else. You guys ever played ‘Never have I ever’?”

Kyle’s eyes snap to mine and we share a quick private moment of nostalgia.

It’s strange, being here with five other couples but not being part of a couple. The girls all know the score. Well, maybe not thewholescore. I failed to reveal to them that Kyle and I slept together a few weeks ago. I can only assume they’ve told their significant others what is—orisn’t—going on between us.

But that doesn’t stop any of them from invitingmeover whenever they invite Kyle. Every time, I tell Kyle he doesn’t have to drag me along. I tell him he should go have fun with his brothers, but he insists they are all my friends now, too, and it wouldn’t be fair to leave me home.

I stare at Kyle, waiting for him to give Charlie a reason not to play the game.

But he doesn’t.

Maybe he’s hoping to learn more about me. Maybe he’s looking for a reason to let me in.

Maybe he’s looking for a reason to kick me out.

Charlie doesn’t even have to explain the rules. Apparently, Kyle was the only teenager in the history of teenagers who had never played the game.

Ethan brings several more bottles of wine to the table. “Ladies first,” he says.

“Age before beauty,” Piper says to her oldest sister, who in turn pelts her with a chocolate candy.

“Your beauty is ageless, darlin’,” Gavin says to Baylor, leaning down to give her a kiss on the lips.

“Okay, this isn’t ‘Spin the Bottle’,” Skylar says. “Quit being all lovey-dovey and ask your question.”

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