Page 24 of Flirting with my Billionaire Boss

“Langston would be a great choice.” Ashton threads his fingers through his dark hair, still wet from an earlier swim. All five of us boys have the same dark hair. We were little blond-headed kids before, but we all turned dark as adults. Sometimes it’s strange to think about how I have four other dudes walking around who look so much like me.

“That’s what I’ve been thinking too,” I say. “I’m simply not interested.” I tip my glass to my mouth again and allow the liquid to travel down my throat.

My mom stares at us with her mouth hanging open. Then she clamps it shut. “Well, I hadn’t thought about asking Langston.”

“That’s not a terrible idea,” my dad says.

“Dude.” Ashton busts up laughing. “Langston’s going to thank you for this later.”

Great. What have I done to my poor brother?Mom and Dad were going to be all over him now.

Martha comes into the room with more drinks for us. “Oh, thank you, dear.” Mom takes a glass from her before she finishes handing us more drinks.

Martha turns to leave, but then my mom stops her. “Oh, wait just a second. Have you seen my diamond tennis bracelet? I could have sworn I brought it on the boat, but when I went to put it on this morning, it wasn’t with my jewelry.”

“No, ma’am. I haven’t seen it. But I’ll keep a close watch for it.” She disappears toward the ship’s kitchen.

“I hate it when I lose things. Oh well, I’ll just have to get another one. But that one was special because your father bought it for me on our last anniversary.”

And it’s probably worth a small fortune. Hopefully, she’s just misplaced it and one of the staff hasn’t taken it. We’ve had enough of that lately. “I’m sure it’s around here somewhere.”

* * *

The next day I go below deck to Callie’s room to see if she wants to go ashore with me to do some shopping. But she’s not in there when I knock on the door. It pushes open a bit. I know I shouldn’t go sneaking around her room, but I step inside. She’s nowhere to be found. Maybe she’s in the bathroom down the hall. There’s a bottle of perfume on the dresser, and I can’t help but pick it up to sniff the fragrance once more. She always smells so lovely.

I bring the bottle to my nose and press down just a bit to release a little of the scent. But instead of just a little, a lot comes out, shooting up my nostril. I drop the bottle and it shatters all over her dresser and splashes onto my shirt. That’s what I get for snooping. Now I smell like a bomb of girliness just exploded next to me. And what’s worse, my nose burns where I sprayed it up there.

I sweep the remnants of glass into the trash and grab a towel to soak up the rest. But I can’t find a towel. There’s nothing but a swimsuit cover-up draped over the end of her bed. So I grab that and soak up the spilled liquid. Hopefully, she doesn’t mind her beachwear smelling like flowers.

A dip in the ocean would fix the smell issue that I have. But the boat starts to move, and I have no opportunity to wash off. I’ll just have to take a shower instead. I head through the boat to my quarters.

Langston and Kaison pass me on the way.

“Why do you smell like a woman?” Langston asks.

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

Kaison covers his nose with his hand. “That’s horribly strong. You need to go take a shower. And then burn your clothes.”

“Where do you think I’m going?” I say.

“By the way,” Langston says. “Mom told me you’re trying to set me up with Jenni. You know I’m dating Sarah right now. Plus, Ronnie would kill me if I tried to date his sister.”

“Oh yeah!” Kaison says. “You would be great with Jenni.”

“You’re not helping. Please stop talking,” Langston says to Kaison.

“Ronnie wouldn’t kill you,” I say. “He knows you’re a great guy.” I slap him on the shoulder. “You and Jenni are perfect for each other. And it gets Mom and Dad off my back. It’s a win-win.”

“You’re horrible, and I’m perfectly capable of choosing my own women. I don’t need help in that department.”

“No one’s saying you need it. It’s just a friendly suggestion.”

He wrinkles up his nose. “You really need to take a shower. That smell is filling up the entire hallway, and it’s making my nose burn.”

“I know. I’m working on it. You’re the one who wants to talk so bad.”

* * *

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