Page 7 of Somebody's Watching Me
“I’m over the moon,” Charlie replied, not missing a beat. “Fucking your sister like a whore is my new favorite pastime.”
If Phillip ran off and tattled like the prick that he was, Vivian would forgive the vulgar comeback. She loved her siblings, but she loved him more and would find the interaction comical.
At least, Charlie hoped she would.
“Viv loves to get on her knees every chance she can.” Charlie didn’t risk glancing at his brothers when they chuckled at Phillip’s smug expression dissolving into one of horror. “Her lack of a gag reflex is amazing and really lets me—“
“That is my sister,” Phillip seethed. “You will not speak of her that way.”
“Or you’ll what?” Ben sighed as if he were bored with the conversation. “Everyone already assumes you’re a weak little shit. Don’t go proving them right tonight.”
With that, Ben proceeded across the catwalk and to the central staircase. Charlie and Trevor followed his lead, leaving Phillip fuming in their wake.
“Watch yourselves tonight,” Ben warned before the three of them parted ways. “Trevor, stick to Phillip like glue. I don’t want him snitching over what just happened.”
Trevor nodded. “Got it.”
“And Charlie, no missteps,” Ben ordered, ever and always in charge. “You are Prince fucking Charming.”
Charlie adjusted his jacket, making sure he looked the part. “Always, baby brother.”
They reached the grand central staircase and separated. Charlie found Vivian, and the two of them made their rounds. After an hour of accepting a never-ending line of congratulations, the bride-to-be needed a break.
“Meet me on the second-floor balcony overlooking the gardens,” she whispered in his ear. “And bring a bottle of champagne.”
He let her slip away first and smartly worked his way through the throngs of people to take a rear staircase leading to the second floor. The sun had set long ago, and the shaded spot was exactly what they needed for privacy.
“Hello, gorgeous.”
Ready for him, Viv had tossed her shoes in the corner and held up two empty champagne glasses. “Hello, handsome.”
“Let’s have a toast.” He filled their glasses and set the bottle aside. “To us.”
“To us,” she repeated and took a sip. Turning to face the lawn, she relaxed against the railing. “Did you know any of those people?”
Charlie rested his chin on her shoulder. “Maybe three?”
“Me, too.” She watched as the party continued without them, her gaze drawn to Ben breaking from the crowd. “But I bet your brother knows everyone here tonight. Especially the females.”
Letting out a strangled laugh, Charlie sure as hell hoped she wasn’t referring to her mother. “Women flock to him like crazy.”
“Not me.”
“Are you sure?” he teased, moving to stand beside her. “Most wouldn’t say no.”
“I’m not most women.” Viv stared down at Ben from their spot. “I get it, though. He’s gorgeous, but that whole untamable bad boy thing isn’t my style.” She nudged his shoulder. “I’m more into the kind ones who look at me like I’m something special.”
“You are something special.” He meant it. She was his match in every way. “But watch it around him. Your father could change his mind about me, and my dad would send Ben in as a backup.”
Charlie winced. He shouldn’t have said that. He should have left it alone. But in the back of his mind, he wanted her to understand. To prepare her for life with the Fairweathers.
“What do you mean?”
Below them, Ben had diverted from his original path and was now heading toward Paula McIntyre standing just outside a labyrinth of tall hedges. Charlie guessed Viv’s mother needed more “convincing” and turned his fiancée around so she wouldn’t see.
“Once.” He paused and shook his head. “Actually, no. More than once, Ben has persuaded people to change their minds with the cunning use of his dick.”
Vivian snorted, choking on the champagne. The move would have been off-putting to Charlie if done by any other woman, yet the future Mrs. Fairweather made it look classy.
