Page 23 of My Ex-Best Men
Uncle Sal, with the hearing of a bat, decided to give his input. “Oh, Claire told me all about how you two first met. She’d been studying for an exam all night long and she cut through the gym to get to her class faster. Only she caught sight of that one’s fine body and fell right into the pool.”
Anthony’s hand tightened slightly in my hair. “Is that true? You never told me you saw me before you fell in.”
“Oh, she definitely saw you. And with all the blood rushing to her lady parts, she couldn’t think of how to swim so she just sank.” Uncle Sal was having too much fun. “Thankfully, her eye candy also happened to be an excellent swimmer. He saved her. Every time she talked about it, she had hearts in her eyes.”
I hugged the bucket tighter. “How about someone throwsmeoverboard?”
“Not going to happen. Do you know how many sharks live in the ocean? How many creatures in general? We’ve only explored around twenty percent of the ocean and we’ve already found colossal squids. What else do you think is hiding down there?” Anthony rubbed my back in gentle circles. “Besides, I want to hear more about those hearts in your eyes.”
“That reminds me of a time-”
“Uncle Sal!” I didn’t know what he was going to say next but I didn’t want to hear it either way.
His eye roll was so prominent that I could hear it in his voice. “Oh, relax. I’m not going to tell anymore of your secrets. I’ve got plenty of my own to spill, honey.”
“Thanks, Will.” Madeline giggled. “Tell us more about Claire, Uncle Sal. Was she totally helpless when it came to men in college like she was in high school?”
The thing about Uncle Sal was that he would embarrass me happily but he’d turn into a fierce guard dog at the drop of a hat if he thought someone was messing with me. I almost felt bad for Madeline.
“Look around you. Between the rockstar and the billionaire, what makes you think Claire is helpless when it comes to men? Of course, there are others that I can’t name who’d blow your tiny little mind.” Uncle Sal cleared his throat haughtily. “How’s your daddy, by the way? I hated rejecting him when he came over a few months ago but I just have never been able to see myself with a man who has kids like… Well, you know.”
Anthony leaned down, daringly putting himself closer to my mess, and let out a soft laugh against my neck. “Remind me to send that man on whatever shopping spree he wants.”
“Okay, Uncle Sal.” Will sounded pained as he spoke up for Madeline. “Play nice.”
“Thatwasme playing nice. You should see me when I’m a bitch.”
“I didn’t hear you telling Madeline to play nice.” Zane returned to our end of the boat and he sounded as grumpy as I felt about Will standing up for Madeline.
The captain of the boat raised his voice and called out over everyone. “How about we all play nice and hit the water? I’m going to drop anchor here for the day.”
22
***Claire***
Anthony stood at the side of the boat looking over the side with a scowl on his face. He’d stripped down to his trunks and with his arms crossed over his chest, he was enough of a vision to make me forget how sick I felt. “How deep is the water here?”
Lizzie wrapped her arms around her waist and stood next to him. “You’re really freaking me out.”
“You should be freaked out. Have you ever heard of a vampire squid?” Looking back at me, Anthony shook his head. “I haven’t even mentioned the hydrothermal vents that can reach temperatures of seven hundred degrees.”
Kinsley stood next to Jake’s younger brother, Mark, and took a deep breath. “We came to snorkel. We can’t snorkel on the boat. So we should just…jump in. Right?”
Jake inched closer to his boss. “Hey, man, maybe don’t give us any more ocean facts.”
Anthony shrugged and moved back to my side. “If you don’t want to know the shit coming your way, that’s on you.”
I sat back on the bench and toed my sick bucket away from me. While I still felt like crap, I at least didn’t feel like I was going to spew. Sophia had even slipped me a mint, bless her. “I never knew you were afraid of the ocean.”
He slung his arm around me and didn’t hide that he was trying to look down the t-shirt I’d stolen from Jake to wear over another of Sophia’s tiny bikinis. “I’m not afraid. I’m just smart. I like to know the risks before jumping into a situation. It’s worked for me in business so why would I throw caution to the wind when sharks are involved?”
Zane whipped his shirt off and stood at the edge of the boat, grinning at me. “Anthony might be too scared but I’m not.”
Everyone cheered as he flipped off of the boat and shouted about how cold the water was. I leaned over and smiled when I saw him treading water with a silly grin on his face. He looked like a little boy who’d won a race.
“If you want to come in, Claire, I’ll keep you sa-” Zane screamed bloody murder and started splashing around wildly while also trying to get back to the boat. “Shark!”
Uncle Sal leaned over the boat and let out a loud laugh. “That’s a goddamn fish and a small one at that! Stop splashing around before you get my hair wet, boy!”
