“You were gone hunting for furniture and that’s what you came back with?” Tess joked when she saw me. She drew herself up on her knees.
I looked down to talk to her, but my eyes went too far and landed on her chest. I flicked my gaze back up.
“I only changed my shirt,” she said defiantly, “not my shorts, so you’re going to have to be a big boy and deal.”
19
Tess
Ispent the next few hours after lunch with the girls, unpacking, while Beck’s phone was blowing up. It must have been some sort of super-duper important business thing.
“We have to go to the pool,” Enola said, showing me photos of one of the building’s pools on the amenity level. It was like something out of a magazine.
I am so going to have a hard time giving all this up whenever Beck gets the adoption officialized.
Ah well, I was going to enjoy it while it lasted!
I had brought a swimsuit with me. I knew what a swanky tower in Manhattan meant after all!
“I look hot!”
I inspected my reflection in the mirror. The leopard-print one-piece looked great on me. It had been on sale from a high-end fashion retailer, and I had bought it last year, thinking I was going to land a high-paying job and be able to afford to treat myself to an awesome vacation. Ha! As if!
I had worn it once to pose for Instagram photos.
“Totally worth the credit card debt,” I decided.
I threw on the matching wrap and knocked on Beck’s door.
“We’re going out!” I yelled through the door. “You want to come with, or are you still working?” I didn’t hear an answer.
“Okay, be a lonely sad sack,” I called. “We’re leaving.”
“Going out where?” my boss demanded, flinging the door open. I spun around and almost fell over.
“Now who’s parading around, flaunting their tits?” I said, flustered.
“I never said you were flaunting your—” He gestured in the general vicinity of my chest. “Those.”
“Boobs,” I said helpfully, pushing them up.
Beck stared at the ceiling.
I used the opportunity to ogle his chest. He had on workout pants slung low on his hips. His torso, with his washboard abs, tapered up to a broad chest that I wanted to lick frosting off of or, hell, just lick period. I wasn’t picky.
Beck cleared his throat, and my eyes rose to meet his gray ones.
“We’re just going to be off to check out the pool,” I said, holding up my towel.
He frowned. “I’ll meet you up there.”
I started drooling.
The girls and I rode the elevator to the pool level. I was in a daze.
Could I handle Beck,my boss, in a swimsuit? It was going to cling to his junk, and I was going to stare. I couldn’t tell if I was about to die from the awkwardness or if I was really turned on at just the thought of it.
When we walked onto the pool deck, a number of Beck’s brothers were already there with their sisters. They were pushing each other into the water, jumping off the diving board, and playing chicken in the shallow end while their sisters paddled around.
