Family Ties (Morelli Family 4)

Elise interrupts, stepping in front of Adrian to grab two glasses. She raises an eyebrow at Meg. “No.”

“But—”

Elise shakes her head again, stepping back to hand Adrian his drink and loop her free arm around his waist. “Nope.”

“You’re no fun.”

“Adrian thinks I’m plenty of fun,” Elise says, not even subtly suggestive.

Adrian has a shit-eating grin on his face right now. It’s adorable.

“We need to find Alec a fun girl,” Meg announces.

Alec isn’t even here. He’s probably out with some fun girl right now, actually enjoying her since he doesn’t bring any of them onto the Morelli radar.

“I think you’re enough fun for the whole family,” Mateo states, picking up one of her drinks, frowning at it, then putting it right back down.

“Oh, come on,” Meg says.

“Nope. That looks like something sorority girls drink.”

Mia holds hers up in the air and shakes it, as if to prove his point. “They’re actually really good.”

Mateo nods, smirking. “Like I said.”

“I’m not in a sorority,” Mia replies, tilting her head to look back at him.

It’s enough to win his attention. He abandons Meg by the bar to approach Mia’s lounger. He makes absolutely no attempt at subtlety as his dark eyes rake over her body, scantily clad in a tiny pale blue bikini.

Vince’s humor understandably evaporates. Sal leans in to kiss the side of my face, but really it’s just so he can whisper, “Goddamn.”

“I know,” I murmur back. His arms wind around me from behind and I sigh happily, leaning back into him, still watching the show.

Since Mateo is still standing there looking her over, Mia takes a sip of her drink and meets his gaze. “You’re blocking my sun.”

A slow smile claims his lips. “My apologies.”

“You look incredibly sorry,” she says lightly, leaning over to put her drink down—and give him a nice view of her cleavage.

He’s gonna ruin the pool party, isn’t he?

I glance back at Meg. Her back is to Mia and Mateo as she scrolls through a playlist on her phone, looking for some mood music. I glance at Vince next. He’s sulking at a table in the corner, glaring at Mateo’s back.

Sal is in my ear again. “Do we have seats, or should we bail before Vince pushes Mateo into the pool?”

“He won’t, he’ll just pound pink ladies and take it out on Mia.”

“Your family, man.”

I nod, securing my hands on the arms he still has wrapped around me. “They’ll be yours now by marriage. Aren’t you psyched?”

“Is it too late to back out?” he jokes.

“Hell yes it is,” I shoot back. “No returns, no exceptions. You should’ve read the terms of service.”

“You know I’m just kidding. I’d tolerate these nutjobs every day if it’s the only way I got to have you.”

I turn my head and lean back to give him a little kiss. “I love you.”

My attention is pulled back out of our little moment when I hear Mia suddenly saying, “What are you doing? No, no, no. Mateo, put me down.”

I’m a little floored to see Mateo has picked Mia up bridal style and approached the edge of the walkway by the pool. It only lasts a moment before he tosses her in. Then he stands there smirking as Mia comes up out of the water like an angry, drenched kitten.

“What the hell, Mateo!”

“You looked hot,” he says lightly.

She bobs in the water, then pulls her hair over her shoulder and wrings it out as she glares up at him. I can’t tell if she’s flushed because of the double entendre he just delivered, or because she’s so annoyed at being thrown in the pool. “You’re an asshole.”

Hands shoved into the pockets of his dress pants, he shrugs nonchalantly. “Not like it’s the first time I’ve made you wet.”

That one can’t be ignored. Mia’s jaw drops as fast as mine does.

Mateo winks at her and turns around, looking directly at Vince for several seconds before heading back inside the house the way he came.

We’re all a little stunned. It’s not that Mateo would never flirt with or reference fucking Mia in front of people, but doing so in front of both Vince and Meg was certainly unexpected.

Time stands still for a horribly awkward moment, then Vince finally stands and storms away from the pool.

Mia mutters, “Fuck,” as she swims over to the ladder and climbs out, then follows after Vince. She catches up to him and tries to put a hand on his shoulder, but he swats it away and keeps on walking.

Sal and I both look at Meg, since she’s the only one left to respond.

Laughing a little, she flashes a semi-apologetic smile and says, “He’s a rascal, isn’t he?”

—

“Harder.”

Sal’s grip on my hips tightens and he pulls me into his next thrust.

My head falls back toward the mirror of my bathroom vanity. I groan and pant in alternating intervals while also trying to hold onto the sink so I don’t fall off while he fucks me.