The Dare (The Bet 3)

His eyes narrowed, and then he did the oddest thing. He blushed as Char kissed him on the neck and laughed.

Clearly, I was missing something, but it didn't matter, because Beth was still motionless. I almost waved in front of her face.

"What say you, Thor?" Jake asked, hands on hips.

"If he's Thor, I'm Iron Man." This from Travis.

"Dibs on Green Arrow." Jake raised his hand.

"Children." Kacey shook her head. "It's like we're honeymooning with little boys and capes."

"Please, like he's cool enough to have a cape." I pointed to Jake and instantly felt judged, and ten years old.

That was what being around the Titus family did to people. One minute you were a sane adult; the next you were arguing over Marvel Comics and yelling at the top of your lungs at an eighty-six-year-old woman while she blotted her red lipstick

.

Somehow, I'd lost my manhood. I'd lost my maturity and everything else that went with it. Because I wanted to beat the shit out of both Titus boys for no other reason than they were arguing with me about something stupid like comics and refused to let me be right.

I felt Beth's hand on my arm.

"So, that settles it." Travis clapped. "Avengers… to the bar!"

"Best idea he's had all day." Char's amused smile was lit with humor, making me feel slightly better about the fact that my entire career was in Grandma's hands, her meddling, terrifying, little hands.

I said a little prayer and followed everyone down the dock toward the bar as Grandma paid one of the bellhops to take the luggage down to the reserved huts.

Reserved. As in, everything was planned; it had been planned a long time.

Hell, when God created heaven and earth, He created Grandma on the final day and said, "I have a plan for those men…"

And I was just unfortunate enough to be included in said plan.

Chapter Twenty-four

"How do you sleep at night?" the agent asked.

"How lovely of you to be concerned." Grandma touched his arm. "A tiny pink pill followed by two large glasses of merlot. Works like a charm. I sleep like the dead, except for when Charles Barkley gets agitated with my snoring."

"Charles Barkley?" the agent repeated. "In your bed?"

"Well, where else would my dog sleep?" Grandma rolled her eyes. "Some people."

Beth

My vacation was over. I couldn't bring myself to feel sorry for Jace or for anyone else. Grandma was just trying to help, though her motives were so very, very illegal. Still, she loved them, and I loved her for it.

I couldn't even find it in myself to be angry.

If anything, I was sad.

Because he'd promised me six days.

And they'd been stolen from me on day three. I was owed three more days of romance, three more days of the fairytale. Instead, I was given my sister, her new husband, his brother, and wife.

Now that Jace had people watching — people who knew a heck of a lot more about his past than I did, there was no way we'd have any more stolen kisses, caresses, fights under the stars. I shivered and closed my eyes for a brief moment as I remembered the taste of his lips on mine.

At least I had that memory.