Sun-kissed (The Au Pairs 3)

"Check it out!" the handsome one with the sideburns exclaimed. "Fucking A." He whistled, stalking over to the side of the chopper with smooth, catlike grace.

Painted on the side of the helicopter was a cartoon hand holding up its index and third fingers in a crooked V. Underneath was emblazoned the words The Shocker!

"Oh, man, Grant." Duffy suddenly raised his arms to the back of his head and looked pained. "Totally forgot I have to pick up my parents from the Vineyard in that thing tomorrow!"

"Maybe they won't notice," Ben soothed, taking off his glasses and wiping them on the edge of his shirt. "You can always tell them it's a peace sign."

"Yeah, right," Duffy said glumly as Grant punched him on the shoulder, trying not to laugh too hard.

The three of them climbed up the steps into the helicopter, completely ignoring the Perry clan.

Until they spotted Jacqui crouching on her knees, trying to calm Cody.

"You can just go here, Cody. No one will see," she said as she helped the kid with his pants buttons.

"Ten o'clock," Duffy said, alerting his friends to the direction where Jacqui was kneeling. "Hottie central."

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Ben put his glasses back on his nose for a closer look. "Girls sure don't look like that at Harvard," he lamented.

Grant nodded. "No wonder Latin American women always win Miss Universe."

His friends looked askance at him. "How do you know that shit?" they ribbed.

"It's called having sisters," Grant huffed. He straightened his winged collar and slicked back his dark hair.

Jacqui didn't even notice the three boys staring at her with an intensity bordering on reverence. In the afternoon sun, violet highlights shone in her black hair, and her deep bronze tan glowed. The sweetheart neckline on her dress displayed her ample cleavage, and her slim, toned legs were taut from squatting to Cody's height. "There you go; that's a good boy," she said, relieved that the kid had been able to urinate. She brushed her hair out of her eyes, lifting and stretching her bountiful chest, which elicited a chorus of strangled cries from two of the Black Hawk's occupants.

"Yo!" Duffy said, opting for a direct approach.

"Excuse me!" Ben yelled, trying for a polite angle.

Grant merely slumped back in his seat and regarded Jacqui thoughtfully. Girls usually came up to him, and he didn't see the need to make a fool of himself. Especially as the sounds of his friends' desperate mating calls were obscured by the din of the engine roaring into first gear.

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"Who do you think she is?" Ben wondered aloud as the helicopter lifted them high up in the air and out of earshot.

"A goddess," Duffy opined.

"Relax, guys, we're going to the Hamptons. And believe me, they all look like that there," Grant assured them. But his two friends looked at him doubtfully. As far as they could see, there was only one Jacqui.

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the first rule of party reporting: fabricate fun!

IN THE HAMPTONS, EVEN A DAY-CARE-CENTER FUND-RAISER

merited boldface names and a swishy crowd. The first person Mara saw on entering Cain was none other than Mitzi Goober-- the toxic publicist from last summer who had styled herself Mara's best friend and plied her with gifts, only to turn on her after a misunderstanding over a pair of misplaced quarter-million-dollar earrings that were supposed to be worn by J.Lo at the MTV Awards. But what was a lost PR opportunity among friends? To Mara's surprise, Mitzi greeted her with a shrill hello and immediately drew her in for a fierce embrace. It was like hugging a skeleton, Mara thought.

Mitzi was tanner and blonder than ever. But while her arms were toned and muscular, she had a basketball-sized stomach owing to the fact that she was six months pregnant. She sported a tight tank top that blared Living the American Dream over a proud baby bump--the ne plus ultra of accessories that summer. "Yummy Mommies" were all the rage--fertility was very fashionable at the moment. Of course, once the children were born, they were quickly ushered offstage by a crew of nannies. The glamorous

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crowd cooed over a chic pregnancy but beat a hasty retreat when faced with the reality of actually raising a child.

"Dollink!" Mitzi cooed as she sipped on a thin red straw poking out of a blue-and-silver Red Bull can. Caffeine intake concerns? Not this mother-to-be.