Tool (A Step-Brother Romance #2)

"You're looking out for me, huh?" I ask. "That's it?"

"That's it," she says. "Don't shit where you eat. That's all I'm concerned about."

"I'm sure that's all it is, darlin'." She's obviously lying. I'm tempted to kiss her, but I don't.

"Have a nice flight," she says abruptly. My cue to leave.

"I hope you can find a way to entertain yourself while I'm gone," I say. I picture her using the dildo and the thought makes me rock hard. Damn it, there's nothing worse than leaving for a trip with your dick as hard as a fucking rock.

"I will," she says.

I'm down the stairs and on the way to the airport before I realize that her "I will" sounded way too smug. And she was all dressed up, fuck me boots and all. I was so concerned about giving her grief, I didn't even ask where the hell she was going. Trapped in the car on the way to the airport, I can't stop thinking about it. And now I really don't want to be stuck in Vegas with Chelsea.





"Oh my God, how much did you miss real Texas queso when we were in New York?" I dip a chip into the bowl and shove the entire thing into my mouth. "I am absolutely starving."

"Here are your drinks." The waitress sets our glasses and silver shakers on the table, and disappears as quickly as she arrived.

"Cheers to your first day at work," Daniel says, holding up his glass. I met Daniel two years ago at Columbia – I literally bumped into him while he was on his way to an audition. It turned out, he was from Dallas, and we became instantaneous friends.

"Even if it doesn't really count?" I take a sip of the drink, a Texas specialty that's like a margarita in a martini glass, complete with olives.

"Shut up," Daniel says, sipping his drink. "Who cares if your daddy is the CEO of the company? That's how the world works. At least your mother didn't have you auditioning for commercials before you could walk."

Laughing, I crunch on another chip. "But the commercials from when you were a toddler were totally adorable."

"It's appalling that they're on the internet," he says, rolling his eyes. "It used to be that people's shameful childhood experiences didn't live on forever and ever."

"They're cute," I insist. "And besides, now it's saved for posterity. When you become super famous, they'll use them in one of those throwback episodes: a glimpse into Daniel Beacon's childhood."

"Now I feel tons better," he says, waving his hand dismissively. "Cute is just fantastic for my dating life, by the way."

"How is the dating life?"

"Oh, you know," he says. "I'm seeing a few guys, no one special."

"What about the lawyer?"

"Too work obsessed, of course," he says. "There's nothing new with my dating life. I'll die a spinster."

"You're not going to die a spinster. But if it's any consolation, you'd make a fabulous spinster," I note. "I can see you being the gay version of the Dowager on Downton Abbey – bitter and witty and clever."

"I really need to date someone with a title," he says, sipping his drink. "Like a prince. Or an earl. Oh, but I want to hear about the famous stepbrother."

"What?" My voice goes up an octave. "How did you know he was here?"

Daniel's eyes narrow and he sips his drink. "You didn't think you could hide this from me, did you?" he asks. "I read an article."

"You follow motorcycle racing?" I ask, my voice dripping with disbelief.

"No," he says. "But I follow hot guys. And Gaige O'Neal is hot as hell. Isn't he? Tell me he's lying around the pool sunning himself. Oh, tell me he needs a cabana boy."

"Ugh, cut it out. That's my stepbrother you're talking about."

"So what?" Daniel asks.

"So, it's repulsive," I say. Is it obvious that I'm lying? "I don't think of him that way." But my protests sound weak, feeble, and I have to take a sip of my drink to cover up my faltering voice.

Daniel studies me from across the table. "First of all, you're not related. Didn't you only meet a few years ago, anyway?"

"When we were seventeen," I say. "Anyway, he's completely skeevy. He's a total manwhore."

"You know that's how I like 'em," Daniel says, wiggling his eyebrows. "Maybe he's just not finding what he needs, screwing all those girls."

I laugh. "You want me to set you up, let him know you're hot for him?"

"I'll settle for the opportunity to ogle him as he lays out by the pool," Daniel says. "You can even join us if you like."

"Well, you'll have to wait on that, because he's in Vegas for the weekend. With my new boss, Chelsea." The drink is making me a little tipsy, and I put extra emphasis on her name, punctuating it at the end with a dramatic eye roll.

"Ooh, this sounds good," Daniel says. "First day at the job and we already hate the boss? Doesn't she know you're the CEO's daughter? How dare she get on your bad side?"

"She definitely knows I'm the CEO's daughter," I say. "I'm sure that's why she hates me. That, or..."