“Whatever man. You look me in the face and tell me you can say no to your little sister.”
I opened my mouth to offer a rebuttal, but the only thing I could do was break into a grin. Drew was right. I couldn’t find the heart to deny Des anything she asked for. Mostly — when she wasn’t on one of her bossy, motherly, rampages — she was a genuinely sweet person, so it was natural to want to make her happy.
“That’s what I thought,” Drew said, standing in the mirror to make a last adjustment to his tie. “What brings you back? They ready to start?”
Shaking my head, I leaned against the top of the dresser, facing Drew as he looked in the mirror. “Not quite man… I’ve actually got a question for you.”
“Ask away.”
After a moment’s hesitation, I did. “Des’ maid of honor… what’s up with her?”
“You’re talking about Tori’s fine ass,” Wes said from the other side of the room, letting out a low whistle of appreciation. I lifted an eyebrow at him, sending the unspoken message that, at least between the two of us, Tori was mine to claim. He lifted his hands in a conciliatory gesture. “I don’t mean any harm man. Tori looks good, but I’ve got my eye on that fine ass bridesmaid.”
“Hey, watch how you’re talking about my cousin in front of me, man,” I warned with a grimace. Drew and Wes were both good people, and Desiree and Deidra could do a lot worse. I was protective of them, but not so much that I didn’t give them room to make their own mistakes. The guys both had good heads on their shoulders, and I was sure I would never have a reason to kick either of their asses.
“Anyway,” I said, turning back to Drew, “About Tori… do you know why Des never introduced us?”
He grimaced, and I knew I wasn’t about to like his answer. “Listen, man… I’m not trying to get involved in any mess between you and your sister, alright?”
“What the hell are you talking about, man? What mess?”
Drew pushed out a deep breath as he ran a hand over his tie. “Ok… so, you can’t tell Des I told you this, but she didn’t want you around Tori because she knows how you are. That’s her friend, and she doesn’t want you screwing her over— or screwing her, period. Sorry man. But come on, Avery, you know how you are. Can you blame her?”
Scowling, I turned away from Drew without answering and headed over to the window to stare out over the beach where the wedding was being set up. Des was always doing this shit with her friends. She had this idea of who I was in her head, and completely accurate or not, she was committed to it. It was true that I ran through women like they were going out of style, but they knew what they were getting into with me. They were adults, making their own choice to engage in commitment-free fun, and I was interested in seeing if my sister’s friend was interested in a little adult entertainment as well. Tori was gorgeous, and I wanted her. The fact that Des didn’t want me to have her only made that desire stronger. I prided myself on being a man who got what I wanted, and I didn’t anticipate Tori would be any different.