I laughed at that, not the least bit surprised Cassie had a thing for that romance trope. Her book choices generally cracked me up. If they weren’t BDSM-based, they were quick and dirty—one-handed reads, if you know what I’m saying.
The plane jolted a few times as the wheels hit the runway, and the brakes squealed when the pilot worked to bring all of our forward momentum to rest.
“Wait… Stepbrother romance novels?” Wes asked while the plane taxied down the runway. “That’s a thing?”
“It’s a thing, Wes,” Cass explained. “A very hot thing.”
Georgia’s nose scrunched up. “It’s gross.”
Cassie rolled her eyes. “They’re not related. It’s not incest.”
“You’re deranged. A total fucking pervert,” Georgia teased with a smirk.
“Thank you.” Cass grinned and then looked at Wes. “You got a brother, Wes?”
He shook his head and laughed. “Nope.”
“Damn,” she muttered.
“You’re with Thatch, you freak,” Georgia said. “And you also happen to be knocked up with his child.”
Cass smirked. “Pregnancy makes me horny, and I’m traveling so much I barely get to see him. Spank bank material is needed. Anyway, I know Thatch jerks off to Margot Robbie when I’m not home. He can’t get e-fucking-nough of her since we saw Suicide Squad.”
“She was so badass as Harley Quinn,” I tossed out.
“Right?” Cass agreed. “You should be her for Halloween, Win. You’d make a hot Harley Quinn.”
I laughed. “Pretty sure my neighbors wouldn’t be thrilled with me strolling around in booty shorts while Lex goes door-to-door.”
“Yeah, but you could wear that costume to Brooks Media’s big Halloween bash,” she encouraged with a waggle of her brows.
“Oh, yeah! You have to go to that, Win. It’s a blast,” Georgia exclaimed. “Plus, my usual drinking partner got knocked up, so I’m looking for a new one.” She flashed a wink at Cassie and earned a middle finger in return.
“When is it?”
“Three weeks from this Saturday,” Georgia said. “We’re playing Baltimore at home, so we’ll be in town.”
I glanced at the calendar on my phone and noted zero prior obligations. “Count me in. I’ll find someone to keep Lexi overnight.”
Georgia fist-pumped the air as the pilot announced our successful arrival in Phoenix over the intercom and instructed us that we could now get out of our seats and depart from the plane.
Everyone stood, and Georgia made a point of glaring at Cass. “By the way, Cass, that was total TMI about your spank bank. I’d like to keep my appetite for dinner, thank you very much.”
Cassie just laughed it off and grabbed her purse from beneath her seat. “Speaking of dinner, where are you taking us, Wes?”
He scrunched his brows together. “Huh?”
Cassie slid her purse over her shoulder and confidently announced, “You’re taking us to dinner tonight, Lancaster.”
He tilted his head to the side, and an amused smirk kissed his lips. “I am?”
She nodded. “Yep. You’re paying, and you’re also taking us somewhere I can eat a steak the size of Thatcher’s head.”
“You have to get your steak well done, Cassie,” Georgia chimed in.
“Fluffing pregnancy police,” she mumbled and walked down the aisle and off the plane.
Wes motioned for me to slip into the aisle before him with a soft smirk. “You coming to dinner with us?”
I shrugged one of my shoulders. “I’m not sure I have a choice.”
He chuckled softly. “That makes two of us.”
I glanced back to shoot an amused smile in his direction, and I didn’t miss the fact that his gaze had now honed in on my ass. He was literally staring at my ass, and when he looked up and met my eyes, he just grinned. Not the least bit ashamed he had been caught red-handed.
What the hell?
Wes’s taste in dining was impeccable. He had taken us to a swanky joint called Red that was only a few miles from our hotel. It was an upscale restaurant that literally lived up to its name. The lights, the walls, the décor, pretty much everything in the room was a different shade of red. What should have reminded me of horror flicks like Carrie or The Shining, only gave a warm ambiance of fine dining and quiet charm.
About twenty minutes after we had checked in to our hotel, Wes had managed to reserve a table for us at Red and even had a car waiting to escort us when everyone was ready to go. The man might have been consistently late to pretty much everything, but he sure as shit could get things done when they mattered most.