“I’m not strung tight. I work. I make a livin’.”
“And even the hardest working men—like the president—go golf every once in a while.”
“I hate golfing. You go golf,” I said.
“We’re going to Vegas.”
“You can go to Vegas. I’m stayin’ here and workin’. Someone’s gotta man the fort while you guys are off drinkin’ and blowin’ singles off at the clubs,” I said.
“You’re coming, and that’s that. Jessica’s looking forward to this trip and meeting you as well. All the brothers actually. She’s even bringing some friends of hers, so maybe you’ll find yourself a companion for the weekend.”
“No. Thank ya.”
“Everett, this isn’t a choice.”
“Lucas, there’s a damn good chance we were specifically targeted in some sort of bullshit playing field from some company up north. This is happenin’. This is serious. One of us has to stay behind, and I don’t wanna go to Vegas. So, I’m stayin’ behind.”
“No, you’re not. And before you argue with me any further, I’ve already talked to Mom and Dad about this.”
“You what?” I asked.
“They’re still ten percent stakeholders in the company, so it’s their business when all of the main employees want to duck out and take a vacation. They told me to let you know that if you tried to duck out, they’d make your weekend a living nightmare.”
“No they didn’t.”
“Want to call them and ask?”
I slid my phone out of my pocket and promptly dialed Dad. Lucas crossed his arms with a grin on his face and leaned against the wall of my townhome. I didn’t like this shit one bit. The last time we went to Vegas, my ass almost got some random ass skull tattoo because I was so damn drunk. We had too much shit goin’ on to party it up like we’re just all turnin’ twenty-one.
“Everett! Here’s what I was thinking for this weekend. You guys need a way to make some quick cash, and since you have your real estate license, we can go look at some properties.”
“Dad, I already know what you’re doin’, and it’s not gonna work. There’s plenty of paperwork to do in the office, so that’ll be my weekend,” I said.
“No, it won’t. Check your email,” he said.
I furrowed my brow as I pulled my phone away from my ear. I opened up my email and saw a forwarded message from United Airlines. My eyes flickered up to Lucas as his grin turned to a full-blown, cheeky-ass smile, and when I opened up the email, my eyes bulged. Two economy-class tickets to Wyoming.
“You boys need to start branching out a bit, and Wyoming is the perfect place to buy property to start utilizing,” my father said.
“Excuse me?” I asked.
“Yeah! Your mother and I just took a look at some property and land parcels out there and found a few you boys might like. You and I are going to go take a look at them. The plane leaves tomorrow at seven in the morning.”
“When does the plane for Vegas leave?” I asked.
“Seven in the morning,” Lucas said, grinning.
I really hated my family sometimes.
“As much as I enjoy the offer, Dad, I think I’ll stick with Vegas,” I said.
“Good choice. Stop fighting a vacation, Everett. You work too damn much.”
“That’s a hypocritical statement coming from you, Dad.”
“Your mother helped me mitigate it over the years, especially with my weekends. It almost ruined our marriage up until that point. Take the vacation, Everett. I know it’s the reason why you blew off the insurance for the mansion.”
“Thanks for always bringin’ that up.”