“Oh yeah,” he says with a grin. “Right on the beach. Your pops is living in style now.”
“You gotta ask for a raise,” I say as I roll the window back down. The hot wind hits my face and I can feel the ocean in the air.
He laughs. “Global Chem Solutions is just a fraction of my wife’s portfolio. She started the company herself, but she was also an early investor in a few successful startups.”
“What startups?” I ask as I turn to him in shock.
He lists off a dozen or so companies—all companies I’ve heard of. All companies I use.
“I had no idea she was so rich! You really hit the jackpot.”
“I did,” my father says with a smile. “But it’s not because of the money. She’s incredible. She’s the most amazing woman I know. Present company excluded, of course.”
“Of course.”
I can’t help but smile as I watch him gush about his new wife. He looks so happy. He looks so in love.
Maybe I was being a bit selfish. I should really try to make this work for him. Not just for him, but for me too. It would be nice to have a family to call my own.
“No!” I shout as he pulls up to a gated property.
“Oh yeah,” he says as he reaches into the glove compartment, pulls out a clicker thing, and presses it. The enormous metal gate silently opens, revealing a stunning property that’s perfectly manicured. Even the driveway is breathtaking with all of the stones arranged into a gorgeous mosaic. I feel bad driving over it, but my father doesn’t seem to mind.
We roll up to the house and my jaw is hanging open as I stare at the gorgeous mansion in awe.
“What do you think?” he asks with a grin as he parks beside a Bentley and a red motorcycle.
I turn to him with a grin. “I think this is going to be an amazing freaking summer!”
We grab our bags from the trunk and he opens the front door with his own key.
“Wow!” I say with a gasp when I step into the entrance that is bigger than the house I spent the first half of my life in. “Wow.”
I can’t stop saying that word as he shows me around. This place is surreal. Who lives next door? Oprah Winfrey? Richard Branson? Jeff Bezos?
We walk into the kitchen and my heart stops when I see the spectacular view through the floor-to-ceiling sliding glass doors. It’s pool, beach, ocean. I can’t stop staring at it.
My father walks over to the huge granite island and grabs the handwritten note on it. He smiles as he reads it, then he tucks it into his back pocket.
“Debra and Ollie are at the beach,” he says as he opens the fridge and pulls out a lime and two Coronas. “Want to get dressed and go meet them down there?”
I can’t stop staring at the view as he opens the bottles, slices up the lime, and hands me one.
“Hells yeah!” I say as I clink my bottle to his. “Let’s get this vacation started!”
My room is sick. I have a stunning view of the beach, a huge en suite bathroom, enormous walk-in closet, and the double French doors open right onto the area with the hot tub. I’m in heaven. I might never leave this place again.
Hopefully, my stepmother is the evil Disney kind who keeps me locked away in her house. I wouldn’t mind being locked away in this luxurious palace for the rest of my life. It’s got everything.
I quickly put on my bikini and step out through the French doors when I see my dad in his bathing suit dipping his foot into the giant infinity pool.
“What do you think?” he asks with a knowing grin.
“I think I should have listened more in chemistry class.”
He chuckles. “I told you.”
We grab our towels and head on down to the beach. There’s nothing better than that feeling of warm sand sliding between your toes when you first step onto the beach after a long stretch of being stuck in the sweltering hot New York City for work.
The water looks so inviting. Blue and sparkling with good-sized waves coming in. This is going to be an amazing summer.
And it’s just gotten a little better…
A hot guy playing football in the surf catches my eye. He tosses the bright orange Nerf football and it sails in an arc to the eight-year-old boy he’s playing with. My dad wanders down the beach to find his new bride while I gawk and stare at the hottie’s glistening muscles. He’s built like a truck with big hard tattooed arms and a chest that looks like it was chiseled out of stone.
The kid heaves the football back and the hottie dives forward to catch it. He slams into the water and disappears with only his strong hand clutched around the bright orange football sticking out of the water.