Free Tangled Beauty by K. L. Middleton Page B

hell had just happened. Obviously, it was wrong but that didn’t stop me from wanting more of it.
    You’re not messing up someone’ s relationship, I told myself. Who cares if his fiancé is a royal bitch- nobody deserves to get cheated on.
    Sighing, I changed my clothes and went to go find Jesse.
     
    ***
     
    Reed
     
    After that scene with Sinclair, I knew there was no way that I was ready for marriage. I decided that after the anniversary party, I would lock up all my breakables and talk to Sela. For now, however, I decided it would be best to stay away from Sinclair and be a little more attentive towards Sela.
    I owed her that.
    With a sense of relief, I went in search of Sela and found her in a miniscule, pink bikini, lounging next to the outdoor pool.
    “Where have you been?” she asked , frigidly.
    “Can’t you tell?” I asked, spreading my arms apart and turning around.
    She wrinkled her nose. “Is that her idea of a haircut?”
    “What’s wrong with it?” I asked, knowing perfectly well that the only thing wro ng was the fact that Sinclair had given it to me.
    “It’s fine,” she said. “If you like it, that’s all that matters.”
    I frowned. “It’s a good, solid trim and it looks the same as it usually does when I have it done. In fact,” I said, running a hand through my hair. “I think she did a better job than my last stylist.”
    She stretched her arms, pushing out her breasts. “It’s fine,” she said. “I’ll still let you in my bed.”
    I grinned. “You will, huh?”
    “Oh, look,” she said, looking beyond me . “Jack’s coming to join us.”
    I turned to see him closing the patio do or, wearing a white robe and holding, what appeared to be, a large Bloody Mary.
    “Hey kids,” he said, smiling , brightly as he moved towards us..
    “Jack,” I said.
    “Good morning,” said Sela. “Oh, that looks so refreshing,” she said, motioning towards his cocktail.
    He stopped and stared down at Sela. “You want it? I can have Gretchen whip up another one. I told her to keep them coming, anyway.”
    Sela removed her sunglasses and batted her lashes. “Oh, I couldn’t take yours .”
    “ Of course you could, my dear,” he said, handing it to her. “I insist.”
    “Oh, thank you Mr. Eddington,” she gushed, acting like a flirty, little school girl.
    Jack smiled. “You’re practically my daughter, now,” he said. “ Our house is your house.”
    “Oh, thanks ‘dad dy’,” she giggled.
    “See, I like the sound of that, already,” he said, running a finger over his mustache.
    “ So,” I interrupted, feeling a little pissed off at the way the asshole was gawking at Sela’s body. “Get a good night’s sleep Jack?”
    H e removed his robe, revealing skinny limbs and a fleshy belly. “Marvelous,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “In fact, I’m so refreshed that I’ve decided to do some laps in the pool, this morning, before they start preparing the house for tonight’s party.”
    “Good idea,” I said.
    He swung his arms around, stretching them out, and then dove into the deep end of the water.
    I turned to Sela. “So, I’ll be back in a couple of hours,” I said. “I have some errands to run. Unless, you’d like to tag along?”
    She took a sip of her drink and then set it down next to her . “No, I think I’ll just hang out at the pool for a few hours,” she said, pulling at her bikini bottoms. “Work on this tan.”
    “Okay, call me if you need anything,” I said, bending down and kissing her on the cheek.
    “Okay,” she sai d, grabbing her tanning oil, “could you do me a favor and put some of this on my back, first?”
    “Sure.”
    She turned over onto her stomach and untied her bikini top.
    I poured some oil into my palms and proceeded to rub it over her shoulders and down her back. As she sighed in approval, I thought of Sinclair, wishing it was her skin that I was running my hands over.
    “If you’d like to continue this inside