Free Swerve by Amarinda Jones

it would come true. “She’s awfully tall.” The women in the Dalton family rarely grew taller than five-foot-two.
    “It doesn’t matter when you’re with the love of your life.” Clare pointed one long finger in Simon’s direction. “So, what’s the story on the surfer dude? Did you bring him to drive mother crazy?”
    “He’s a friend.”
    “With benefits?”
    “It’s complicated.” In her heart Mary had already fallen in love with Simon, in whatever version he presented himself in. In her head? She knew there was more to the man than he was telling her and that made her wonder what he was hiding.
    “Yeah, it usually is.” Clare blew out some smoke. “He’s got a nice ass. I’d consider taking a turn with him on the ass alone.”
    “Really?”
    “I like quirky and great butts,” Clare responded. “You know mother likes him.”
    “Mother likes anyone with a cock.” Despite his best efforts as Swerve, her mother was not deterred from making him her next son-in-law.
    “Are you going marry him?
    “No.” She thought for a moment. A negative response didn’t fit her feelings. “I don’t know.” That was more like it. Mary looked at her sister Fran. As befitted a bride, she and her groom were surrounded by well wishers. “She looks like a meringue.” The dress was so white it was blinding. And the layers of tulle?
    Impossible and so many that Mary wondered how she moved under all that.
    “Funny how sluts always wear white.” Clare blew out smoke through her bright scarlet painted lips.
    None of the Dalton girls were saints but Fran had been through a whole football team at one stage so white was an interesting choice of color. “Will looks terrified.”
    He looked like he was going to faint or run away screaming.
    “I would be if I married into our family. He now has to produce an immediate grandchild or mother will wonder about him. That’s enough to dry up any man’s semen.”
    Both sisters laughed. Mary loved that Clare said and acted how she felt.

    “Remember when we were kids and Fran always wanted to be a bride?” Claire reminisced.
    “And you wanted to be Batman.” Mary could still remember the curtains Claire had pulled down from the railings and draped around her, curtains rings attached, as she went off to fight evil which usually meant jumping off the garage room and scaring her mother to death. “God, you were a bugger of a kid.”
    “And you wanted to run away to a deserted island and read your books.”
    “Yeah, I was boring.”
    “Nah, you just wanted peace and in our house with our mother that wasn’t an option. Do you think that’s why dad left?”
    Mary raised her eyebrows. “Which dad?” As far as she could work out there were several possible dads on their mother’s quest to hold onto a man. Genetically Mary had no idea where she stood.
    “I like the way Swerve looks at you,” Clare changed the subject as the man in question waved at the sisters. “He loves you.”
    Mary waved back. Lordy he is beautiful . “It’s sex.”
    “Mary!” Clare sat bolt upright in feigned shock. “You had sex?” They both laughed.
    “For god’s sake, don’t tell Mother.” the last thing Mary wanted was Simon being driven away by the machinations of June Dalton. But, in thinking that, Mary had a feeling her mother had met one of the few people who wouldn’t be corralled into her way of thinking. “Poor Will.” He had never had a chance.
    “Sucker,” commented Claire before adding. “Who’s that?”
    “Uh, oh.” It was Sholto. The why he was here was obvious. He didn’t like Simon, for whatever reason. The how he had tracked them down, was interesting. It wasn’t like Fran’s wedding, despite what Fran might believe, was the social event of the year and was reported as the place to be. “That’s Sholto.” Who was he to Simon? Last time they met, she’d got sidetracked from asking Simon.
    “Seriously? Who names a kid that? And what’s in his hand?”