Free Stepbrother With Benefits 12 (Second Season) by Mia Clark

Scarlet.  Did I ever tell you that?"
    There's nothing.  We've got radio silence here.  Scarlet's dead, I'm pretty sure.  Caleb killed her with his stupid comment.  Sexy art?  Who the fuck ever says that?  Maybe something like he thinks she's as sexy as a painting and he wants to have her up against his wall.
    Fuck, why didn't I tell him that one sooner?  That would have been a great opener.  Fucking... fuck!  I ruined it.  I'm so sorry, Caleb.  You've missed this great opportunity.
    "Caleb, are you alright?" Scarlet asks.  She sounds worried.  I'm worried, too.  How's this kid going to get laid now?  Fuck if I know.
    "Yeah, uh..." Caleb says, his face turning pale, then bright red, all in the span of a second.
    "Give me the phone," I tell him.  "I'll fix this."
    He holds the phone out without thinking, kind of listless, his hand shaking a little.  I snatch it from him, hold it up to my ear.  Yeah, this is a little unorthodox, but I think I know what I'm doing here.
    I think I know, but I don't actually know.  I'll figure it out later.
    "Hey," I say.  "Who the fuck is this?  Scarlet?"
    "Who the fuck are you?  What's going on?  Did you do something to Caleb?"  Fuck, this girl's got a mouth on her!  I like her already.  She seems...
    Wait, holy shit.  "Hold up.  Scarlet?   He was talking about you?  No fucking way."
    "Mr. Moneybags!" Scarlet shouts into the phone, laughing.  "Shit, what are you doing there?  Are you camping with Caleb?"
    "Why the fuck does this kid have a crush on you?  That's fucking weird.  I can't even believe this."  Yeah, holy fuck.  Scarlet?   Nah, no way.  But... yeah, it's her.
    I turn to Caleb.  "You can't invite this girl down here," I tell him.  "She's fucking crazy, bro.  You'll thank me later.  I'm saving your life right now."
    "Ethan!" Ashley says, glowering at me.
    "Put away your pouty face, Princess.  For real, you don't even understand.  She's insane.  She'll destroy him."
    "Fuck off, Ethan," Scarlet says.  "Did Caleb tell you he wanted me to come down?  He's never invited me to go camping.  I just figured he didn't want me to hang out with him there.  It's cool, really.  I understand."
    "Yeah, he—"
    I don't get to say more than that.  I don't get to save Caleb from himself, because he tackles me, grabs the phone from me, and then practically screams into it.
    "Scarlet!  Do you want to hang out this summer at the campground with me!"
    Yeah, this isn't even a question.  He's just yelling at her.  Probably turns her on, too.  Scarlet's weird.
    She's cool, though.  I like her.  Would be fun if she came down to the campground.  I wouldn't mind hanging out with her.  Uh...
    Ashley's staring at me.  She looks mad.  "What's up, Princess?" I ask her.
    "Who's this Scarlet girl, Ethan?" she asks.
    "Huh?  Scarlet is Scarlet?  She's got some tattoos.  Paints pictures and shit."
    "And...?"
    And what?  What the fuck am I missing here?
    "What, you will?" Caleb says, surprised.  "Yeah, uh... I can text you the address.  Can you get down here?  I could go pick you up if you want, if you don't know how to—"
    Scarlet laughs.  She does have a nice laugh.  Just kind of commands your attention, makes you look at her.  Maybe that's how she caught Caleb in her trap.  He seems like the kind of guy who would fall for something like that.
    Shit.  I've got to warn him before it's too late.  How much time do I have?
    "I think I can figure it out, Caleb," she says, with a lilt of laughter in her voice.  "It's only a couple hours, right?  I can come down today if that's cool with you.  Actually it's been kind of boring here lately.  There's a lake there, right?  I'll bring my bathing suit."
    "Cool!" Caleb says, excited.  "Yeah, there's a lake.  Uh... you can stay here if you want.  With us.  Me and my dad, I mean.  My bed's big enough for two or we have a couch or the floor or..."
    Whoa!  Yeah, he just said that.  Casual as fuck, too.