Page 6 of I Choose You

I smiled at Rena’s call as she strode down the sidewalk. “Making sure everything is just right.” I glanced at her.

She rolled her eyes. “Girl, you look like a drop-dead smoke-show. As always.” Instead of teasing me about checking my appearance, she grabbed my hand and pulled me inside to eat.

3

KADEN

I’d never been one to believe in superstitions and routines. Life was what you made of it, right? Because if this Monday was the indication of how this week was going to go…

“Stop it.” I tipped Kody’s chair back as I walked by. He was staring—again—at the new receptionist on our executive floor. Only, he wasn’t just ogling her. He was damn near drooling. Women fell for his shit all the time. One time at a bar, I asked a former conquest of his how she let herself, a smart woman, be duped by a look. Her reply? It’s impossible to resist those bedroom eyes.

Bedroom eyes. I rolled mine, glad I’d gotten his attention. He almost fell to the carpet, and his chair banged into his desk with a loud bang.

“What the fuck?” He righted himself, reaching out to punch me. I dodged it, but he was faster, standing and chasing me to pay me back.

“You can’t keep pulling that crap,” I warned, laughing as he hurried to hit my shoulder. “Ow.” I punched him back just as fast.

“I was just looking.”

“Just looking like every fucking time she walks by. She’s going to notice your pervy ass is checking her out.”

He scoffed, checking his hair wasn’t out of place. We were identical, but that was one of the biggest differences between us. I kept mine longer without product, and he kept his at varied lengths with tons of crap in it.

“That’s the point, dumbass.” He punched me again, causing me to hit back again.

“That’s enough, boys,” Pamela, my secretary who was old enough to be my grandmother, chided as she passed by.

“Women love getting attention and knowing their looks are appreciated.”

I stared at my brother, not believing that he really thought that. “No, they don’t.”

“They do,” he pointed at me, getting in my face, “when they just want a quick fuck. Not every woman wants to settle down and get married. Some are like me, looking for fun, which is best served quick and easy.”

“It’s too soon after that idiot in HR got busted with an affair. Just leave her alone.”

Kody shoved at me, with less force now. Pamela wasn’t our babysitter, but sometimes we needed that extra reminder not to horse around so much. “I was just looking. It’s in her hands now. She knows I’m interested.”

“Hands off,” I warned him.

“Off what?” our father said, entering the office.

“Hey, Dad,” I said.

“Morning, Dad,” Kody greeted.

He raised one brow, looking at us both then locking his scrutiny on Kody. “Hands off what?” he asked again.

Kody chuckled. “That hot—” I elbowed him hard again, and he shut up with a hard exhale of pain. “Nothing.”

We’d never really talked about women with Dad much, but now that he was engaged to Margaux, I was confident his views on how to treat women and what they wanted were vastly different from those of a player like Kody.

I glanced behind Dad and checked the time on the clock. “I’m surprised you’re here so early.”

Kody and I liked to goof off here and there. It was impossible not to. We both tended to come into the office earlier than later so we could leave in the mid-afternoon most days, pending any late meetings or events. Dad liked to come in a bit later, so his arrival this morning was unexpected.

He nodded and smiled smugly. “I’ve got a favor to ask, so I wanted to come prepared with a few minutes to spare.”

“Sure, Dad. What do you need?” I asked.