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Luau
Matt
Damn, I like girls who actually eat. Greer loves the fried pickles, and I promise to take her to Star Cove to try Joe’s Shack’s famous fried pickles. They win the state fair contest every year.
The conversation flows easily between us, and I learn that, like I suspected, our worlds couldn’t be more different.
“So you lived in London, England? For real?” I ask, unable to completely hide my envy for opportunities I couldn’t even dream of.
She shrugs, but not in a dismissive way. “Yeah, well, near London in Surrey, in the countryside. It isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be, Matt. It’s kind of lonely. My favorite times were summers and Christmas, when we’d fly back home and I’d get to hang out with my daddy. But he travels a lot for work and Mom…” Her nose scrunches up when she mentions her mother. “Mom’s busy with whatever she does when she doesn’t follow Daddy.”
Yeah, I can’t even imagine. That’s why I’ll never understand rich people. Why have kids if you only bother to see them for a few weeks a year? My thoughts must be written all over my face, because Greer immediately backtracks, trying to justify her cold upbringing.
“It isn’t as bad as it sounds, really. We were so busy with school that time literally flew by. Truth be told, it feels kind of weird to be able to use my time as I see fit and not have everything dictated to me like it was at school. And it feels so strange not to have a roommate. Almost kind of lonelier than at school.”
Again, I can’t even imagine. “I grew up with two younger sisters. They still live at home on the other side of the island. Dad’s a mechanic and Mom works as a maid. You know, keeping all those mansions clean for the owners who only come to spend the summer months in their huge-ass houses. The house I grew up in would probably fit in one of those mansions’ pantries. I shared a room with both my sisters until I started high school. Then my dad cleared out the garage for me, and I finally got some privacy and some peace and quiet. My sisters, man! Those two never stop talking and arguing with each other,” I say fondly, and Greer giggles.
“Ah, now I understand why you’re so grouchy all the time. You don’t get along with your sisters?”
She’s provoking me. The amusement in her blue eyes is obvious as she tries to get a rise out of me.
“Nah.” I shrug. “They might be a handful, but they are really cool kids. In a way I’m glad I moved out because Jill, the oldest one, is sixteen, and can you imagine my life when she starts dating? All those losers I’d have to scare off? Kick their asses if they don’t treat my sis right?”
Greer suddenly turns serious. “Yeah, I actually can imagine. You and Brady looked ready to murder Tristan the other night.”
“No shit,” I say, feeling pissed off all over again that the prick thought it was okay to keep trying his luck once Greer said no. “Has he bothered you again?”
She shakes her head, taking a sip of her soda, and I get temporarily distracted by the perfect shape of her pink lips, imagining them on mine…
Ah, okay. Bullshit. I’m imagining those lips wrapped around my cock, to be entirely honest, and I have to avert my gaze if I don’t want to get a hard-on while I’m sitting right next to her.
It’s not like I haven’t gotten laid since we started working at the resort. This is different. I can’t take my eyes off her, sure. I’ve imagined her naked countless times since she arrived and tried to help me carry her fucking bags, but it’s more than that. She’s different from any other girl I’ve ever met. She’s beautiful and smart, and she’s feisty and kind. She’s sexy and innocent at the same time, and every time I look at her, she takes my breath away and all my blood migrates south.
When she tells me that she’s been avoiding the main dining room so she doesn’t have to see that douche canoe, I frown. “You shouldn’t be walking on eggshells so you aren’t molested by that asshole, Greer. I know your old men are friends, but—”
My hand automatically clenches into a fist, and she stops me by covering it with hers. Damn, have I said how soft her skin is?
“I know. And trust me, if Tristan tries anything else, I’ll speak to my daddy about it.”
My expression must show how little trust I have that Mr. Manning would do anything about it, especially if he hopes that one of his daughters would date the douche. She must read it all over my face, because she immediately bristles and takes her hand away from mine.
“Hey, Greer. I didn’t mean any disrespect to your father, but this whole thing… you know, the shopping and all… it feels like your parents are trying to push you and Tristan together. But if you say your dad would do something about it…”
“Of course he fucking would!” Her tone is dripping with defensiveness. “My mom might treat me and Chelsea like show ponies, trying to marry us off to the richest suitor, but Daddy isn’t like that, Matt. Sure, he approves of Tristan because he’s friends with his father, but he’d never tolerate Tristan’s behavior if he knew about it. You don’t know my dad, but he’s the best man I’ve ever met. He’s smart and loving, and he taught me to help others and to judge people by their behavior, not their net worth or their pedigree. I aspire to be like him one day, he’s my best friend.”
The way her eyes shine when she talks about her father is sweet, and it troubles me at the same time. It’s not like I disagree with her, I don’t know Mr. Manning well enough, but for what life has taught me so far? You don’t get to Mr. Manning’s level of wealth without making some compromises, so I hope Greer is right about her father for her own sake. The fact that he’s married to Mrs. Manning and he’s also Chelsea’s father tells me that Greer might be looking at her father through rose-colored glasses.
My phone buzzes with a text message, bringing me back to our harsh reality and reminding me that as much as I want this time with Greer to be a date, it really isn’t. Taking her out shopping today was my job, and her parents are my employers. “Fuck,” I mutter. “We have to head back. I’m supposed to help set up for tonight’s luau.”
“Of course.”
Is the emotion I see on her face disappointment that we have to cut our time short? Or is it just me projecting the emotions I want to see onto her?
When Greer takes out her credit card, I have my answer. “I’ve got this,” I snap more harshly than intended. It isn’t her fault if I work for her father and if the most I’ll ever be allowed to do when it comes to Greer is imagine it’s her hand stroking my cock when I’m alone. If I ever want to have a chance with a woman like her, I need to find a way to pay for that enrollment fee for the Coral Cove Surfing Open Championship, win that fucking race, and buy that property with my friends. Once we have our own business, I’ll be able to look at Greer Manning with at least one chance in hell.
Greer
The drive back to the resort is quiet, and I spend the whole time wondering what I have said or done to cause yet another shift in Matt’s attitude.
