First

“This again? I’m not ready. Just because you and Mom got married at twenty doesn’t mean I have to do it.” I looked for a mate once and all it brought me was heartache. What was the point of torturing myself again? I’d put it off as long as I could.

“You’re not twenty. You graduate college in less than a year; it’s time to stop chasing after everything in a skirt. Find someone worth your time.”

“What does this have to do with the takeover attempt?”

“Don’t play stupid.” His cold blue eyes locked on mine.

“No one cares whether I have a mate. They know I can have a kid, it’s not a big deal.”

“Everyone cares. Everyone.” He cracked his knuckles. He only did that when he was particularly worried.

“I’ll take a mate when I meet the right girl.” I leaned back in my chair and stretched out my legs. Getting angry wasn’t going to help the situation, but I was tired of this bullshit.

“You can’t find her unless you look.”

“He does plenty of looking,” Owen mumbled under his breath.

“Looking for a mate is different from looking for a girl to jump in bed with. I’d have thought you’d understand that, Owen.” Dad really liked to get you where it hurt.

“You told me I have until graduation. That’s months from now.” I planned to enjoy every last day of my freedom until then, starting with tonight. I needed to get out of the meeting so I could find the girl.

“Building a relationship takes time. Do you expect to meet someone and bind yourself to her the next day? Don’t wait too long.”

Jared sniggered. He went through women faster than I did.

“I’m tasking you two with making sure it happens. We all have a lot to lose if Levi can’t keep his pants on long enough to find a worthy girl.”

“Absolutely, sir.” Of course Owen agreed immediately. He’d been kissing my father’s ass for years.

“Can we please talk about the real plan? The one that doesn’t involve my sex life.”

Dad leaned his elbows on his desk. He looked tired. “All we can do is stay alert and make sure our own ranks are loyal. If things come to blow, we can’t have any mutiny from within.”

“I’m guessing my dad’s already on that?” Jared asked.

“Yes. But I expect you all to do your part.”

“Will do, sir.” Even Jared knew that pushing my dad could have dire consequences.

“Good. Now get out of here. I have better things to do today.” He went back to the paperwork. I wondered if it was anything real, or just an excuse to look busy.

“Bye, Dad. Great talking to you.” I got the hell out of his office and back to the elevator. I was angry, and I could feel the transformation wanting to happen. I relaxed and pushed it back. I had other things to think about, namely Miss Legs.

Chapter Two

I leaned back against the black leather couch in our house. I’d had the couch for two years, the same amount of time I’d lived in the place. As soon as freshman year ended, Jared, Owen, and I moved in there. One year in the dorms was more than enough for us.

With some distance, I was finally relaxing after the meeting with my dad. The man knew how to boil my blood, and it usually took time and copious amounts of alcohol to get back to normal. Nothing I did was ever good enough for him, and after twenty-two years, I was beyond tired of it.

“So where do you think those girls are?” I knew I was being ridiculous. There were plenty of attractive girls around, but there was something about her that got under my skin. I’d practically memorized every curve of her body in the seconds she’d been in view. She wouldn’t be escaping from me so easily again.

Jared tossed me another beer from the fridge. “It’s their first night in the French Quarter. They’ll be at the Cat’s Meow. They always go to the Cat’s Meow.”

“No way. She’s not the type.” I tried to picture her at a place like that. No, she was classier. She’d probably be looking for a lounge or something.

“Not the type?” Jared twisted off the top of his beer. “I guarantee they’ll be there. I bet you fifty they’ll sing karaoke.”

Owen walked in, dumping three po’ boys on the table. “Who? Those girls from the hotel? Yeah, I’m in on this. My bet is Girl’s Just Want to Have Fun. They always sing that.”

“No, I bet they’re more the Like a Virgin types,” Jared threw in.

“I’m game. But let’s make it a hundred. I haven’t washed either of you out in a while.” Things were always more fun when there was money involved.

They both laughed. “All right, a hundred.”

I dug into my shrimp po’ boy, already planning out the evening. I’d find the girl and forget all about the bullshit with my dad.

The door burst open again, and the flash of red hair made it immediately clear who’d arrived.

“Have you ever heard of knocking?” Owen snapped at his little sister, Hailey.

“If you have a problem with it, lock the door.” She swiped a Coke from the fridge. She had no problem making herself at home.

“Is there a reason you’re gracing us with your presence?” I’d known Hailey her whole life and she was like a little sister—the annoying, won’t ever leave you alone type. She was only three years younger than us, but sometimes it seemed like ten.

Hailey leaned back against the counter. “Yeah. I need Owen to talk to Dad.”

“I doubt I’m going to, but about what?” Owen answered after finishing off his sandwich.

“He’s making me request J.L. as a dorm. There is no way I’m living in an all-girls dorm!”

We all laughed. I still couldn’t believe she was starting at Tulane in the fall. How was she old enough for college? I still pictured her playing with dolls even though one glance at her figure told you those days were long gone.

“Come on. This is so not fair.” Hailey pouted. When she made faces like that, she only looked younger. I decided not to point it out to her. Giving her a hard time was fun, but you had to be careful not to push it too far. It wasn’t worth her wrath.

“You can’t be surprised.” Owen tried to keep a straight face.

Hailey walked into the living room and took a seat on the arm of a couch. “So he caught me making out with a guy? It’s not like I was sleeping with him.”

Owen cringed, probably mentally picturing his sister hooking up with someone. “Hailey, Dad’s always been protective. Inviting a guy over when they weren’t home wasn’t the smartest decision, but how could you be stupid enough to get caught? You always wait until you know they won’t possibly come back.” Owen said it snidely, but I think he actually felt bad. Their parents definitely treated them differently.