Bishop Brothers Series: Four Book Complete Set

Chapter 3-2

“I wouldn’t mind seeing that.” Dylan chuckles. “Mrs. B on a rampage isn’t a force to be reckoned with.”

I nod. “She’s the scariest when she’s pissed. Even Dad won’t mess with her when she gets that way. It’s fine. I’ll drive my truck since Jackson has the extra key. I’ll have him and John drive there and pick it up later, so it’s not sitting down there for two weeks.”

Jackson snores himself awake, and he sits up, forcing his eyes open. “Shiiiiiiiiiit.”

“What?” I ask, feeling a little more like myself after the coffee warms my veins.

“That’s what I feel like.” Jackson tries to stand but stumbles and trips over his feet.

Dylan and I nearly fall over laughing. That’s what he gets for making me drink with him. Misery loves company, my ass.

“You’re not driving us anywhere.” I chuckle as we watch him struggle to pick himself up off the floor. “Sit back down before you hurt yourself.”

“If the room would stop spinning, I’d be just fine,” he groans, finally sitting his ass back down.

“We’ve got to get going or we’re gonna miss our flight.” Dylan checks the time on his phone. “Ready?” He gives me a big cheesy grin because we both know I’m not.

I double-check my suitcase really quick, refill my travel mug, then holler, “Goodbye,” to Jackson before stepping out the front door and walking toward the truck.

Dylan grabs his suitcase from his truck and throws it in the back before we both get in and head to the airport. Our drive isn’t too far—a little over an hour—but we have to get on one of those little planes I hate before connecting in San Antonio. Once we’re at the airport and parked, I can see the sun rising in the distance. We check our bags and sit at the gate while we wait for our departure to be announced.

“Nervous?” I look over at Dylan.

“Nah, just ready to get there and relax,” he says, but I can see he’s sweating beads.

I hate the small planes, too, but luckily, we’ll only be on it for about an hour.

After we board and the plane takes off, I feel a little more relaxed. By the time I get used to feeling every little bump, we land in San Antonio and head to our next gate. My head is killing me again, so before we board the next plane, I buy a pack of ibuprofen and a bottle of water then say a little prayer and hope it goes away before we land in Key West.

It’s confirmed—Jackson is a bad influence.

The next plane is bigger, giving us more room to stretch out our long legs. My head isn’t throbbing as badly anymore, and I can actually take in the view from the small window next to me.

“So yesterday after work, Mama had me run to the grocery store, and guess who I ran into?” He gives me less than a second to guess before continuing. “Gretchen Garcia. Dude, she’s still so pissed at you.” He starts cracking up. “I wonder how many women have you on their hate list right now. I can count about six without even thinking about it too hard.” Dylan chuckles again.

“Hey, it’s not my fault they don’t understand the concept of casual s*x. It’s not like they didn’t know that up front when I said I wasn’t looking for anything serious. I’m always honest. I use my manners and am polite, so if that’s not good enough for them, then that’s on them. They know what I have to offer before anything happens. Every one of them says they’re okay with it, and then afterward decide they aren’t. They always think they can change my mind or that they’ll be the ‘one’ to change me, but nothing’s going to change the fact that I don’t want or have time for a relationship. I ain’t lookin’ for anything other than a little fun. But I guess that’s what being honest gets me,” I tell him with resentment in my tone. Gretchen knew all of that, too, before we ever hooked up. Not my fault my words fell on deaf ears. And considering we hooked up over a year ago, she needs to get over it.

“Well, either way, she said she wanted to cut off your balls and feed them to the pigs,” Dylan says with a teasing grin.

I adjust myself. “I knew she was crazy but damn. I need my balls.”

“I promised her I’d relay the message if she promised not to cut mine off.”

I burst out into laughter. “Smart.”

After a while, I close my eyes and end up falling asleep until the plane lands. Relieved to be back on the ground, I look out the window again. Besides all the water surrounding us, I also notice how bright and sunny it is. We’re definitely not in Texas anymore. Even though I have no idea what to expect, I’m more psyched than ever to be here.

We deplane and retrieve our suitcases before taking the shuttle to the resort we’ll be staying at. I actually feel a lot better since sucking down those ibuprofen and getting in a short nap, so now I can’t wait to get settled and explore the city and beaches.

As we get closer to the resort, I’m completely taken aback by the view. Palm trees and tourist shops line both sides of the street. People walk with smiles on their faces as they shop and take photos. They all look so damn happy to be here. I catch glimpses of the clear-blue water behind it all, and as we get closer to the resort, I notice beach chairs and cabanas along the beach. This is just the kind of vacation I need.