begonia9508: Thanks!
Believe it… ‘cause he did! Well, the beach house belongs to Kyle’s parents, but we’ll see how well this last-minute addition goes over with the others.
The little guys should have lots of fun.
Earth2Mama: You just never know…
Lol, well, we’ll see what happens with Maria and Tony.
Oh, wouldn’t that be interesting to have Tony point that out?
Think we’re in for a hurricane, huh? We’ll see.
Ilonka.Green: Thanks! We’ll be getting to the beach with this update.
Eva: Michael, well… he’s not thinking with the head on his shoulders, that’s for sure.
In a few chapters… we’ll be asking.
Rodney: Well, technically, there’s no reason why Michael shouldn’t invite her, lol.
Kyle isn’t likely to have any problems with the last-minute invitation.
Interesting prediction for the Maria/Tony flirtation… you just never know.
Lol, well, we never know what these characters will do.
Alien_Friend: Oh, you just never know what might be revealed with this addition to the beach weekend.
Max and Liz are slowly trying to find solid ground. Aaron, he’s gonna have a great time.
Cody doesn’t understand why Michael isn’t there. Maria probably does believe that although she may feel some doubts start to creep in over time. Nothing wrong with dreaming, lol.
sarammlover: Really… he really did. Michael’s being stubborn and for the moment at least he isn’t cooperating and allowing us to fix it.
keepsmiling7: Thanks!
Ups and downs, coming right up!
Aaron is enamored of Max and if he has anything to say about it his sister will like Max as much as he does, lol.
We’ll have to wait and see what Liz packed. She hasn’t revealed anything yet.
Liz may not immediately open up to other options, but Max will keep pushing.
mary mary: Lol, another vote for Courtney and Tony.
Cardinal: Ah, yes… beach weekend will indeed be quite momentous for some of our characters. It is quite possible that an epiphany will be coming soon.
So, did you decide which of the guys you’d like to see unleashed on Richard?
Part 51
Children and Fools Tell the Truth
Michael glanced in the rearview mirror to check on Chase as he stopped at a traffic light a couple of blocks from Courtney’s apartment. The little boy had decided to go quiet on him when it had become apparent that they weren’t going to go pick up Maria and Cody in spite of his arguments. “C’mon, little man, it won’t be long before we get to the beach house and you’ll see Cody.”
His nephew shrugged and focused his attention on the stuffed animal he was holding. “I wish we was there now,” he mumbled.
“Hey, Kyle’s bringin’ Leo.”
“His doggy?” Chase asked with interest. “I want a doggy but Mommy said not till we got a house.”
“You’ll get your dog one of these days, Chase.” He shifted the car into gear and moved through the light when it turned green. He turned the corner and he grinned when he saw Courtney walking down the steps to the sidewalk in front of her building.
Her heart did a little flip flop when Michael parked the car at the curb in front of her building. He had just sent her a little message that he would stop by in a few minutes and she had no clue why, since he was about to leave for the weekend. “What’re you doin’ here?” she asked happily when he opened the door and pulled his sunglasses lower on his nose to look at her with a smirk.
Michael rested one arm on the roof of his car as his gaze swept over her bare legs, nicely encased in short jean shorts. “Nice outfit.”
She glanced down at herself. “Oh, well, I was just relaxing, ya know…” Damn, should she have changed? But there had practically been no time between his message and his arrival.
“Hell, if ya look like this while you’re only relaxing I’m the luckiest man in the world.”
She started to reply when suddenly the backseat window was rolled down abruptly and a little boy stuck his head out as much as the car seat restraint would allow. “You are not M’ria and you don’t have a dog.”
Courtney looked at the boy, confused. “Um, well,” her gaze swept to Michael for help.
“Courtney, this’s my nephew, Chase.” He reached in through the open window to ruffle the little boy’s hair. “Hey, show the lady you’ve got some manners. Say hi.”
Chase ducked out from under his uncle’s hand and pushed it away. “We gotta go, Uncle Mike.” Why was he talking to some dumb ol’ girl anyway?
“He says hi,” Michael said with a roll of his eyes.
“Hello to you too, Chase,” Courtney said with a smile.
The little boy made a face and looked around, reaching over for his backpack and unzipping it. He pulled out one of the toys Mommy had let him bring with him and he pressed the button on the back of it, smiling when it lit up and made growling sounds.
She winced at the noise and shook her head. “You’re gonna be listening to that for the next hour, huh?”
“He’ll settle down after a while.” Michael laughed. “Probably about the time we pull up to the beach house.” He scratched the back of his neck. “So, you ever make any plans for the weekend?”
“Nothing more than watching some new movies and talking to some friends back home on the phone. New York can be very lonely when you’re new in town and all alone, ya know?” She walked over to him and bumped his side with her hip.
He snorted and reached out to pull her against him before she could back off again. “How fast can you pack?” His lips met hers in a tender but teasing manner before she could answer.
Chase watched his uncle and made a gagging sound when he saw him kissing the girl who wasn’t Maria.
“Huh?” Courtney asked when Michael pulled his mouth away again.
“Wanna come with me to the beach?”
“Do I wanna…” she started in surprise and then a big smile appeared on her lips. “You’re sure?”
He shrugged one shoulder. “Yeah, why not? There’s enough space and my room has a king size bed.” His eyebrows waggled up and down.
“Give me about 15 minutes to throw some things together?”
“Take your time.” He glanced at his nephew when Chase sighed loudly. “Of course, if you can be ready in 15 that’d be awesome.”
“You guys wanna come inside?”
“Nah, he’s already settled in the car and he’s a little bit pissy about not ridin’ out to the beach with Cody, so we’ll just wait here.”
“Okay.” Courtney gave him a quick kiss and turned to run back inside. She couldn’t believe he had asked her to go with him for a weekend where he would be around his family and friends! She really hadn’t expected anything like this so soon.
Michael leaned over to brace his forearms on the open window and he reached in to poke the little boy. “Hey, what’s up with this attitude, little man?”
“It’s boring,” Chase complained and kicked the seat again. “I wanna go to see Cody.” Tears welled up in his eyes and spilled over.
The older man sighed and opened the door of the car to crouch down in front of the boy. “We’ll be there in no time.”
Chase ignored him and went on crying, his breath heavy and halting. “M… M-ommy.”
Great, Michael thought, perfect way to start a weekend. He should’ve known that his little nephew would make a drama out of it. He glanced around and smiled when he saw the little ice cream stand on the other side of the street. “Alright,” he leaned in the car to unfasten the seatbelt and cradled the boy up against him. “How about I buy you some ice cream and you promise to be a good boy until we reach the beach?”
The boy’s tears stopped immediately when he looked across the street and noticed the little hut shaped like a huge ice cream cone. “Can I get chocolate on it too?” he asked, amazed.
Michael grinned knowingly. It was so easy to bribe the kid with ice cream. Hopefully Ava wouldn’t find out that he’d bought it only a few minutes after leaving home.
“Uncle Mike?” Chase asked a few minutes later.
He looked at the little boy, now placated with ice cream and making a mess of himself. He dug around in the bag Ava had sent with him knowing somewhere inside would be a bucket of wet wipes. After having Chase she never went anywhere without them. “What?”
“How come that girl’s goin’ with us?”
Michael paused in his digging to look at his nephew, absentmindedly wondering how he’d managed to get the chocolate sauce all over his face so quickly. “Uncle Mike likes her, little man.”
“Don’t you like Maria no more?”
“What? Of course I like Maria.” He scratched his head and went back to searching for the wet wipes. Where did kids get these questions? “Guys like girls in different ways, Chase.”
He wrinkled his nose and started eating his ice cream again. “Is it like you like Gramma?”
Michael winced. Neither Maria nor Courtney should be ever compared to his mom! “You’ll understand when you’re older, buddy.” Hopefully the kid would give up on the subject soon.
“When?”
“Sooner than you think,” he said and wiped the little boy’s face to get rid of the chocolate before he spilled it over his cheeks again.
“I like Maria more.”
“You don’t even know Courtney yet.”
Chase shrugged and concentrated on his ice cream again. The day hadn’t gone the way he wanted it to and it still wasn’t going the way he wanted.
“Hey,” Michael tipped the little boy’s chin up. “You will be nice to her, understand me?”
“Okayyyyyy,” Chase dragged out with a long breath.
He sighed and rubbed his hand over his face as he leaned back against the side of the Avalanche. Of course his nephew would pick today of all days to show his little ass. He shook his head and snorted at that thought. It was probably to be expected since this was the first time he’d ever invited a girl to come along on an outing when his family was going to be there. He just hoped this wasn’t a foreshadowing of the other’s reactions.
“I don’t think I’ve ever packed so fast,” Courtney said as she came out of the building carrying a half-full bag packed with her stuff.
Michael nodded, impressed that she was only carrying a single bag. He knew there was no way either of his sisters would be bringing only one bag each. “You travel pretty light,” he said with a grin.
“You said beach, right? So I guess the main thing I need this weekend is a bathing suit and a towel.”
“I definitely said beach.” He took her bag and leaned over his nephew to put it inside. “And I can’t wait to see the bathing suit,” he said as he faced her again.
“Ditto,” she winked at him. Michael in only his trunks… must be a good view.
He opened the passengers’ side door for her and leaned against it. “What makes you think I wear anything to swim?”
“You don’t? Well, even better.”
He shrugged one shoulder and grinned as his gaze moved over her. “You should try it.”
“Uncle Mike, we gotta go now,” Chase whined.
Michael sighed and glanced at his nephew. “Alright kid, we’re goin’ now.”
“He’s certainly got a one-track mind, doesn’t he?” Courtney said with a smile.
“I guess all kids do. It’s gonna be a fun weekend.”
She chuckled as she slid into the seat, taking the opportunity to brush up against him. “I think you’re right.”
Hell, he couldn’t wait to finally get her naked and in his bed. She wouldn’t put him on hold the whole weekend, would she? “I’m normally right,” he teased and leaned in to take her lips in a short but hot kiss while he started the engine.
“I’m sure that’s true,” she said while rolling her eyes.
****
“You’re gonna love the cabin. It has everything for summer and winter,” Maria told Tony when they left the highway in the direction of their destination. “Beach and the ocean to cool off or the hot tub to get warm when it’s cold.” She rolled her eyes. “Of course it’s a chick magnet and I’m sure it won’t take long until the neighbor’s daughters get active and come over to drool over you guys.”
He snorted and checked Cody in the rearview mirror. The little boy had slept in a few miles ago and smiled in his sleep. “Uh-huh. No problem for you to distract Kyle, I’m sure.”
“Oh, well, we broke up or whatever you wanna call it.”
“You did?” Tony asked, surprised.
“Yeah,” she shrugged.
“Why?”
“It was time to move on,” she lied, not really interested in revealing Kyle’s real reasons because they still made no sense to her. “We knew it would lead to nothing in the end and we decided it was time to get over it again.”
“Any problems between you now?” he asked skeptically.
“No, we’re friends and that’s all we ever were. I’m totally okay with it and so is he.”
“So does that kinda put an end to the friends rule?” he asked, smirking without looking at her.
“Definitely,” she laughed, knowing what he meant. She glanced over her shoulder to check on Cody when she heard him waking up.
He turned to look at her to say something, but at that moment she pointed at a small street. “That way.”
Tony’s mouth dropped open when Maria directed him to turn into the driveway of a house that couldn’t possibly be listed as a beach house. “Are you sure you got the address right?”
“Relax, Tony, I’ve been here before,” Maria said, laughing at his reaction. Her jaw had hit the floor the first time she had been out here too. “This is where the wealthy come to play, my friend.”
“Obviously. I mean, my family’s pretty well off, but certainly not on this scale.” He pulled up in front of the attached three-car garage and shifted into park. “Maria, this place is huge!” he said as he got out.
Maria chuckled and got out to release Cody from his car seat before setting the little boy on the ground and turning to follow him when he ran after Tony. She found them around back, walking along the wide deck that ran the length of the house. Stairs at the end led to the upper deck and she smirked when Tony leaned back against the railing to look up at it. He turned to point at the pristine beach that was surprisingly not packed with sunbathing bodies.
“Private beach too?”
She snorted and nodded. “Of course. There are neighbors who will show up but it’s not public so that keeps the foot traffic down.” She pointed back at the house. “The way they had it built you can see the ocean from three sides. It’s pretty incredible.”
“Yeah, I can see that. Jeez, when Valenti suggested hangin’ out for the weekend at his parents’ beach house I figured most of us would be sackin’ out on the floor.”
“Seven bedrooms, six bathrooms. Sleeping on the floor’s optional.” Her gaze shifted back to her brother and she smiled when he carefully made his way down the steps at the end of the deck to step down into the warm sand. He crouched down and put his hands together, scooping up a handful of the soft sand.
“Will we see dolphins this time?” he asked, his excited voice a little breathless.
Maria looked out at the ocean. “We might.” She turned her head when she heard a car door shut.
“Sounds like we’ve got company,” Tony said.
“Too bad”, she teased and took a few steps so she could see who it was.
Max got out of the jeep and walked around to give Liz a hand. They had been making good time, missing the worst of the early evening traffic when Aaron had suddenly been hit with a major case of motion sickness and they’d had to stop. Twice. “You sure he’s okay?” he asked when she leaned in to start unbuckling the little boy.
“Yeah,” she said quietly because the boy had just drifted off to sleep. “He’s just not used to long drives.”
“Somebody’s already here so why don’t I go find out where we can put him down. Maybe he’ll sleep the worst of it off.”
“Sure, you can do that,” she agreed.
Max glanced at the Escalade parked in front of the Jeep, running through the vehicles his friends drove. He knew it wasn’t Michael, Kyle, or Isabel, so that meant it had to be Tony. “I’ll be right back,” he said, letting his hand trail over her back as he passed her.
She shivered from his light touch but tried to push the thoughts away while she tried to get Aaron out of his seat without waking him up.
Max rounded the corner of the house and nearly ran into Tony. “Hey, man, how’s it goin’? You guys already got the place opened up and scoped out?”
“No, we just got here like half a minute ago.”
“Then let’s get a move on. I’ve got a kid who’s finally sleepin’ after getting sick twice and we need a place to put him down for a while.”
“You’ve got a kid?” Tony teased, amused. It was fascinating how Evans had gone from hating the waitress to taking care of her and the child in little more than a heartbeat.
Max glared at him. “You wanna get a move on before I bring him over and let him blow chow all over you?”
“Relax Maxie-Max,” Maria squeezed his shoulder. “I’ve got the perfect room for Liz and Aaron. There’s a bedroom downstairs with a small bed and a smaller room attached with a kid’s bed.”
“Hey, Maria. Thanks. I’m gonna go grab the bags and send Liz around.”
“Sure,” she smiled and waited until he went back to his car, before she turned to Tony and rolled her eyes. “He’s totally whipped. He didn’t even complain about his nickname.”
“If I was him I’d completely ignore that too.” He snorted. “Maxie-Max. You know he’d slug anyone else who called him that.”
“Any doubts I’m special?” she asked laughing and disappeared into the house after unlocking the door.
Cody ran up the steps and smiled at Tony when he turned and caught him, lifting him up and setting him down on the deck.
“Hey, buddy, Aaron’s here.”
“Aaron?” the little boy asked, a moment of confusion washing over his face before he remembered the boy from the hospital and he smiled.
“Yeah, but I think the little guy might need a little time to recover before you two can go down to the beach and hang out.”
“That’s okay,” Cody nodded and leaned his head against Tony’s shoulder. “I need to rest sometimes too,” he explained and pressed his little hand against the older man’s chest where his heart was to show why.
Tony patted his back. “Yeah, I know, buddy. One of these days you’re gonna outrun us all though.”
“Mike says that too,” he smiled.
“Must be true then, huh?”
“Hey,” Liz greeted quietly when she came up to join Tony, Aaron half-asleep in her arms.
“How’s it goin’?” Tony asked quietly. “You need anything for him? Maybe a Sprite or somethin’ to settle his stomach?”
“No, I think he just needs to sleep a bit.”
He nodded and motioned to the wide double doors mid-deck. “Just go in through there, Maria’s already inside getting the room ready. Past the living room, take a right in the hall.” Which he only knew because there were windows everywhere and he had been watching her.
“Alright,” she nodded and went into the house.
Cody lifted his head to look at Tony. “Can we go to the beach?”
“Sure, but maybe we should take our shoes off first, huh? I don’t like getting sand in my shoes... what about you?” he asked as he sat on the top step with the little boy in his lap.
“Yeah, let’s take the shoes off,” he babbled.
“Okay.” He kicked his shoes off and stuffed his socks in them before untying Cody’s shoes and repeating the process. He placed their shoes on the deck, out of the way, and stood up again. “Let’s go check out the beach.”
“Otay,” Cody grasped Tony’s hand with both hands.
“You ever find a starfish? I’ve got a couple that I’ve found. Even found a seahorse skeleton once.”
“A seahorse?” the little boy asked, amazed.
“Yup, got it at home. It’s pretty cool.”
“Can you show me?”
“Sure, next time I come by I’ll bring it. Did you know seahorses don’t have any teeth?”
Cody frowned. “No teeth?”
“Nope, not a single one. They have to eat all the time to stay alive.” He looked down at the little boy. “Do you have any fish at home?”
“I’ve got a shark poster. It’s sooooo big,” Cody lifted his arms to the sky and as far away from his body as possible.
“You’re into sharks, huh?”
“Mike and me go to the ‘quarium,” he glanced back at the house. “Maria too sometimes, but she is scared of them.”
“Scared of the sharks?” Tony asked with a smirk.
“Yeah, Mike or me have to hold her hand when we go there,” he whispered.
“Really?” He chuckled and rested his hand on Cody’s back to keep him from wandering off. “Guess it’s good she’s got you there to keep her safe, huh?”
“Girls need boys,” Cody said matter-of-factly.
Tony nodded in agreement. “Think boys need girls too?”
“Hm…” the boy chewed on his lips. Mike had never said anything like that.
“Gotta think about that one, huh?”
“Do they?”
“Yeah, I think so. Girls make pretty good friends and then sometimes there’s that one special girl.”
“Do you know a special girl?” the boy asked curiously while they sat down on the beach.
“I’ve known a few in my time,” he answered with a nod.
“Known?” The boy frowned. “Did they die?”
Tony laughed and shook his head. “No, nothin’ that dramatic. They’ve just moved on.”
“Is Maria special for you?”
“Your sister’s pretty special.” He leaned back and planted his hands in the soft sand. “What d’you think?”
“She’s the best sister in the world,” Cody agreed.
He dropped his head back to look up at the sky. “Yeah, she loves you a lot, buddy.”
“I love her too,” Cody mimicked the man’s move and looked up as well. “I think Mike loves her too.”
“Think so?”
“Yeah, but he says they won’t get married,” the kid tried to remember what the man in question had told him not that long ago.
Tony made a quiet sound before glancing at his little companion. It amazed him how intuitive kids were. “Would you like it if they did?”
The boy shrugged. “I don’t know.” He looked at Tony. “They don’t kiss the way they should kiss, that’s what they say.”
“Well, that’s true.”
Cody rolled himself onto his stomach, his clothes covered with sand. “Kyle and Maria kiss, but they won’t get married neither,” he thought out loud. “I don’t understand that.”
“I’m not sure any of us really understands that one, buddy.” Tony rolled onto his side and propped his chin in his hand. “How are you at buildin’ sand castles?” he asked, deciding it was time to derail this topic before it moved into territory he had no knowledge of navigating.
“He’s very good at it,” Maria said, when the last of their conversation carried to her. She walked over to them, sandals in her hand and her long blonde hair flying in the slight warm wind.
“Awesome, we’ll have to do that. I’m pretty good with ‘em too.” He lifted his gaze to her and smiled. “You get everyone settled in so far?”
“Yep.” She sat down in the sand next to them. “You better pick the bedroom you want before the rest of the gang gets here. The two locked rooms belong to Kyle and Michael, so we have no chance to snag the best rooms. Bastards.”
“Guess that means one of them must’ve come by earlier.” He grinned at her and shrugged. “Got a room open close to yours?”
She grinned when he gave the answer she had hoped for. “Well, there happens to be one right next door.”
“Guess I’d better run up and stake a claim on it then because I’m sure we’ll have more company before long. Direct me,” he said as he reached over to brush a few loose strands of hair behind her ear.
“The hallway on the right, go to the end, and there’re two rooms on the left.”
“You put Liz up at that end too?” he asked curiously.
“No, that’s at the other end.”
“And Evans?”
“He just took the room next to hers, surprise, surprise.”
He snorted and got up when he heard car doors slamming shut. “Okay, I’d better get movin’ before someone grabs my room.”
She smiled and stood up to get rid of her tank top, just to reveal her olive colored bikini top. “Hurry.”
“Yeah, hurry, Tony, ‘cause we can build a sand castle when you come back,” Cody called after him when he got up and hurried up to the house. “He’s got a seahorse skeleton, Maria, an’ he’s gonna let me see it!”
“Really?” She lifted her brother up onto his feet to help him out of his pants and tee shirt. “That’s pretty cool huh?”
“Yeah, I like Tony. Do you like him a lot, Maria?”
“I do,” she nodded and remembered the talk with her Mom earlier. Tony had bonded pretty fast with Cody, which was just amazing. Could there be any more between them?
Cody played with the sand for a few minutes before looking up at his sister. “Do you like him more than Mike?”
She chuckled. “You’re asking too many questions, young man.”
He made a face at her and then giggled as he turned to look up at the house when he heard familiar voices. “Mike an’ Chase are here!” he shouted and got to his feet to wave his little friend over. He frowned when Michael came around the corner of the house behind Chase and he saw some girl with him. “Mike brought a girl!”
“What?” Maria asked, confused as she turned as well. She was sure the shock was written all over her face when she saw Courtney on the deck next to Michael.
