His Plus One by Kate Aster

Chapter 3

~ HAILEY ~

It’s already been worth it.

I remind myself that as the scenery whips by me, safely belted into the passenger side of Graydon’s car. Or lack of scenery, really, because the highway that slices through this part of the state isn’t really representative of the best that Virginia has to offer. Just a lot of traffic and a smattering of billboards that pull your focus away from what really might be some lovely hills and forests if we exited off the interstate.

My phone chirps inside my purse, but I don’t bother retrieving it. I know what’s waiting for me, and it makes me grin.

Yep. Graydon’s family could belong to a vampire cult, and I’d still be saying it’s worth it. Even three-and-a-half incredibly awkward hours into our four-hour drive south to the port in Norfolk, I remind myself this.

Fact is, I’d endure just about anything to have seen the look on Stephen’s face when I told him that he’d have to take care of Peanut because I was going on a cruise with a Navy SEAL.

I know he didn’t believe it, which is why when Graydon and I stopped for coffee on the road, I couldn’t resist posting a selfie of us on Facebook.

A selfie with Graydon Adler, a man so hot that his image could go viral in a heartbeat if I just could figure out how to properly use hashtags. Which is why my phone keeps chirping to notify me every time that photo gets a “like.”

Like most of the computer crowd I hung out with when I was in school, I was a bit of a late bloomer when it came to dating. When I met Stephen at twenty years old, he was my first honest-to-God relationship.

Looking back, I think he enjoyed the security of that—of knowing that no matter how he treated me as a boyfriend, he’d never be compared to someone else.

And now, he knows he’s being compared to a freaking Navy SEAL. I still smile when I think about it.

“Need to stop?” Graydon asks as we pass another Cracker Barrel sign even though the app on my phone says we’ve only got a half an hour left of the drive. “We’ve got time.”

“No, I’m good. You?”

“Don’t need it. You sure?”

“Yep.”

“’Kay.”

And that’s pretty much how the conversation’s been since we left. A series of dead-end questions along with a smattering of invitations to take a quick pit stop.

But it’s still worth it. Especially since this cruise happened to come at a time when Stephen wanted to spend the week cruising down the Potomac River on his gas-guzzling, floating phallus with his latest girlfriend, which is impossible with a dog who pees on the boat’s teak floors every time its engine is fired up.

So, just like Swami had promised with his kick-ass idea, I’ve stepped into uncharted territory, turning the tables on Stephen with him stuck at home watching Peanut, while I’m off having quintessential fun.

Fun. That tiny, seemingly insignificant three-letter-word that Stephen said I was incapable of.

Justice is sweet.

Take that, you prick.

I steal a quick glance at Graydon just as the sun breaks free from the clouds, its light seeming to highlight the hills and valleys in his arms as he holds the steering wheel.

Lord, what that man does for a simple t-shirt makes me want to buy stock in the Gap. I remind myself that the harmless crush I’ve always had for Graydon is best kept under lock-and-key this week or I’ll definitely embarrass myself.

Not to mention jeopardize a working relationship that I really enjoy.

Why the hell did I say yes to this crazy idea?

He must sense my gaze on him because he glances over. “What?”

“I—nothing. I was just, um, wondering how Peanut was doing with Stephen.” I say the first lie that pops into my head, not even realizing it makes me sound pathetic.

“You’re not texting that titwad to find out, are you?”

“No, no. I just—Peanut takes a while to settle in. That’s all.”

“They’ll both live. Better yet, Stephen might get so sick of the responsibility that he gives you full custody.”

“That thought had occurred to me. Especially because she has an overactive bladder on his boat.” I grin, picturing Stephen mopping up the mess as his brainless, buxom flavor-of-the-day recoils in horror. I cock my head. “You don’t have pets, do you?”

“I have a fish.”

My eyes widen. “A fish? Really?”

“Yeah.”

“Like an aquarium full of them?”

“No. Just one. A betta. They’re easy keepers.”

My eyes crinkle as I look at him. “You never seemed like the fish type.”

“I’m not,” he chuckles. “There’s a kid next door. Maybe nine or ten years old. He showed up at my apartment one day asking if there were any chores he could do for me. You know… wanted to earn some money. The kid doesn’t look like he’s got much. So I got a fish so that he could take care of it when I’m away.”

My heart warms. That’s so… Graydon, actually. “That’s really sweet.”

“Nah. Not really. I just admire initiative. And it’s not like he can offer to shovel my driveway or mow my grass in an apartment building. Besides, it’s a cool fish.”

“What’s he look like?”

“The kid?”

“The fish.”

“Blue. Really dark blue.” His gaze diverts from the road a moment. “He’s kind of the color of your eyes, actually.” His eyes narrow on me briefly, giving me an odd look, before they return to the road. “I’m still trying to get used to you in contacts. You didn’t have to get contacts, you know.”

I shrug. “I already had them. I just don’t wear them much.” I always thought I looked a little better in my contacts rather than in my glasses. And if I want to pull off this girlfriend-of-a-SEAL-god charade, I thought I should make the effort of contact lenses this morning. But the strange look on Graydon’s face has me second-guessing the decision. “Do I look better in glasses or something?”

“No. No, you look fine in either. It’s just—different.”

I giggle. I can’t help it. “I look fine? Oh, you slay me with your compliments,” I joke, just confident enough in my other assets that I can have genuine humor in my tone as I say it.

His laugh echoes mine. “Better than fine. What is it David’s always trying to pull off at lunch? You look dope. Sick.”

“David really does have a way with words since his son hit thirteen.” I press my lips together thoughtfully. “So, uh, don’t you think we should prep a little more for this?”

“Prep?”

“Yeah. I mean, I’ve known you a long time, but I didn’t even know you have a pet fish. How am I going to convince your family that I’m your girlfriend?” It’s only occurring to me now how little I know about this man I’m going to share a suite with. Sure, I’d trust him with my life. But I don’t even know if he takes cream in his coffee.

I spare him a quick glance. Scratch that. He’s definitely a black coffee kind of guy.

He shrugs casually. “They don’t know I have a fish either.”

“I’m serious, Graydon. Shouldn’t I know a little more about… well, your family, for starters?”

He furrows his brow. “What do you mean? You know everything any of the women I dated ever knew.”

“All I really know is that you’re the youngest of four brothers.”

“Yeah, and?”

“That’s all you tell the women you date?” I can’t suppress a snort. “Hell, that’s just sad.”

“Why is it sad? Did Stephen know everything about your family?”

“Well, we were together for six years. And I’m an only child so there’s not a lot to know,” I admit.

I watch his tempting lips form a frown. “Okay, so what do you want to know?” he grumbles.

My lips press together for a moment thoughtfully. “Well, Mason…” I prod. “He’s the one getting married this week. To Freya, the romance author,” I tack on, half testing myself, since I tried to commit this all to memory. “And he’s the SEAL, right?”

“Right.”

“Like you.”

His eyebrows rise slightly. “Thanks for pointing that out.”

I shake my head. “You sure are surly when you talk about your family.”

He sighs. “Sorry. Really. You’re doing me a huge favor and I’m being an ass. What do you want to know? Ask me anything.”

“Were you closer to Mason than to your other brothers since you’re both SEALs? I mean, you went into the same line of work, so...”

“We all went into the same line of work. We’re all military. Well, outside of Colt now that he got out of the Army a couple weeks ago.”

“And Colt’s the one who’s engaged to Max, right?”

“Yeah. Maxine. But she goes by Max usually. We lived on the same block when we were kids.”

It warms me—the thought of being engaged to someone I knew from so long ago. “That’s sweet.”

He shrugs. “I guess. She’s—an acquired taste. You’ll like her—she majored in computer science.”

“Yay! We can talk about binary language at the rehearsal dinner.” My tone is thick with sarcasm.

“Probably not. She’s a photographer now. She’s actually going to be taking some photos of the wedding and all the stuff leading up to it, I guess.”

“That’s nice of her. Why did Colt get out of the Army? That’s the first you’ve mentioned it.”

“His back. He was a Ranger and had some damage to his spine after jumping out of too many planes and helos. Nothing catastrophic, but he lost his jump status. So since he couldn’t be a Ranger, he decided to get out entirely.”

“That’s bold.”

“Yeah.” His tone hints at admiration even though he seems to be trying to keep it at bay. “He’s getting some teaching certification he needs to be a public school teacher in New York City.”

“Wow—that’s a change.”

“Yeah.”

“And the other one—the oldest—uh, Carson right?” I prod.

“Yeah, Carson. But he prefers that people call him by the name his Teammates gave him.”

“What’s that?”

“Stein.”

My brow furrows. “Like… like a beer stein? Weird.”

“No. Short for Einstein, he tells me. He’s really smart. Your kind of guy.”

I suppress a shrug. People go on the assumption that computer nerds always go for the brainy types. “And he even wants his family to call him that?”

“Yep. None of us do, though. So just call him Carson. He hates his name. It’ll piss him off.” He laughs.

The creases in my forehead deepen. “And pissing off your oldest brother is totally on my to-do list for this cruise.” I pause. “Why does Carson hate his name?”

“Beats me.”

“But you don’t like being called by your SEAL name,” I point out, a little confused.

“Shadow? No. Definitely not.”

“Why not? I mean, Shadow’s a hell of a lot cooler than Stein. It’s kind of even…” I think for a moment. “…sexy. You know? Kind of Double-oh-seven, James Bondish.”

His lips form a thin line that points sharply downward at the ends. “Just don’t like it.”

“’Kay,” I give in, deciding to back off since the Adler men seem to have an odd hang-up about their names. “And he’s getting married to…” I bite my lip, tapping into the notes I’ve made in my head. “…Natalie?”

“Close. Natasha.”

“The accountant, right?”

“Yep.” He graces me with a broad grin, reminiscent of the one I saw on him this morning for our Starbucks selfie. “You studied up, didn’t you?”

“I like to be prepared for any mission.” I puff out my cheeks, names swimming in my head. Glancing at him again, I note how that wonderful smile I enjoyed a moment ago has disappeared. “You okay?”

“Sorry—no, I’m kind of dreading this.”

“Hey, look if you’re having second thoughts about pretending to be my boyfriend—”

“God, no.” Unexpectedly, he reaches for my hand. The feel of his skin against mine upends me.

I’ve touched him before. But like this? His hand grasping mine—reassuring, yet rattling to my senses. It’s different—releasing a million conflicting feelings I shouldn’t feel for a guy I don’t stand a chance with.

Every woman I’ve met that Graydon’s dated looks like one of those models in an athleticwear catalog—the ones where they’re standing on a paddleboard or rock climbing or excelling at some other sweat-inducing activity that would put me in intensive care.

Graydon Adler and a techie?

Oh, hell no.

His hand retreats to the two o’clock position on the steering wheel, and my heart rate returns to normal. Pity. I’ll admit, I enjoyed the little surge of hormones that reminded me that even if my heart did go through the wringer with Stephen, I’m still capable of feeling… something.

“It’s not that.” His words wrench me out of my thoughts. “I just—I don’t really like seeing my whole family in full force like this.”

My face elongates. “Why don’t you like your family?”

“I love my family,” he corrects. “I just—never had an easy time figuring out my place in it. Does that make sense?”

“Maybe. A little. Care to go into detail?” I ask, not really expecting that he will.

“We’re all very type A. Competitive, too.”

“I gathered that,” I say, able to see the trait easily since I have it myself.

“So picture being the youngest of brothers like that. There wasn’t anything I could do and be the first. I’d try out for football, basketball, wrestling. Hell, I even joined the debate team one year. I was always known as someone else’s little brother. And when we all went into the military, it just followed me there. I should have chosen a different career. But dammit—being a SEAL has been my goal since I was six years old—long before any of them were interested in military life outside of playing war in our backyard. This is what I’ve always wanted. I know that sounds crazy, but it’s the truth.”

“Doesn’t sound crazy to a girl who wrote her first algorithm at eight years old. Computers are all I’ve ever wanted.”

He nods, seeming appeased—even comforted—by the notion of it. “So you get it. But hell, Mason even beat me to BUD/S training. He’s got a couple years on me, so…” His voice trails.

“I never thought about that. You know, being an only child myself and all.”

“Yeah. It’s…” He frowns. “…childish, I guess, really, hearing myself say it.” He flashes one of those grins that Maya swoons over at the lunch table.

And this morning, I could almost swoon myself.

“No more childish than faking a boyfriend to make an ex jealous.” I giggle just a little.

“Stephen deserves a lot worse than that. Six years together? And you paying all the bills since you both got out of college?”

“Don’t remind me,” I grumble.

“And then, when he sells the stupid app he developed for a million dollars, he dumps you?”

Actually, he sold his app for a lot more than a million. But some things are left better unsaid.

“I’d be doing a lot worse than just posting fake boyfriend pictures on Facebook if that happened to me,” he finishes.

“That’s good because if you posted fake boyfriend pictures, it would definitely surprise people.” I smile, warmed by his support. He’s like that—one of those guys who’s always got your back, no matter what. I’d say it goes with that SEAL trident he wears, but I’m betting it has more to do with the way he was brought up.

Awareness suddenly prickles up my spine, thinking of all his brothers.

“Shadow,” I breathe out his SEAL name like a revelation. “Geez, that’s why you don’t like your SEAL name.”

“Exactly. My Team gave it to me because most of them already knew about my older brother, already a SEAL. I was Mason’s shadow.”

I frown. “That would even piss me off. To become a Navy SEAL but still feel like you’re defined as someone’s little brother.”

He nods sagely, his eyes seeming appreciative somehow. “Bet you’re feeling grateful to be an only child.”

“Not really. I always wanted a big family.”

“Your parents didn’t deliver?” His wry smile widens.

“Uh, no. My mom died when I was seven after a five-year cancer battle. So they were a little… busy with other things.” I aim for a nonchalant tone and am not sure if I deliver.

His smile disappears. “Holy shit, Hailey. I never knew that.”

“It was a long time ago. Not exactly going to come up in our lunchroom conversations.” I can’t help adding, “But I see families like yours—and I sometimes wonder what I’m missing.”

He chuckles. “You’ll get your fill of family on this cruise. I guarantee it.” He pauses, and concern creases his brow. “I’m really sorry about your mom.”

I shrug. “I was seven.”

“Yeah, but still—”

“If it makes you feel better, I don’t know a single person at work who thinks of you as anyone else’s brother,” I interject, more comfortable when I steer the conversation in his direction rather than focusing on me.

He grins. “Actually, it does make me feel better.”

I send him a teasing look that I would lace with flirtation if I thought I stood a snowball’s chance in hell with him. “I’m glad. Because a pout doesn’t look good on you.”