“Great!” Piper squeals. “Then you can answer all the questions Tristan has straight-up ignored since we met.”
Easton chuckles. “I dunno. Tristan’s pretty scary and might kick my ass.”
I shake my head. “How about we not talk about my past or me at all?”
Easton’s expression softens. He knows everything, but it has been brought up since it all happened. There’s too much to explain to someone like Piper, and the thoughts that come from talking about it are better buried away.
“How about you tell me about yourself, Piper. Apparently, you’re a big deal or something,” my brother says. Once everything has been put away, we move to the living room to finish the conversation. Piper and I sit at opposite ends while Easton plops down in the middle.
“I’m not,” she humbly replies, but every person in this room knows that’s a lie, even her.
Easton snorts. “Okay. Since you’re not a big deal, maybe you can pimp my surf shop when you’re released from this…what did you call it? Prison?”
Piper grins. “Might cost ya.”
“Exactly. That’s what I thought.” He laughs.
When she pops a brow, I immediately know that she’s up to no good.
“Just answer a few questions, and it’ll be a deal.” She holds out her hand, and Easton looks at me before shaking it.
“Sorry, bro. There’s no way I could ever afford a shout-out from the Piper Montgomery.”
“What a sell-out!” I grunt.
He shrugs unapologetically. “Free marketing. Gotta take business opportunities when I can.”
“There’s no such thing as a free lunch. It’s the basic principles of economics,” I remind him.
“Yeah, yeah, save it,” Piper says, then turns to Easton. “You gotta tell me how Tristan was growing up.”
“Just the way that he is right now, but not as buff. Same dry personality.”
She chuckles. “Why am I not surprised?”
“He’s eleven years older than me, so…”
“Wait, how old are you?” Piper asks him.
“Twenty-six, about to be twenty-seven.”
“And you already started your own business?”
He nods proudly. “Yep. Opened it two years ago.”
“And you brought me a grandma bathing suit?” She gives him an evil eye.
“I take it you don’t surf.” He snickers.
She sarcastically laughs. “No. I barely swim, though I did take lessons when I was younger because my mother was paranoid. I wasn’t the strongest kid out there, though.”
“That grandma bathing suit is one of the most expensive brands we carry—Shan. It isn’t cheap, and athletes wear them,” he informs her.
“It has sleeves, Easton. Sleeves! I’d be better off wearing my bra and panties outside.”
“Wouldn’t happen,” I bark out, deciding to get up and start dinner. It’s just past five, and I’m actually hungry. As I chop the pineapple and jalapeno into pico-sized chunks, Piper and Easton move to the breakfast bar and continue chatting.
“What kind of women does Tristan like?”
Easton hesitates. “You know, I’m not sure anymore. When I was younger, I remember he dated a girl from England. Foreign exchange student. But I was only seven when he graduated high school and left for boot camp.”
“Wow, so you didn’t really get to grow up together for long. English student, huh? How’d you pull that off?” Piper asks me.
“I’m not talking about my past relationships with you,” I state, quickly shutting her down before she gets any more ideas.
“You’re really no fun.”
“I wasn’t hired to be.” I sear the chicken breasts in the skillet as I put some black beans in a pot. Then I sauté some broccoli.
“So what about you?” Easton asks her, and I’m actually interested in her answer. I glance over my shoulder as she hesitates, biting on her bottom lip.
“I haven’t dated much, honestly. Most guys my age are immature and only want to use me for who I am or the attention my name can give them. Not to mention, my parents have impossibly high standards for who I should marry, which makes it hard to date. Right now, I’m happily single and not really looking. I stay plenty busy without a man tying me down. But of course, that could all change if the right person came into my life. I have an open mind.”
“Me too. I’m not actively dating, but if someone special comes into my life, that could change,” Easton admits.
If my brother is flirting with Piper, I swear to God, I might lose my shit.
“I mean, not with the parent thing. My mom and dad have loved everyone I’ve brought home. It’s just hard to find someone my age whose personality isn’t all about bar hopping and drinking. I don’t go out much, so most girls in their twenties can’t relate. I take my business really seriously. I love the ocean and being outside. Just can’t seem to find a woman who likes the same.”
“Wow, yes. I understand that more than you know. Partying is fun once in a while, but after once or twice, I’m over it. I’d rather hang out and spend quality time with someone,” she says, and then they sit in silence.
By the time I was twenty-five, I had felt like I’d already lived a lifetime and had traveled all over the world. So, I really can’t relate to either of them. I’m sixteen years older than Piper and was practically an adult when she was born. After graduation, I signed my life over to the military, hoping after serving for twenty years, I’d retire and settle down. Except that didn’t quite work out the way I planned.
As the conversation comes to a lull, I interrupt them. “Dinner is almost ready.”
I pull out plates from the cabinet, and they come over. The whole house smells amazing, and I can’t wait to dig into my food.
Once we sit at the open end of the table, Easton finally spots the puzzle. “No way.”
It puts a smile on my face. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”
“Yeah. It really has.”
Easton scoots a little closer to the pieces and starts placing them together, building on what Piper and I have already completed.
“Hey! Don’t do too much. That thing has to last me God knows how long,” she scolds, and he chuckles.
“I could literally sit here all night and work on it.” He turns the box around to view the picture.
“Shoulda told me to pick one up. There’s a souvenir shop a few blocks away that sells the really hard ones.”
“Next time,” Piper says, taking a big bite of chicken.
I meet her big blue eyes. “Wait, you like doing puzzles now?”
“I don’t mind it. Might have to take my new hobby back to New York with me. What’s the biggest one you’ve done?”
I have to think about it. “Might’ve been seventy-five hundred pieces. The largest puzzle you can buy is fifty-thousand pieces, I think.”
Piper’s eyes widen. “Seriously? I can’t imagine how long that’d take to put together. Where could you even put something that big?”
“Months. Hell, maybe years,” Easton says, then adds. “You’d need a big penthouse or something…”