Chapter 16

I was kind of surprised when we touched back on land. I didn't think Pepper would be the type to allow others to interfere with her plans. Even nature itself, since we had gotten a refund for the charter Pepper decided we should stay in the penthouse suite of the hotel. I didn't know why we needed all that space but she seemed pretty adamant. Me, on the other hand, since I had just earned by self some money decided I should take her out somewhere nice.

Cairns isn't exactly the fanciest eat out location in Australia, but we found a nice restaurant down by the water and I told her to order whatever she wanted. It sounded somewhat cynical because she always ordered whatever she wanted. 'Oh can I?' she said sarcastically.

'Yes you can, doll.' I put on an accent. 'Don't you worry your pretty little head.'

'I thought I was giving you a birthday present.'

'You are, but not everything is one-way, right? What sort of a man would I be if I couldn't even take you out to dinner?'

'An ordinary one.' She sniffed the wine before she tried it.

I myself had no idea what sniffing wine did; I wouldn't have known what I was smelling anyway so it would have been pointless. I just drank mine and tried not to spill it. 'So this is the life you like, all this?' I pointed around at the finery. 'I don't get it, you live in a pretty normal house with me back in California.'

'It's what I'm comfortable with. Just like it makes you uncomfortable because you're not used to it. The only reason I live in that house is because I wanted to move in with Stella and she wanted to move in with you, and we both knew you were too stubborn to let us pay for something so we just settled.'

Ouch. 'Um, I see.'

'I didn't mean it as an insult at all. I actually like that you are happy either way. I'm interested to see how you lived back in Australia.'

'Well it's not some experiment, we didn't have a hut if that's what you mean. But you'll see a bit more, Keira is already with my sister in Melbourne.'

'What.' Pepper's voice was flat.

'Huh, you don't like Keira?'

'Of course I like Keira, ' she snapped, 'who doesn't? It's just that you two get so googly eyed with each other now that you don't see each other all the time it's hard to get a word in.

Oh well, ' she shrugged, 'maybe I'll have to give Tommy jizz hands another chance.'

'You have serious issues. You know that right?' I said. I could feel this holiday turning into something that neither of us wanted it to be and so I decided it was time to lighten the mood. 'So what are we doing tonight? My vote is the Casino, it's so crap it's awesome.'

Pepper pursed her lips. 'Sure, do you think the storm will come all the way back here?'

I raised an eyebrow, I think it was the first time she had ever asked me a question. 'Don't you already know?' I couldn't resist. I immediately regretted it, but Pepper was surprisingly amused.

'Do I really seem that much of a know-it-all?'

'Yep.'

'Tell me something I don't know then.'

'Alright.' I stroked my chin thoughtfully. 'See that white dress you're wearing?'

'Of course.'

'And the white bikini top underneath it?'

'You are very bad at this.'

'Patience, my dear, did you know one of your nipples has come out and I can totally see it through the fabric. I've known for about ten minutes now but it was enjoying leering at you too much to let you know.' I grinned.

'You really are something, does your mind ever get to any other place but the one way road to sex?'

'Of course not. I'm a guy, dumbass.'

'Dumbass?' she set her knife and fork down.

'Yep. What are you gonna do about it?'

'Nothing while you're awake.' She said airily.

I must admit, I was slightly worried.

When Pepper was asleep I went out on to the balcony to call Keira. I tried to start an idle conversation with her but she knew me too well.

'Don't bother trying to be nice. It's me, remember? You want to know about Stella, right?'

'Um, yeah.'

'Okay, remember you when it just happened?'

'Yes.'

'Times that by two, that's her now.' Keira said simply. 'I feel bad for her, but she brought it on herself. That and I don't know if I can ever forgive her for making you like that.

She said she started looking through a photo album and remembered all the times you shared in the guesthouse at her place and at that beach house and all the other days like graduation and she remembered why it was like it was. She said that aside from the fact that her Mom freaked she thought she wanted to marry you, and that just made it worse. I know I shouldn't be telling you this while you're probably balls deep in Pepper Kerr for the last week but you have to know. Keeping secrets always ends up fucking things up. And I guess if she told me she would have known we talk.

She wanted you to know but she doesn't have the guts to tell you herself. '

Stella was my past, but was she my future? 'What should I do, Keira?' I asked softly.

'Hey, you're the older sibling; you're supposed to be giving ME advice. Look after yourself, bro. I can't wait to see you.'

I was interrupted by the sound of Pepper's cell ringing, I frowned, it was almost 12 in the AM, we had boned and pretty much gone straight to bed after dinner. I heard her groan but when she answered the phone her voice was pretty alert.

'Yes?' she answered. 'Right, where?'

'Who is it?' I asked.

'Sure.' She held up a finger for silence.

I folded my arms, bemused and looked out over the balcony to the green water.

'Alright, we will be there in half an hour.'

'Where?' I asked again, ignoring her first request.

'That was Tommy, they have hired a place out for a private party, he invited us.'

'Noooo!' I flopped onto the balcony chair, 'I fucking hate that guy! Just being around him makes me feel dumber.'

'He is actually pretty smart.' Pepper said in his defence.

'What the hell? He said he has theories on life that I wouldn't understand and is too badass to drink or smoke. If he is so badass why does he still take steroids?'

'There are varying degrees of smart.' She said cryptically.

'Yeah, like very, and not very. Screw that asshole, I don't want to go.'

'Okay, ' she leant down and kissed me on the mouth, 'I'll be back in a few hours.'

'Oh you will, will you?' I raised an eyebrow.

'You just said it was fine.' She shrugged, 'don't tell you you're suddenly being the possessive boyfriend character.'

'No. Go then.' I said petulantly, 'I'm sure the woolshed will still be open.' (The woolshed being a shithole club just out of the city that you were guaranteed to score a root with a backpacker at, but not guaranteed to be able to take a piss without a burning sensation in the morning)

'Alright.' She kissed me again. 'Don't forget to use a condom or you won't be getting into my snatch until you've been checked out.'

'You make my head hurt, you know that, right?'

'And you make my nipples hard.' She slipped aside her robe to show me, she was telling the truth.

'Alright, you foul seductress. Much and all as I want to play who can score higher on the jealousy stakes the face is all you have to do is walk in somewhere and bat your eyelashes so I'll have to work twice as hard for not as successful results. So yeah, I'll come.'

'I thought you might.' She sat on my lap.

'Yeah right. Now get out of here before I decide I need to act like an asshole to prove my manliness.'

'Give and take.' She reminded me.

And so not much later I found myself about to walk into a smoky room with loud music and heaps of dipshits standing outside on the balcony smoking. I had deliberately dressed down in a pair of ripped up jeans and a tight T-shirt but if Pepper had noticed she didn't comment.

Tommy the tool met us right away and kissed Pepper's hand with his sleazy face. He was decked out in even more obnoxiously bright clothes with big designer labels written on them in places everyone would be forced to notice them.

'Can I steal her for just a moment?' he smarmed when we entered.

'Whatever.' I waved my hand and went to find his girlfriend and try and convince her to break up with him. I found her sitting at a table waiting for her friends to come back with drinks and I sidled up next to her. 'Hey June.' I said, I knew her name was a month or something so I figured I had a one in twelve.

'April.' She corrected.

'Yep.' I said with feigned (but not hard to act) disinterest. 'Where's lover boy, still trying to get his premature ejaculating dick into my girl?'

'His what?' she went sort of cross-eyed.

I pinched the bridge of my nose. I kept telling myself I had a job to do. 'You know, come too quick, party is over.' I explained.

'Oh.' Her mouth turned down a bit.

'Yeah, I'm not supposed to talk about that. And I'm not really supposed to talk to guys that aren't him either.' She looked nervously to the side.

'Relax.' I put a hand on her leg, it was hot from sunburn. 'You can just tell him you were keeping an eye on me to distract me while he tried to fuck another girl. What a great woman you are.' I couldn't believe she didn't pick the sarcasm.