“Yeah, this is a lot better than the view from the gym I currently use. It overlooks an alley.”
“Alex’s company just finished up an addition on the house. I convinced Sienna to let me change Zoey’s old room into a home gym now that she’ll be on the side with the new nursery.”
“Let me know if you plan to offer memberships,” Griffin said with a laugh.
“Family is always invited. You’re on this cruise, which means you’re practically family now.” A sly grin curved up the side of Toby’s mouth. “You know you kind of surprised us there. No one was expecting Indina to bring a…um, what do you two call each other?”
“We’re coworkers,” Griffin said.
His grin broadened. “Yeah, okay.”
“No, really,” Griffin said, though he felt like a fool trying to deny there was anything going on between Indina and himself. Her family wasn’t stupid. As each hour passed, Griffin found himself wanting more and more to be a part of this family. Hell, maybe he could enlist their help. If they approved of there being a real relationship between them, maybe Griffin could finally convince Indina to see it.
Toby’s phone buzzed.
“You’ve got service on this ship?” Griffin asked.
He nodded. “I’m paying an arm and a leg for the damn wifi, but I need to be connected at all times.”
Griffin had learned from Indina last night that Toby was the mastermind behind singing sensation, Aria Jordan. The R&B star had just finished up a nationwide tour that had made headlines because of the number of arenas she sold out.
“Shit, I didn’t realize it was this late,” Toby said. “Reid wanted to get in a game of basketball up on Deck 12. You up for it?”
“Hell yeah,” Griffin said. “This hour on the treadmill was just a warm-up.”
He followed Toby out of the gym and up one flight of stairs to the top deck. It held an array of recreational activities, including a half-size basketball court, a tennis court, miniature golf, and even a rock-climbing wall. They really did have everything on this ship.
Eli and Alex were already there, along with Jonathan Campbell. A minute later, Indina’s three brothers arrived.
“We had to drag this one from his computer,” Ezra said, tipping his head toward Harrison.
“Dude, why did you even bring a computer?” Eli asked.
“I told him not to,” Jonathan said. “We both agreed to leave everything at the office. I’m not thinking about any of my cases this weekend.”
“When would you have time? I’m surprised you were able to sneak away from Kristy long enough to play ball,” Reid said.
Toby let out a disgusted snort. The look Jonathan shot his way was pure murder.
Griffin felt as if he was missing something.
“Are we going to do this, or what?” Harrison asked. “If not I can go back to the brief I’ve been working on.”
Toby pointed to Indina’s brothers. “Griffin, why don’t you join them? It’ll be one set of Holmes brothers, along with their future brother-in-law, against the other set of Holmes brothers.”
Griffin held his hands up to correct him on that brother-in-law thing, but no one paid him any attention.
“If it’s brothers and brothers-in-law, what does that make me?” Jonathan asked.
Toby looked over at him. “A confused jackass?”
“What the hell is up with you?” Jonathan asked, stepping up to Toby.
“Just play ball,” Toby said.
“Please,” Alex added. “Renee and I have a couples massage scheduled at the spa. I don’t plan to be late.”
Griffin stood next to Reid. He said, “About that future brother-in-law thing.”
“Toby was just joking. We all know Indina’s not marrying you or anybody else,” Reid said. “You can guard Eli. But watch it. He uses his elbows a lot.”
For a moment, Griffin was rooted where he stood.
She isn’t marrying anybody?
It was way too early for marriage to even enter the equation for him. Hell, he just wanted to go out on an actual date with her. He thought all it would take was a bit more coaxing, especially after the fun they’d had dancing last night. Not to mention their conversation after they left the club.
But it seemed as if Indina’s aversion to relationships ran deeper than he first thought. Apparently, it was known and accepted among her family.
Was it even worth it to try to build their relationship into something more?
Griffin had tried to convince himself that he was satisfied with the status quo, but deep down he knew that wasn’t the case. Maybe if he was still in his twenties he would be okay with things remaining casual, but he’d outgrown that way of thinking a long time ago. He was ready for a relationship with substance.
He was suddenly faced with the question he’d been trying to avoid for months now. How much time was he willing to invest in something that may never become anything more than just a string of hookups? It didn’t matter that they were extremely gratifying hookups. There came a time when you had to move beyond the superficial.
Griffin’s gut tightened with unease as he realized that he’d finally reached that point. If Indina wasn’t willing to move forward, he would have to move on.
She’s willing.
Or at least she would be if he went about this the right way. He just had to convince her that they were worth taking a chance on.
The basketball game finally got underway, but it was quickly apparent that one set of Holmes brothers had an advantage over the other. Griffin looked on in amazement as Toby and Jonathan put on a basketball clinic, displaying NBA-worthy moves.
“Wait, wait, wait. Hold up,” Ezra said, waving his hands to stop the game. He looked over at Harrison and Reid. “How did we fall for this?”
“Because we’re suckers,” Reid said.
“What’s going on?” Griffin asked.
“Those two knuckleheads both played professional ball. We got suckered into this game.”
Toby put his hands up. “Hey, it was your idea to play,” he said to Reid.
“I
