“Maybe.” Tim rubbed his hand over his jaw, “You’ve got to admit…she was stunning.”
Craig shook his head, “You’ll never learn. You’ve always liked beautiful things and it’s always come back to bite you in the butt. At some point, you’re going to have to learn to look a little deeper.”
“Like you did with her friend? What was her name again?”
“Tasha. Tasha Stevens. She’s exactly what I’m talking about. She seems like more than just a flash in the pants.”
“And you know that how? Because from what I can recall, she wasn’t hard on the eyes either and she barely had much to say.”
“No, she sure as hell wasn’t hard on the eyes. She was gorgeous. But, there was also something about her that made me feel like she’d be cool with a sack lunch at the beach wearing a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. I can’t say I got that same impression from her friend.”
Tim finished his coffee, “Nothing wrong with liking the finer things in life.”
Craig could tell that Tim had already made up in his mind. He was going to call Sabrina. Craig blew out a breath, “Yeah…alright. You’ve always had to learn the hard way. So, all I’m going to say is don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
Jenny walked into the kitchen and heard the tail end of their conversation. “Who? Didn’t warn Tim about who?” She looked from brother to brother as she walked toward Maddy.
“Ma. Ma Ma”
Craig spoke, “Tim’s about to try to hook up with someone we met at dinner last night.”
Tim interrupted him, “I never said that. I just said I thought she was stunning.”
Jenny reached out to hug her daughter, “Did you have fun with Uncle Craig and Tim?” She glared at Craig for making such a mess. “Craig, she has food all over her clothes? You both look like you could use a bath.” Jenny tried to wipe her daughter’s face with a napkin. “Anyway, it must be something about her. Tim dates beautiful women all the time and he never mentions them. So, who is she?”
Craig took it upon himself to fill Jenny in on the events of last night. “Her name is Sabrina Links. According to her LinkedIn account, she’s a Sales Marketing manager for some company in Chicago.”
Jenny continued to wipe off Maddy’s face. “Well, that’s good. It sounds like she at least has a career. I don’t understand how you guys always seem to attract the wrong types of women. And, neither of you are getting any younger. At this rate, you’ll never settle down and give Maddy some cousins to play with.”
Tim and Craig both said in unison, “Who?”
Jenny pointed at both Tim and Craig, “You and you. I’m starting to get tired of being the only woman on these vacations. It would be nice to have some female companionship.” She sighed, “I don’t know…do men ever want to settle down? Sometimes I wonder.”
Both Craig and Tim had a strong feeling she was no longer talking about them. Jenny finished cleaning Maddy up enough to pick her up. “I’m taking Maddy to change and then Daniel and I are going to head out for a while. We probably won’t be back until late evening.”
Craig’s sarcastic thoughts managed to be spoken aloud, “Take your time.”
Jenny glared at him, “Don’t be an ass.”
Tim raised his eyebrows, “In front of Maddy?”
Then, she turned to glare at him too. She looked between both brothers before she spoke again, “You guys will drive a sane person crazy. And…would it hurt to be a little nicer to him? We almost didn’t make this vacation because he knows you guys can’t stand him. It’s getting harder and harder to convince him to come on these little trips. I need you both to make more of an effort.”
Tim thought to himself that he didn’t care if Daniel ever came. But, he knew that if he didn’t come Jenny probably wouldn’t either. He’d do anything for her including being cordial to her good for nothing husband.
She stood holding Maddy on her hip, “Well? Will you promise you’ll be a little nicer to him?”
Even though Craig was a grown man, when it came to family squabbles, he seemed to take his queues from Tim. So, he waited to see what he was going to say.
Tim remained calm on the outside but what he really wanted to do was beat the hell out of Daniel for all the things he’d put Jenny through. However, after a few more uncomfortably silent moments, he responded. “I’ll do my best.”
Jenny turned to face Craig and her eyes pleaded with him. He hated how worn down Jenny looked and didn’t have the heart to add to it. “Yeah, I guess…me too.”
She released a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding and mouthed “Thank you. I love you both.” before leaving the kitchen.
Craig turned to Tim, “You know…I hate that bastard.”
“Me too. But, he’s her choice. We’ve done all we can to get her to see the light but she loves him. You heard her…she almost didn’t make this vacation. Somehow, we’ve got to swallow our feelings for the sake of our relationship with Jenny and Maddy. They are the only reasons why I haven’t hired someone to deal with him.”
Tim received a text message. He took his phone out of his pocket to read it. His mood immediately changed for the better.
“I know that look. That’s Sabrina isn’t it?”
Tim looked up, “You think you know me so well. No, it’s not her.”
Craig didn’t believe
