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Forbidden Temptations Chapter1
“Fuck I hate this …” I said, as I packed the last of my holiday must-haves into my suitcase. The look on my brother’s face said you hate everything, which was true, but it didn’t make it any easier to hear. I really wasn’t looking forward to this Christmas vacation, stuck on an island somewhere with my mother and her third husband in as many decades, Charlie.
The real reason I wasn’t looking forward to this trip was Tyler. He was our new stepbrother, a little older, thirtyish, and some big deal on the internet. He was handsome yes, okay,fuck it, he was really hot. But I was eighteen, and besides using images of this dark, broody creature for my private moments of self-manipulation, I really wasn’t up to playing happy families.
Tyler had been on a business trip to Hong Kong, so he missed the wedding, and now, on what was supposed to be my mother and Charlie’s honeymoon Isaiah and I were being dragged on a meet the family trip for a few days in the sun. The only thing I hated more than beef jerky, or being introduced to yet another transient step-family member, was the sun. Isaiah was 16, so he didn’t give a fuck about anything anyway.
Anyway, we arrived on the island at around 4:30 PM, and the place was deserted, except for the staff. Charlie really looked like he enjoyed spending his son’s money, and ifthe drinks and appetizers were anything to go by, I wouldn’t complain about a thing. Tyler was set to arrive around 6, so Isaiah and I had a few hours to explore this paradise.
“ So, how long do you think this one will last?” I asked Isaiah as we took a bend that opened up on an incredible view.
“Not sure Ash, she really seems to like this one,” was his standard response. I had asked him this question after each of the previous weddings as well.
“That’s what you always say …” I said.
“What can I say; she's a great actress …” another standard response, one that said it was time to move this conversation right along. He didn’t care too much for discussions about my mother.
I moved the conversation on to more random subjects, and just after 6 we made our way back. I did not want to be there when Tyler arrived, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of having an entourage that would serve as his welcome committee. I was really not about to set any precedents that I would not later be able to maintain.
We arrived at the house to find my mother and Charlie caught in catch-up conversation with Tyler, who looked like he just stepped off the cover of a magazine. He looked nothing like his pictures of the internet, all stiff and starched; with a coldness in his eyes that you would be forgiven for thinking was callus and calculating. He seems a little more relaxed now, although the distraction is obvious on his face, and in the way he taps his finger on his glass.
“This is Ashley, and Isaiah, her brother …” Charlie does the introductions. I hate being called Ashley, and Charlie knows this. I make a mental note to change my name to Sky, or Rain, or anything but Ashley.
We greet Tyler, without touching him. No handshakes, no hugs, no pretentious air kissing that rich people seem to like to do. I think of excusing myself, but there is no chance of escaping this family bonding, at least until after dinner. How many times will my mother subject us to this shit, I wonder.
The good thing is Tyler doesn’t seem too interested in Isaiah and I. We make it through dinner listening to him and Charlie taking about philosophy and business and the stock market. My mother is the perfect accessory, smiling and nodding at every turn, making sure that their drinks are filled at all times. I wish that they would relax the rules a little, let me have one or two drinks, just to take the edge off. I know I’m not 21 yet, but still, it is the holidays. I know my mother though, and so I don’t even try.
As soon as we can, Isaiah and I escape from the table. I turn to look at them again, to look at Tyler. He really is every shade of beautiful. But he is older than me, much older, and he is my brother now. I shake this thought from my head, and follow Isaiah out of the room, passed the kitchen, and through the backdoor. Isaiah grabs a bottle of Vodka from one of the kitchen cupboards on his way out, reminding me why I love this little shit so much.
We make our way up the trail at the back of the house, the same one we walked this afternoon. We get to the precipice that overlooks the ocean, still clearly visible even in the moonlight, and we settle down to a bit of underage drinking and shit talk. This vacation will be over soon enough, and we decide to do what we can to speed things along …