Christina

The comfort of first class was lost to Christina. She envied those who were able to relax in luxury while traveling eight hours to England. Unfortunately, she was not one of those lucky ones. To her left was an incredibly lonely business man who continued to proposition her to join the mile-high club. On her right was a sweet grandmotherly woman who talked non-stop about her grandchildren in England and how her American daughter now thinks she's posh spice. In front of me was baby with the prettiest hazel eyes she'd ever seen. That was until she decided to scream bloody murder for at least two of the hours of the flight.

Eventually, the business man had enough vodka in him to help him doze on her shoulder. The baby wore herself out with her crying. Edna, the grandmother, decided to work on a crossword puzzle for a while. Blissful peace was finally upon her but all she could think about was her lost job, her sick uncle and her shrinking bank account. Being unable to even nap, Christina put her ear buds in and found an audio book that could help take her to another world. A world where men were heroes, women were strong and brave, and every story had a happy ending.

When they finally landed and made it through customs, she had to weave her way through the expansive airport to find the baggage claim area. It had been so long since she had travelled that she'd forgotten how crowded and confusing airports could be. She finally found her way to the correct carousel making certain to stay away from the handsy businessman. With her headphones still in she wasn't paying close enough attention and found Mr. Handsy standing next to her in a blink. Though she tried to ignore him he continued to pressure her.

"Come on, hotness. Come with me to my hotel and we can do what we couldn't in the plane." He winked in a completely sleazy way.

Pulling out her headphones she gave him a tight smile. "No thank you. I am waiting for someone."

Christina saw her bag on the carousel and went to grab it. Mr. Mile-High grabbed it before she could. "Now you owe me baby. Come back to my hotel."

"Give me my bag before I call security."

"Don't be a bitch. I know you want me. What's wrong with a little fun?" He reached out to touch her, but before his hand landed on her a large hand grabbed his and he made a loud keening sound.

"I believe she said no. Now, keep your bloody hands to yourself before I have to rip them off and beat you with them." Said a gruff voice.

Christina looked at the man who saved her. He was practically a giant. He was over six feet tall with broad shoulders. The muscles in his arms bulged underneath his shirt as he tensed. His face looked familiar though. His auburn hair and hazel eyes with a devilish glint gave me a sense of déjà vu. While Christine was looking at this stranger he continued to punish the businessman.

"I didn't mean anything by it buddy. You can't blame me she was flirting with me during the whole trip."

"Wha-"

"I don't bloody care if she sat on your lap naked. She said no then you fucking listen. If I ever see you again, I will rip your bollocks off. Do you understand me, buddy?" The last part was purposely said with an imitation American accent.

"I get it. Just let me go." Handsy McMile-high finally wiggled free from the hulk and grabbed his suitcase. "Bitch" he said under his breath.

When her protector went to grab for him again, Christina pulled on his arm and said, "He's not worth it. Thank you for stepping in."

Her stranger looked at her and gave her a devilish smile. "You don't recognize me, do you?"

Christina stepped back and squinted at the brute in front of her. It struck like lightning. "Dexter?"

He winced when she said his full name. "Just Dex. How is my cousin doing?"

Before Christina could respond Dex picked her up and swung her around. That is saying something since she was definitely not a small girl. "Let me down you, brute!"

Dex laughed and set her down. In the same instant, he grabbed her bag and started toward the doors. When she didn't move right away he turned and motioned for her to follow him. She had to practically run to keep up with his long strides.

"Where are we going?" Christina breathlessly asked.

"You aren't the brightest are you? We are going to my car and then going over to mum and da's. The whole family is waiting on ya." He said stopping in front of a small BMW. Christina watched as Dex put her suitcase in the trunk and walk over to the driver side. She was in awe of how the big man fit his huge body into this small car. "Get your arse in the car, Christina." Dex shouted through the closed windows.

Shaking herself, Christina opened the door. "Cool your tits, Dex. I was just in awe of how you could bend yourself into a pretzel just to get into this tiny car. Why are you driving something so small?"

"Cool my what? Jesus, Christina, you are crazy. This is mum's car. Mine is in the garage getting some detail work done. Don't worry, this car is just as good as my truck. Hold on cousin, you are going to enjoy this."

For the next fifteen minutes, Christina had her life flash before her eyes a minimum of ten times. Dex laughed every time she held onto her seatbelt or grabbed for the Oh Shit handle. Weaving in and out of traffic, hitting curbs and barely missing pedestrians was the norm for driving on these streets. Dex rambled on about what had changed since they had last seen each other ten years ago. FYI...everything had changed. He did his best to distract her from his crazy Indy car driving but when he brought up his dad and golfing Christina jumped on it.

"Wait a minute. How is your dad golfing when he is so ill?"

"Ill? Da is fit as a fiddle. I'd say he was in as good of health as me but I'm perfect so there can't be two perfect Scott men." He laughed but stopped when he saw her face.

"What do you mean he is fit as a fiddle? The whole reason I am here is to help Aunt Valentina take care of your dad. What is going on, Dex?" Christina felt her face flush and heard her blood rushing through her ears.

"Shit." Dex muttered and pulled into a driveway in front of a small cottage home. The grass was neatly cut with hedges along the front of the house. It was small but at least two stories high. Though the home was not new it was clearly regularly maintained and loved by those who lived in it.

"What is going on Dex?" Christina turned in her seat to face her cousin.

"Bloody hell. You weren't supposed to find out this way, Christina. I wasn't supposed to open my big mouth."

"Just tell me, Dex."

"Fine but I'm warning you. You are going to be angry." He paused, and she just stared at him waiting for him to continue. "Da isn't sick. My da and your da came up with this plan to trick you to come here."

Son of a Bitch. "You are joking. Why in the world would they do that?"

Dex shrugged. "I don't know that part of the story. You will have to talk to Mum and Da about that. I'm sorry, Christina. For what it's worth, I'm glad you are here. "

Christina didn't know what to say. She expected to be busy playing nurse to a sick uncle. Now, she didn't even understand why she was in England. Sighing, Christina looked up and saw her Aunt Valentina standing in the doorway of the house.

Her Aunt Valentina had always been a beauty. She had long black hair, tanned skin, deep green eyes and a slight frame that would make any supermodel envious. Uncle James met her when he was studying abroad in Spain while at university. They had a whirlwind courtship that brought her back with him after he finished his study. It wasn't long after their return together that she was pregnant with Dex and they got married. Not long after Dex came Imogen and Jude, then Oliver and Liam. Just when they thought they were done they had a surprise in Tamsin, the wildest of the bunch.

Dex jumped out of the car and ran over to his mom. He picked her up the same way he did Christina. Seemed that was the thing the big brute did. Christina watch her aunt swat her cousin and shoo him into the house. She could already here the cacophony of noise coming from the house. Aunt Valentina shut the door and walked toward the car. Christina finally stepped out of the car and walked slowly over. Her aunt opened her arms wide for a hug. Christina collapsed in her aunts arms.

"There, there mi corazon. I am so happy you are here."

"Why did you, Uncle James and dad lie to me?"

She smiled, "Would you have come any other way?"

Christina sighed. "Probably not. I should be home searching for a job. Maybe I should just have Dex take me back to the airport."

Her aunt straightened. "No. You will be staying. We have missed you, sweetheart. According to Henry, you have not been yourself lately since losing that horrid job. You will stay. You will have fun. If after a week you still want to leave then I won't stop you. But, until then you will stay here and you will have a bit of an adventure. Lord knows your cousins are ready to drag you through trouble." She smiled at that.

"Alright, Aunt Vali. I've missed your hugs." For some reason, Christina could feel herself crying.

"Oh corazon! Don't cry. It will all work out. I promise. Maybe you will find a nice man and stay."

That had Christina laughing. "You sound like Ruby." Christina wiped the tears from her eyes.

"I knew I always liked that girl. Now, let's go see your crazy cousins." Christina and her aunt walked arm and arm into the chaos that was the Scott household.