Chapter 65

Tess stretched lazily beside the pool. Rhythmic splashing told her without having to look that Dash’s sister was still swimming laps. Elena was a sweet girl. Two years Tess’s junior, she was a lot like Dash in some ways, but more easy going.

She didn’t defer to her brother as if he were a deity and she had no desire to marry a man solely to secure her future. Tess admired and liked her a lot as they had a lot in common.

Smart and independent, Elena had made life in the Black household bearable for Tess. Not that Dash’s mother was unbearable. Quite the opposite. She was kindness itself, but she took the marriage of her son and his girlfriend as a foregone conclusion. Just yesterday she had completely unnerved Tess by insisting she be measured for a wedding gown.

When Tess had mentioned this to Dash, he had merely smiled and complimented his mother on her forward thinking. Evident