Read Online Stepbrother Romance 2 - Consumed: A New Adult Alpha Billionaire Romance by Tawny Taylor - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Tawny Taylor
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it came to women. But I had to give him one thing: when it came to family, he did what he had to, to protect them. And he did not give up. No matter what. His hands were bloody, the skin torn by the splintered wood. And all to protect his father and stepmom. My mom. The most important person in the world to me.
An hour later we were all safe in the main house--Mom, Dirk, Kent, and me. Dirk refused treatment when the EMT’s tried to take him to the hospital, claiming he was okay, just a little bruised and sore. He and Mom were now holed up in a bedroom together, Mom probably fussing over him since she was worried he might be more injured than he realized.
Kent was somewhere—maybe in his bedroom—probably tending to his wounded hands. Like his father, he’d refused treatment from the EMTs. Me, I was in my former bedroom, on the other side of the wall from his, staring at the ceiling, wishing I could sleep.
Being back in this room made things even worse than before. I still had very little respect for Kent as a husband. He cheated on his wife. With me. And at least a few dozen other women. As it was said: once a cheater, always a cheater.
But a tiny part of me reasoned that it wasn’t easy for a man to stay committed to a woman who was never around. His wife hadn’t made a single appearance, not one, since I’d met him.
Was there more than one side to this story? I wanted to know.
Then again, did I?
If I did learn there was more to it than Kent being a two-timing asshole, I might change my opinion of him. And if that happened…I might…I might fall in love with him again. Or rather, I might fall more in love with him than I already was. And that, regardless of whether Kent was married or not, would be a bad thing.
Because it would probably still lead to nothing but heartbreak and frustration.
It was better, safer, if I could go on disliking him. Maybe, after what had happened tonight, he didn’t deserve the hatred I’d felt toward him before. After all, he had protected me. And my mom. And he’d endured plenty of pain in the process. But that was as far as I would go. No further. It wasn’t safe to allow myself to feel tender emotions toward him. Like admiration. Respect. Affection.
I inhaled deeply. His scent surrounded me.
Dammit, this sucked. Because all my clothes had been saturated, thanks to the big hole in the carriage house’s roof, he’d loaned me a dry t-shirt and pair of shorts to sleep in. They smelled like him. And that scent stirred too many memories, too many emotions.
Annoyed I couldn’t sleep, I opened the door and peered into the hallway. The house was silent. Everyone was sleeping…I hoped. I crept into the kitchen for some water then headed outside onto the deck. The storm was long gone, leaving in its wake heavy, damp air and broken tree limbs. I could see the outline of the carriage house but it was too dark to see the damage it had sustained. I knew it was bad. Which meant Mom, Dirk and I were all temporarily homeless.
Sipping my water, I leaned my hip against the railing and watched a fallen branch float in the pool.
“Can’t sleep?”
I knew that voice. It belonged to Kent. The guy who made me feel too many emotions, who made me think too many things. I wasn’t ready to deal with him.
“It’s been quite a day,” I said without turning around. In my mind I saw him wearing a snug tank, the knit material clinging to his ripped abs, and a pair of shorts, sculpted thighs and calves covered in coarse, dark hair. I tried to blot out the image by focusing on the branch in the pool, but it didn’t work.
“Yes,” he agreed, “Rough night too.”
I nodded.
Something touched me. A hand. On my shoulder. I flinched but the hand didn’t move. “This gives me a chance to talk to you about what happened earlier. With Zack.”
I owed him a thank you for what he did, even if I felt the fight was very brutal. I knew I did, but it was hard to force the words from my mouth. A
An hour later we were all safe in the main house--Mom, Dirk, Kent, and me. Dirk refused treatment when the EMT’s tried to take him to the hospital, claiming he was okay, just a little bruised and sore. He and Mom were now holed up in a bedroom together, Mom probably fussing over him since she was worried he might be more injured than he realized.
Kent was somewhere—maybe in his bedroom—probably tending to his wounded hands. Like his father, he’d refused treatment from the EMTs. Me, I was in my former bedroom, on the other side of the wall from his, staring at the ceiling, wishing I could sleep.
Being back in this room made things even worse than before. I still had very little respect for Kent as a husband. He cheated on his wife. With me. And at least a few dozen other women. As it was said: once a cheater, always a cheater.
But a tiny part of me reasoned that it wasn’t easy for a man to stay committed to a woman who was never around. His wife hadn’t made a single appearance, not one, since I’d met him.
Was there more than one side to this story? I wanted to know.
Then again, did I?
If I did learn there was more to it than Kent being a two-timing asshole, I might change my opinion of him. And if that happened…I might…I might fall in love with him again. Or rather, I might fall more in love with him than I already was. And that, regardless of whether Kent was married or not, would be a bad thing.
Because it would probably still lead to nothing but heartbreak and frustration.
It was better, safer, if I could go on disliking him. Maybe, after what had happened tonight, he didn’t deserve the hatred I’d felt toward him before. After all, he had protected me. And my mom. And he’d endured plenty of pain in the process. But that was as far as I would go. No further. It wasn’t safe to allow myself to feel tender emotions toward him. Like admiration. Respect. Affection.
I inhaled deeply. His scent surrounded me.
Dammit, this sucked. Because all my clothes had been saturated, thanks to the big hole in the carriage house’s roof, he’d loaned me a dry t-shirt and pair of shorts to sleep in. They smelled like him. And that scent stirred too many memories, too many emotions.
Annoyed I couldn’t sleep, I opened the door and peered into the hallway. The house was silent. Everyone was sleeping…I hoped. I crept into the kitchen for some water then headed outside onto the deck. The storm was long gone, leaving in its wake heavy, damp air and broken tree limbs. I could see the outline of the carriage house but it was too dark to see the damage it had sustained. I knew it was bad. Which meant Mom, Dirk and I were all temporarily homeless.
Sipping my water, I leaned my hip against the railing and watched a fallen branch float in the pool.
“Can’t sleep?”
I knew that voice. It belonged to Kent. The guy who made me feel too many emotions, who made me think too many things. I wasn’t ready to deal with him.
“It’s been quite a day,” I said without turning around. In my mind I saw him wearing a snug tank, the knit material clinging to his ripped abs, and a pair of shorts, sculpted thighs and calves covered in coarse, dark hair. I tried to blot out the image by focusing on the branch in the pool, but it didn’t work.
“Yes,” he agreed, “Rough night too.”
I nodded.
Something touched me. A hand. On my shoulder. I flinched but the hand didn’t move. “This gives me a chance to talk to you about what happened earlier. With Zack.”
I owed him a thank you for what he did, even if I felt the fight was very brutal. I knew I did, but it was hard to force the words from my mouth. A
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