Read Online Stepbrother Romance 3 - Addicted: A New Adult Alpha Billionaire Romance by Tawny Taylor - Free Book Online Page A

into my mouth and washed it down with coffee. “Hell no. Ten miles is nothing. A walk in the freaking park. Bring it, Jeremiah.”
    “What did you call me?” he asked. “I thought I was Valmont.”
    “Having an identity crisis, are you?” I laughed at his scowl. “Ever heard of Jeremiah Johnson?”
    “No.”
    “Well, if we had the internet I’d tell you to look him up.” I pointed at him with my fork. “But I don’t think we do. So I’ll tell you. Johnson was a fictional character in an old movie made in the 70’s. He was a bad ass mountain man.”
    Kent’s chest puffed up. Such a proud peacock, he was. “That’s me. Bad ass.”
    “We’ll see about that.”
    I didn’t quite finish Mount Scrambled, but I did a fine job of decreasing its size. And before I knew it, we were on our way, each carrying a backpack loaded up with sealed snacks, water, bear spray, and other hiking gear. The pair of boots I found in my closet was a godsend in the rough terrain. The paths weren’t the smooth stroller-friendly paved lanes I frequented in Michigan. No, these were narrow and uneven. But there was something thrilling and romantic about being alone in the Alaskan frontier with Kent.
    He led like he knew where he was going. And I followed closely behind. Our pace was neither too fast nor too slow. Even so, I was ready for a break after about an hour and a half. I let Kent know by plopping down on a flat rock and exclaiming, “I need a break.”
    Kent parked his cute little butt down next to mine and shrugged off his backpack. I admired the way the muscles on his arms and shoulders bulged as he moved for a few seconds before digging into my pack for my water bottle.
    We both swallowed at least a half-gallon each before we put our bottles away.
    “Tired?” Kent taunted. “Ready to go back?”
    “No way! Are you?” I shoved him, catching him off-guard. He fell on the ground, landing with arms and legs sprawled. I laughed. Until he gave me a look that made me grab my pack and start running like a scared rabbit. I crashed down the path with Kent on my heels. At a bend, the path skirted a stream, the left side sloping and slick. My boot hit something and then I sailed through the air, landing on hands and knees. Kent saw me and tried to stop before he ran into me. Instead, he tripped on the same thing I had. But he performed a world class belly flop into the frigid stream water. He gasped. Didn’t move. Didn’t stand up, even though the water was shallow.
    “Kent?” I yelled.
    His eyes widened but he didn’t speak, didn’t move. He was breathing really fast, too fast.
    Gray. He was turning gray.
    Something was wrong!
    I shouted a curse and quickly plunk-plunked into the icy water, moving swiftly but carefully so I wouldn’t fall. My legs practically went instantly numb. I grabbed an arm. His body was rigid, muscles frozen. “Kent!” I locked my jaw and pulled as hard as I could. He was dead weight. A ton. My boots slid on the rocks and in the mud, making it that much harder to get him out. I couldn’t feel my feet. And my legs were getting heavier by the minute. The water’s current tugged at me, pulling Kent away from me, downstream.
    I clung to his arm, refusing to let go, stared at the shore and concentrated. One step. Two. Another. It felt like it took forever. Each stumbling, clumsy step. Each inch of progress. But slowly, a fraction of an inch at a time, I dragged him to the shore and out of the water. Then I collapsed beside him, sucking in huge gulps of air.
    “Ohmygod,” I huffed. “Are you breathing? Please tell you’re breathing.” I shivered violently as the crisp air hit my soaked clothes, making them feel like ice.
    “I’m breathing.” He reached for me, fingers curling around my hand. “Thanks to you.”
    “What happened?” I asked.
    “Shock, I think. The cold water. Wasn’t expecting that.” He shivered. “Didn’t think the water would be so cold this time of year.”
    I eyed the