Beautifully Shattered (The Beautifully Series Book 1) by Courtney Kristel Read Free Book Online Page B

honestly thinks I’m just going to bow down to him. Well,
why would he think any differently? All I’ve been doing for the
past six years is rolling over and going along with whatever is
demanded of me. Am I ready to put up a fight? Is right here, right
now, the time for me to say enough and do what I want? Yes. Because
if I’m locked in here with Jax, I won’t be held responsible for
what comes out of my mouth, or worse, my actions.
    I bite down on my lip
as I put weight on my sprained ankle. Wow, one night isn’t enough
time for it to heal. I don’t use the crutches, I’m making a point
here. When I reach the door, I turn to face him. He’s seething. His
jaw is so tight I wouldn’t be surprised if he snapped it.
    “You have two
options. Lie to Logan and say I’m here with you, or come with me.”
    He runs his hand
through his fohawk while he grinds his teeth. Okay, so I admit maybe
walking on my injured ankle wasn’t the best way to prove that I’m
ready to be taken seriously.
    “I can just keep you
here against your will,” he bluffs.
    I smirk at him while
opening the door. “You can, but you won’t. Besides, if you come
with me I’ll make your favorite.”
    When he sighs in
defeat, I know I won. “Carrot cake cupcakes?”
    “Even with brown
bunny ears as decoration.” I almost smile at the memory from when
we were younger.
    He sits up and slides
his feet into his black chucks. It’s only then that I realize that
he’s changed. Obviously he’s changed; his suit was dripping wet.
He’s in a red Flash T-shirt and black jeans. Him and his
superheroes. He’s always been fascinated by the comics, never
realizing that once upon a time he was my hero.
    He points at the
crutches as he meets me at the door. “You can either use those, or
I’ll be carrying you. Don’t you dare pull a stunt like that
again.”
    I mock salute him. “Yes
sir.”

    The bell chimes as Jax
holds open the bakery door for me. Sam glances up from the register
and frowns when he sees me. The bakery is almost empty. I knew it
would be. There’s one couple sitting at the red iron table to the
left of the door. After lunch, usually the only customers are the
ones putting in an order for a party. It’s my favorite time to
bake.
    “I was told you were
on bed rest,” Sam says in the fatherly tone he’s mastered from
being a dad for two months.
    I nod in Jax’s
direction. “Is it okay if my shadow is back there with me?”
    Once he finishes up
with the last customer, Sam turns his attention back on me. His frown
deepens. “Adalynn, as much as I need your help today, I can’t
have you working like that. Besides, Clark is going to kill me if he
finds out.”
    I give Sam my best
puppy dog eyes. It’s the same face I gave him two years ago when I
applied for the job he wasn’t offering. To this day, I believe my
winning personality and my superb baking skills are the only reason
he took a chance on someone without references or cooking experience.
Apparently, baking for your family doesn’t cut it in the baking
world. Who knew?
    He watches me lead Jax
behind the counter to the back room. I’m thankful that Jax has
chosen for the first time in his life to stay quiet. I search the
room for the white apron with my name on it. Sam appears with my
missing apron.
    “Clark washed it.”
He grins whenever he mentions his adorable better half. The twins
they adopted earlier this year are so lucky to have such caring
parents.
    I accept it and tie it
into place around my waist. “Does this mean I’m working?”
    He peers at Jax. “Does
this mean you’re going to make sure she doesn’t break anything
else?”
    “I won’t take my
eyes off her.”
    It seems like Sam
mutters, “I bet,” under his breath but I’m not sure. “Create
something new,” he tells me.
    I can’t help but beam
at him. This is my favorite part about working here, creating
something new, something different, that will make your taste buds
come to life. The