Escape to Heaven (Heaven on Earth Book 1) by Reana Malori Read Free Book Online Page B

weren’t away for work, and I haven’t seen you in almost a week.”
    When a blush crept up his face, Adele was shocked. She’d never seen him blush, and now she was very curious about what exactly was going on.
    “I had to help a friend out of a situation. It was nothing. Why are you being so nosey anyway?” He tweaked her nose and walked away. Damn, she’d never seen him end a conversation so quickly. Now that was very interesting.
    She walked back into the living room and noticed Stefano standing near Tyler. They were chatting about sports, the one topic guaranteed to make them best friends, especially if it involved football. The chair near Daniel was open, so she made her way over there to pick on him for a bit.
    “Daniel, where was Noah last week?” Both Daniel and Noah served together in the Navy, and they had been friends prior to meeting the other three.
    “Why do you want to know?” He gave her a sideways glance, and she knew he had some information. This made things very interesting, and now she knew they were hiding something from her.
    “Come on, Daniel. No fair. I know he wasn’t away on a mission, because you were here all last week. If he was away doing something for work, you would have been with him.”
    “Adele, you’re being nosey. Leave Noah alone. He had something to take care of.”
    “Well, you’re no fun at all.” She turned to him with a gleam in her eye. Fine—if he wasn’t going to spill the beans on Noah, then she’d move on to her next favorite topic. “So, what have you been up to? Who are you dating now? When do I get to meet her?”
    “There’s no one, Adele. Why are you bothering me anyway? Why don’t you go talk to your new friend?”
    “Because he’s talking with Tyler. I don’t need to talk with him.” Cheeky, yes, but she loved needling the guys.
    “Fine, but quit asking me about women I’m dating. I’m not talking to you about them because none of them have qualified for ‘meet the family’ status. Drop it, pipsqueak.” She hated that fricking name, and he knew it.
    “Damn, all of you guys are so cranky today.” Adele stood up and kissed Daniel on the forehead, knowing how he hated when she did that.
    She walked over to Stefano and Tyler, determined to have a good time in spite of the guys. Something was going on with each of them, and she wanted to know what. They had been extremely distracted lately, and Noah and Daniel were acting as if they were hiding something from her. She didn’t like it one bit.
    Her thoughts now focused on what Noah and Daniel could be keeping from her, Adele decided to take a detour into the kitchen. A fresh margarita and that big bowl of chips sitting in the kitchen were calling her name. Plus, she didn’t really want to interfere with Tyler and Stefano’s conversation. Thinking about the day and all that had happened, she knew her explanation to the guys had been partially true. She had invited Stefano to the cookout because he was new to the area and thought it would be a good idea for him to meet some people. Of course, the other reason for the invitation was that he’d intrigued her, and she wanted to understand her strong reaction to him.
    It seemed that after five long years, she was finally attracted to a man who made her want more. Stefano wasn’t making any overt moves in front of the guys, but she noticed him looking at her with a hooded gaze at times. It wasn’t just a friendly, just-wondering-what-you-were-doing gaze either. No, he looked at her as if he wanted to devour her, one nibble at a time. His wicked half smile promised serious pleasure if she ever allowed him the chance. He walked with a confidence and swagger that screamed to the world that he was a bad motherfucker and would prove it to anyone who wanted to test him.
    When Tyler had discovered that Stefano was a former Recon Marine, they had formed an instant bond. Not that Tyler was letting him off easy, but at least one of her brothers wasn’t