Hunted by Heather Atkinson Read Free Book Online Page B

prepared to pull out the ace up his sleeve. “Your dad told me something very interesting. He said your mum walked out on him because she wants a cleaner and he refused to ask me to pay for one.”
    Joyce sighed and finally looked him in the eye. “So? Why shouldn’t I have some comfort in my old age?”
    “You’re fifty eight and you haven’t worked since Amber was a little girl.”
    “Mikey,” scowled Amber. “Stop being rude.”
    “She’s the one who’s being rude. I pay for everything for her and her husband and she’s just wasted another big chunk of my money on crap. Now she expects me to pay for someone else to do the one job she has in life. It’s a piss take is what it is and I’m not putting up with it. You can get out and go back to Ken right now.”
    “Mikey I will not have you speaking to Mum like that,” yelled Amber, stamping her little foot.
    “She’s taking the mickey out of me babe, don’t you get it?”
    “All I get is that you are being very rude. Mum’s run round after Dad for years with his pretend sore back. She deserves a break and why should she carry on being taken for granted?”
    “She has a bloody good life and that’s thanks to me but do I get any gratitude? No. All I get is my bank account attacked.”
    Amber’s pale cheeks turned bright pink and her eyes flashed. He thought she looked adorable and wanted to take her in his arms but instead she turned from him and snatched up the shopping bags. “Come on Mum, let’s look at this lot upstairs. I can’t stand to be around him when he’s in a mood.”
    “What have I done wrong?” he exclaimed, thrown by this turn of events.
    “You are a very vulgar man Mikey Maguire. I didn’t know that when I married you,” Amber yelled over her shoulder as she headed out of the room clutching all her shopping bags.
    Vulgar? Since when did Amber use words like vulgar? It was snobby and stuck-up, just like her mum. The muscle at the base of Mikey’s jaw throbbed as Joyce gave him a sly smile before following her daughter out. The bitch had been dripping poison in Amber’s ear about him.
    He grunted when his mobile phone rang. “What?” he barked into it.
    “It’s Jez. What’s up with you?”
    “Joyce,” he growled.
    “Not that daft old cow. I’ve got something that will cheer you up. We’re on for tonight.”
    “You called our friend?”
    “I did and we’re ready.”
    Mikey smiled with pleasure. He was just in the mood to indulge in a bit of violence.
     
    Rachel winced as the door slammed shut so loudly it reverberated through the house. She’d just informed Leah that they wouldn’t be moving just yet. After screaming about how unfair it was she’d stomped upstairs to her room.
    “What was that? Sounded like a gunshot,” said Ryan, leaning against the doorframe leading from the kitchen to the living room of their rented house, which was nice but it wasn’t home. “Did Leah not take the news about the house very well?”
    “That is an understatement, but she took it better than you.”
    “Amusing,” he said, striding towards her.
    Rachel shifted from one foot to the other, squirming with excitement. He had that look in his eye again, the one that said he was capable of taking her there and then, no matter where they were or who was about. It was the look that never failed to send her blood pressure soaring with excitement and make her panties wet.
    He pulled her into his arms then pushed her up against the wall. “Shall I speak to her?”
    “Yes but let her calm down first.”
    He straightened up when Ethan and Aaron raced into the room, both boys pretending to be airplanes. “At least someone’s not upset about it,” he smiled as he watched their sons play.
    “Oh to be young again,” said Rachel wistfully. “You took your time. Did Ashley tell you anything?”
    He pulled her into the hallway, out of earshot of the boys. “No. He’s not taking it seriously, so I went to see Battler. He and Bruiser