My Charming Stepbrother by Grace Valentine Read Free Book Online

ingredients.
    "I seem to remember that you like your eggs over easy and that you like your bacon burned."
    Daisy was impressed. "Wow. I did not know that you would remember something like that."
    Peeking at her out of the corner of his eye, he then turned back to tend to the food on now cooking on the stove.
    "I remember the important things."
    Daisy smiled as she watched Brian cooking. The food smelled good and it was nice to have a little company this morning.
    "So how long are you here in town, Brian?"
    "Not too long. I just wanted to come home and refresh my mind, you know? It's hard being on the road. I find when I come home that I can get back to work with my head on straight."
    Daisy nodded, but she did not truly understand his predicament. She had not left home to go after an illustrious career. She owned her own company and worked from home, so she found a convenience in that and a comfort. Brian, on the other hand, traveled all over and spent more time on the road living out of a suitcase and hotels than he did with his own family.
    "So we have to be happy with the little bit of time that you spare for us?"
    He sighed, plating the food and serving them both. Daisy was immediately sorry that she had let the cheeky comment slip from between her lips.
    "I guess you don't really understand what my life is like and maybe you don't care to understand, Daisy. But it's my life and I love what I do. I would not trade it for anything in the world."
    Moving the bacon around on her plate, she wished she had not made the comment. It caused the tension that was falling over them and she did not like the way that it felt.
    "I would not expect you to. Who would want to trade in a life of luxury and travel?"
    Brian shook his head, a look of frustration washing over him. "So obviously you have not changed much in the past few years."
    "What is that supposed to mean?"
    Brian sat his fork down on his plate with a clink. "It means that I come back and you are still the same. Pessimistic, always thinking about what did not happen instead of seeing what did happen."
    Daisy picked up her plate and ran off to the kitchen. "That is ridiculous, Brian. What are you talking about?"
    Her back was facing him as she rinsed her plate in the sink. She could feel Brian's presence behind her. He slid his dish in the soapy water of the sink. Daisy said nothing else as she washed his dish as well and then turned off the warm water.
    "Do you remember when our parents first met? I hated the fact that my mom was going to start dating. And I especially hated the fact that your dad looked like a 1980s playboy with that overly gelled hair and those white suits he used to wear."
    "Hey! I thought my dad looked really good back then. Kind of suave and dapper. And obviously Tracey liked it," Daisy replied, speaking of Brian's mother.
    "She had to be out of her mind. Anyway, I remember when you and I first were introduced. You were this scrawny little girl with all of this blonde hair. You looked like a doll."
    She remembered the day so very clearly. Her father, Jack been down in the dumps and constantly depressed over his breakup and divorce with Daisy's mother. All of a sudden, he was upbeat and happy, completely over the moon. At ten years old, Daisy had no clue that her father had fallen in love.
    Jack had met Tracey at a local diner. They both happened to be there on business meetings and caught each other's eye from across the room. The way that the two of them described it was 'instant attraction'. Tracey was a beautiful woman. She was tall and slender like a model and extremely poised. It was the thing that Daisy loved about her.
    "Yeah, I remember that your mom and my dad sat us down and they were so happy to tell us that they were getting married. I thought that they were out of their minds. I could not believe that they were ready to run off and marry each other. My head was spinning. I was not sure what was happening."
    Brian laughed at the memory. "I