Scarred: A New Adult Romance (The Anderson Brothers Series Book 1) by Marie Long Read Free Book Online

starts.
    Surprisingly,
Adrienne laughs. “No, thanks. I am a little hungry, though.” She leans up
against the back of the couch, her arms still crossed. “How does Chinese
sound?”
    Chris
manages to lift his eyes again. “Sounds great. So this is officially a date,
then?”
    “It’s
lunch.” Adrienne uncrosses her arms. “You’re not just some guy looking for a
one-night stand, are you?”
    “Yes—I
mean—no! Hell no ! Fuck it, let’s go
eat.” He takes Adrienne by the arm and leads her out the door.
    I
remain in my hiding place and listen to the muffled sounds of car doors
slamming and an engine starting. The sounds fade into silence, and I come out
from hiding.
    I
can’t believe that actually worked.

 
     
    Chapter 6
     
    Six thirty can’t come fast enough. I fiddle around
with the GPS maps on my phone to find the quickest route to Denise’s house. She
lives only ten minutes away, and not far from downtown, where the restaurant
is. I give myself one last check in the mirror and remember to grab a spare
helmet out of the closet on my way out. As I start up the engine, I suddenly
have a thought: what if she’s afraid of motorcycles? I guess if she refuses to
ride with me, we could just take her car. I’m willing to do whatever it
takes to spend time with her, but I hope she won’t be scared to ride.
    The
traffic in town isn’t bad for an early Saturday night. I reach Denise’s house
about fifteen minutes early. Her neighborhood is quiet and quaint, with picket
fences in front of almost every house. I park my bike along the curb, set my
jacket and helmet on the seat, and head up the walkway leading to her small,
white house. I ring the bell and stuff my hands in my pockets. Beyond the
screen door, an inner door opens.
    It’s
not Denise.
    The
woman steadily chews her gum while she stares at me with cold, calculating,
dark brown eyes. She looks older, maybe early-to-mid forties. She tilts her
dreadlocked head and looks down her nose at me. “Yes? Who’re you?” she asks in
a thick, Caribbean accent.
    I
clear my throat, trying not to let her stare faze me. “Hi, I’m Dominick. I’m
supposed to pick up Denise. Is she here?”
    Dreads
blows a small, pink bubble. “Denise, eh?” She raises an eyebrow, then cranes
her neck and looks beyond me. “So where’s your ride?”
    I
thumb over my shoulder. “There.”
    She
blinks. “You shittin’ me, right?”
    I
shake my head, but before I can answer aloud, footsteps approach and Denise
appears behind Dreads. She pushes past her and opens the screen door. Denise
wears a blue dress over black leggings. Her hair is cornrowed in the front,
with the back twisted out into a cascading ponytail of thick, curly hair. Her
smooth, caramel face doesn’t look made up, but her full lips glisten with some
kind of sparkly, peach-colored lip gloss. The only jewelry she wears is a pair
of small silver hoop earrings and a silver necklace with a charm in the shape
of a fleur de lis . My heart skips
several beats as I take her in. When she smiles at me, I practically melt.
    God,
she’s beautiful.
    “Hi,
Dominick,” Denise says to me as she steps outside. She’s wearing black flats, perfect
should we go on an after-dinner walk.
    Dreads
places a hand on Denise’s shoulder, stopping her. “Hey. You’re not actually
going out with this carless deadbeat, are you?”
    I
lift an eyebrow. Deadbeat?
    Denise
looks back at her. “I just met him, Lauren. He fixed my car, and we agreed on
dinner.”
    Dreads—Lauren—pops
her gum. “He fixes cars and doesn’t have one of his own? What’s wrong with that
picture, hmm?”
    I
frown. I have a driver’s license, but I didn’t want a car when I came to
college.
    “What
are you talking about?” Denise asks, looking back and forth between me and
Lauren.
    Lauren
points outside. “Look at what he intends to drive you around in … or should I
say on. ”
    Denise
follows Lauren’s direction and gasps. “A motorcycle? ”
She