Slow Burn (The Blake Boys Book 7) by Rhonda Laurel Read Free Book Online Page B

begun.” He wiped the water from his face. “Can I get a towel?”
    “Depends on how you answer the following questions.”
    “What questions?” Tyler furrowed his eyebrows.
    “Let’s see what we have here.” Michelle turned on the phone. Tyler’s screen saver was a picture of Jake, Connor and Colby. It was adorable, but she couldn’t let that weaken her resolve. The notification alert popped up. He’d received a few calls, probably from one of his tartlets. She opened the contacts app. Tyler took a deep breath as she scrolled his contacts.
    “Let’s see…Gyrating Ginger. She sounds fun.”
    “What are you doing with my phone?” She glared at him then went back to perusing his phone.
    “You said you had a question.” His jaw ticked.
    “Questions, plural. Question one. Why are you such an immature jerk? And for every answer I don’t like, I’m going to delete a titillating contact like Gyrating Ginger.”
    “Give me an example of being immature?” He ran his hand through his hair.
    “How about leaving me in Texas to go to Philadelphia and threaten Finn?”
    “I didn’t threaten Finn. I just asked how he was going to do yoga with broken legs.”
    “Wrong answer. Delete.” Michelle pressed the button like it was a launch button to a nuclear bomb.
     
     
     
    Tyler gulped when Michelle started scrolling through his cell phone. Luckily he’d deleted all the nude pics he had on there some time ago when he realized how tech savvy Jake was with a smart phone. He hadn’t talked to Ginger in months, so that was no big deal.
    “Hold it. I have a question for you,” Tyler interrupted. “Word on the street is that Derek Popovich has been sniffing around you.”
    “We’re not talking about me, and please don’t say things like ‘word on the street’ again. It’s unsettling. Yes, Derek has been dropping by the bookstore a lot but he’s a history buff.”
    He huffed. “You expect me to believe that hockey player can read?”
    “Yes, I saw him reading the Stanley Cup last year. I think his name was engraved on it.” She stuck her tongue out at him. “What’s the matter? You jealous?”
    “There’s nothing to be jealous about,” he retorted. “He twirls around on skates while pushing a puck with a stick for a living and he still has his own teeth. Clearly he’s not dedicated to the sport.”
    “And if racing around a track in a car with a big ol’ turbo engine isn’t the biggest example of phallicism, I don’t know what is,” she yelled.
    “Don’t tell me you actually like that guy?”
    “I generally like anyone who runs in my direction and not away from me. Call me crazy, but I find it an attractive quality.”
    “You’re just using him as a substitute for me.”
    “Daisy Dukes Dena. Delete.” She hit the button and kept scrolling. “You really do know some classy women. How come I don’t have a nick name?”
    “What?”
    “Every woman in here that isn’t a relative has a nick name but me. All you have here is ‘My Michelle.’”
    “Jake and I got into a little dust up over your picture, so I put it up there so he could see it.”
    Michelle threw another log on the fire and went back to perusing the phone. “So you are willing to fight with yoga instructors, hockey players, and a four-year-old over the right to exclusively ignore me?”
    Now would have been a good time to lay his cards on the table. He knew what she wanted, but for some reason, he just couldn’t bring himself to give it to her.
    He shrugged. “Pretty much.”
    Michelle looked at him as if he’d just killed her puppy. She went through his phone again and pressed button after button. When she was done, she stood up, handed him the phone, and left the room. His contact list was completely blank.
     

Chapter Four
     
     
    Most of the day was spent staying away from each other, mainly because Michelle was contemplating her next move. Even though Tyler was in the doghouse, she gave him a reprieve the next