Stepbrother Romance 2 - Consumed: A New Adult Alpha Billionaire Romance by Tawny Taylor Read Free Book Online Page A

Granted, the majority of it was silver.
    An hour in, and I was pretty sure I was out of luck. If I had to guess, I would estimate the average age of the guests at sixty years old. They were a chatty bunch and friendly enough. A few of them flirted with me a little, promising to introduce me to their sons and grandsons. I smiled at their compliments and laughed at their jokes and tried to have a decent time. As the hours passed and dinner was served, and there was still no sign of Kent, I relaxed. Maybe he was too busy to make the party? Maybe he had other plans?
    Could I be so lucky?
    Every now and then I tried giving Ransom a call, but she didn’t answer. It had been days since I’d left. I’d called at least once a day, but I’d heard no word back. Not one. I wanted to know what was going on. I needed to know she was okay, that John hadn’t been a dick and left her to fend for herself. I vowed that I would go to her place tomorrow, no matter what, to check on her. The silent treatment had gone on long enough.
    I just needed to make it through tonight. So far, that was looking pretty good.
    After dinner, everyone sat around the pool, drinking wine and beer and cocktails. I consumed my share of alcohol. It made the evening go by faster. That was, until he showed up.
    Then time stopped.
    Everything else seemed to fade away until the only people who existed were me and Kent. I was aware of nothing, nobody else.
    My eyes met his and a sense of dread wound through my body.
    Crap.
    He was here. And he saw me.
    Was his wife with him? Did I want to see her?
    Hell no.
    I decided now was a fine time to go inside and clean Mom’s kitchen.
    As I wound through the increasingly loud and boisterous group, I heard Dirk exclaim, “There he is. Glad you could make it, son.”
    A round of cheerful greetings followed.
    I wondered if I was the only one who wasn’t happy to see Kent. Probably. Unless he had tried to seduce any of the wives in attendance. They were all decades older than him, but who knew? It was definitely possible.
    The carriage house’s interior was blessedly quiet and Kent-free. I went straight to work, gathering the trash littering the puny kitchen. I had my back turned to the door when I heard his voice. But I didn’t need to see him to know it was Kent.
    “Are you hiding from me?” Kent taunted.
    Yes. “No, of course not.” I donned a fake smile before turning around. “Why would I hide from you?”
    “That’s exactly what I’d like to know.” He moved closer.
    I didn’t want him doing that. I didn’t want him looking so damn good either.
    Well, would you look at that, the towel had been knocked off the towel bar in the bathroom. That needed to be fixed. Immediately. I scurried away to remedy the extremely urgent problem.
    Unfortunately, that was a mistake. A big mistake.
    He followed. And now he had me trapped. His big body, with all those muscles, was now standing in the middle of my one and only escape route. “Shayne. Let’s talk.”
    “There’s nothing to talk about,” I said to his chest. I didn’t want to look in his eyes because if I did, I knew I would melt. I didn’t need to melt. I needed to stay strong, to stay angry.
    He grabbed my chin and lifted it. “Shayne.”
    Dammit. My eyes met his. I became frozen in place, his piercing gaze drilling through my defenses. “I have never fucking worked so hard for anyone…and failed so miserably.” He grabbed my arm with his free hand and roughly steered me out of the bathroom.
    Dazed by his abrupt behavior, I stumbled and fell onto the couch, legs and arms sprawled. Then, in a blink, the shock wore off and the rage blazed through me. “Fuck you!” I shouted. “Don’t ever touch me again.”
    “Now that’s better. At least we’re being honest now.” Standing over me, looking satisfied, if not downright pleased, he crossed his arms over his chest. “We are not leaving this room until we talk about what’s going on.