Total pages in book: 21
Estimated words: 20174 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 101(@200wpm)___ 81(@250wpm)___ 67(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 20174 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 101(@200wpm)___ 81(@250wpm)___ 67(@300wpm)
What needs to happen now is I rethink my strategy. Now that I know he wants me, all I have to do is convince him that it’s okay.
And I’ve never been a girl who backs down from a challenge.
You will take me, Jake. Step-brother or not, I will be yours. And you will be mine.
5
JAKE
I’m spiraling.
Night after night I have to sleep down the hall from Piper, my step-sister that I can’t stop thinking about.
It’s torture. Absolute torture. I don’t know how I haven’t rushed in there and ripped her clothes off yet. I guess I still have some self-control left.
As much as my dad can be a prick, I want this family to work. And I’ve already screwed it up by going to jail. The last thing I want to do is cause a scandal that will send things crashing down.
So for the last few days, I’ve kept my head down, gone to work, and done everything I can do to avoid her.
I’ve been staying out late at bars, going out with Gus and his buddies, most of whom I don’t really like but at least they provide a distraction so I can keep myself from obsessing over her.
But it’s not enough.
Every day that passes, I feel myself slipping, deeper and deeper into infatuation. And playing darts at the bar isn’t going to solve the problem.
“Hey, it’s your throw,” Chuck says. He’s one of Gus’s friends and is probably the best player in the group. For some reason, he’s decided to start a rivalry with me because I’m also good.
“Sorry,” I reply, realizing I have been zoned out. I grab my darts, take aim, and throw. Three bullseyes.
“Christ!” Chuck curses, pounding the table. “Where’d this guy come from? You a professional?”
Everybody laughs as I retrieve my darts.
The bell at the door chimes. I glance behind me, and what I see causes all the breath to leave my lungs.
Piper, dressed to the nines, strides in, that friend of hers beside her. Then, behind them, enter two guys. One I’m pretty sure is her friend’s boyfriend, but the other I don’t recognize.
And he’s standing way too close to Piper.
“What the hell?” I growl without even realizing it.
Chuck turns. “What is it?” His eyes land on the girls, and I watch as he gives Piper the once-over, checking her out like a wolf eyeing a sheep. “Damn, where’d that piece of ass come from—?”
My hands grab his collar, and I slam him up against the wall. His eyes nearly burst from his skull. “Watch it, you bastard, you hear? That’s my step-sister!”
“Whoa, Jake, take it easy,” Gus says, coming over. “We’re all friends here.”
It’s like I’m possessed—like a fever has come over me. I take a deep breath, hoping the rage will subside. But it doesn’t. I’m still burning with jealousy, and looking back, I see Piper eyeing me as she takes a seat with her new date.
Yeah, no. This isn’t happening. Not on my watch.
I try not to look like a total maniac as I stride across the bar toward her, but I’m raging inside. My blood is pumping with the force of a nuclear reactor.
Her eyes gleam as she watches me rush over, just a hint of a devilish smile on her gorgeous lips.
“Time to go home,” I say as I reach her group. The guy beside her, dressed like a yacht club member, gives me a look like I just told them I came from outer space.
“Who the fuck are you?” he asks, clearly already a few drinks deep.
I get right up in his face and hiss, “I’m the guy that you don’t want a problem with. Understand?”
He steps back and puts his hands up like I’ve got a gun on him. “Whoa, relax, brother. We’re chill.”
“We’re chill?” I snort. “Great.”
I turn to Piper, who seems to be enjoying every second of this, grab her by the wrist, and lead her away from the group.
Her friend, who I think is named Emily, calls after us, “Where are you going?”
“It’s okay!” she shouts back. “He’s my step-brother!”
My heart is thumping against my ribs as we step out into the cool evening air. I sip it eagerly, trying to cool myself down.
“So this was your plan?” I ask, glaring at her. She’s wearing a tight black dress I’ve never seen before, looking like a million bucks. “To bring another date where you knew I would be? To make me jealous?”
She nods simply. “You nailed it.”
I shake my head and move back, putting a few feet between us.
Her scent has already soaked my lungs, and simply touching her has blood rushing to my cock.
I turn back and see she’s giggling. She actually giggling.
“Oh, so this is funny to you?” I growl, leaning close. “Watching me try to keep my hands off you is funny?”