Kissing Trouble Read Online Free Page B

seemed too preoccupied with keeping upright to properly look her in the face. There were also tears in his eyes. But even then, she wasn’t sure if he would recognize her. The last time they had been in the same room, she had been fifteen, a mousy thing with a mouth full of metal. And while he had never been cruel, at least never to her, he hadn’t stood up for her either that night.
    As the barbs embedded around her heart burrowed just a little deeper, Julie gritted her teeth against the memory. She reminded herself that was years ago and she had moved on. Mason Brody couldn’t hurt her anymore, and yet, just the sight of him hurt.
    Oblivious to the turmoil he was causing her, Mason reached down and adjusted the bulge between his legs. His face twisted in a grimace of pain that almost made her feel bad. Almost.
    “It’s after two in the morning,” she said, fighting to keep her voice even as she broke the silence. “What are you doing here and why are you creeping around?”
    He huffed indigently. “Did it really sound like we were creeping anywhere? I think we were making enough noise to wake half the town.”
    He was still not looking at her. He seemed focused on unsnapping the fastens of his jeans and drawing away the cotton material of his boxers to peer down at his crotch.
    “Why are you here?” she demanded, hating the way her body was tilting itself forward just a notch to also get a glimpse.
    “My dad owns half of this place!” he snapped back. “So if anyone should be asking questions, I think it should be me.” He elevated his weight from one leg to the other again. Then gave his left leg a shake and winced. “Jesus Christ you lunatic! Didn’t anyone ever tell you, you never hit a guy there? I’d like to have kids one day.”
    Julie narrowed her eyes. “You attacked me. I was defending myself and my charges from a pack of criminals for all I knew.”
    He visibly bristle at the implication of being a criminal. His hands fumbled as he fought refastened his pants.
    “Well, you know what, lady—”
    “Okay, wait!” The guy who had caught the length of her bat in the stomach leaped forward, hands up. “Let’s all calm down.” He turned to Julie. “There’s clearly been some kind of misunderstanding here. Why don’t we move this into the kitchen and discuss it like adults?”
    While he asked the question openly, his gaze was on Mason, who was still having trouble doing up his pants without rubbing the stiff material against his private parts. 
    “Fine,” Julie said.
    Seemingly satisfied that there wouldn’t be any bloodshed, the guy forcibly dragged his friends into the kitchen.
    Julie waited until they were a good, safe distance before darting to where the bat had fallen and hefting it up. After casting a glance up the stairs to make sure the children weren’t hovering somewhere along the top landing, she stepped cautiously into the next room.
    The trio was huddled around the island, heads bent close as they whispered rapidly. They looked up when she edged into view, and if looks could kill, she would have been across the floor with her insides torn out. But as it were, she took the time to examine her opponents and was surprised when she recognized the third guy sneering at her from around a wade of crimson soaked tissue.
    Shaun Ryan, her least favorite of Mason’s group of childhood friends, stood trying to stifle the flow of blood from his nostrils. He, she realized, must have been the one to get the butt of her bat in the face. Oddly enough, she didn’t feel too bad about that. Her only regret was that she hadn’t hit him a few more times to make up for what a monumental asshole he was. It would have certainly served him right. Unfortunately, she had also let him live, which meant she would need to sleep with one eye open. Shaun was not the sort to forgive, or forget, and his temper was legendary, not to mention it wasn’t beneath him to strike a woman if the rumors were anything