The Right Twin For Him (O'Rourke Family 2) Read Online Free Page B

so bad.
    After all the times Patrick had screwed up, it felt good to be the one helping out.
    Maddie’s rental was parked at the curb, which meant she was on foot. He spotted a flash of turquoise and scarlet down the street. She hadn’t been wearing her jacket and the temperature was dropping, so he checked the rental. Sure enough, it wasn’t locked. She’d probably tell him that nobody locked their carsin Slapshot and be surprised to hear she ought to do it here in Washington.
    Slapshot.
    Who ever heard of a town being called Slapshot? There was a story behind that name, which he’d undoubtedly hear if he spent enough time with Maddie. Deep down Patrick thought the way her tongue ran away with itself was charming. Most of the women he knew were trying so hard to be sophisticated you couldn’t tell what they were really thinking.
    Patrick pulled a jacket from the front seat. A faint scent of sage rose from the garment, mixed with a sweet fragrance that had to be Maddie’s own perfume. He draped the jacket over his arm and headed for her with a long stride.
    “Hey, Maddie,” he murmured when he’d gotten close enough. “We have to stop meeting like this.”
    She regarded him gravely, without the slightest suggestion of a smile at his weak joke. “Do you really think Beth is my sister?” she asked.
    “Maybe.” Actually, he thought it was likely, but since Maddie seemed ambivalent on the subject, he didn’t say so.
    “She seems nice.”
    “She is.”
    “And your brother is really in love with her.”
    It was the second time she’d said something about love, and Patrick felt as if a lightbulb had gone on over his head. That was the problem. Maddie’s heart had been broken. Now she’d met a possible sister who was happily married and newly pregnant. No wonder she didn’t want to stay with Kane and Beth.
    “Tell you what,” he murmured, abandoning his resolve not to have anything to do with Maddie’s obviouslytroubled love life. “If you show me the low-down louse that made you cry, I’ll beat him up.”
    “You…” Maddie stopped and actually smiled. “Would you do that?”
    “In a cold second.”
    Patrick meant it, too. His best defense was to think of Maddie like another sister, and he’d defend his sisters with the last breath in his body. All his brothers felt the same; guys learned not to mess with the O’Rourke women if they had any brains in their heads. Of course, their sisters didn’t seem to appreciate the effort and complained every chance they got about them being overprotective Neanderthals.
    “Here, it’s getting cold.” He dropped her jacket around her shoulders.
    “Thanks.” Maddie caught the lapels together.
    “Do you want to get some lunch?”
    She shook her head. “Thanks, but not today.”
    “Come on, Maddie,” he wheedled. “It’s been hours since breakfast, and I hate eating alone.”
    Maddie doubted it. Patrick O’Rourke seemed comfortable with himself, though he was hardly a lone-wolf sort of guy. He could probably have all the feminine companionship he wanted, so she ought to be flattered he wanted her companionship. But since she was through with men and romance, she wasn’t the least bit flattered.
    Well, maybe a little.
    And her ego was certainly bruised enough to crave some bolstering.
    Only, she couldn’t. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings or anything, but she wasn’t…all at once her heart fell to a new low, along with her bruised ego. Theinvitation didn’t have anything to do with her, just the fact she might be related to his sister-in-law.
    “Men,” she muttered.
    “Excuse me?” Patrick said, astonished.
    “You’re just being nice because I might be Beth’s sister.”
    “Is there anything wrong with that?”
    “Well…no, but…no. It’s just that things are a little mixed up right now, and I shouldn’t be here at all.” Maddie sniffed. She wanted to be strong and independent, but a strong and independent person would be home now,