Beautifully Decadent (Beautifully Damaged Book 3) Read Online Free

four-year-old?”
    “Bested, no, that’s too strong a word.” But I totally had been, had my ass handed to me by a toddler.
    Jessica breezed into the kitchen and scooped up her son. “Let’s get you all cleaned up while Auntie Avery cleans my kitchen.”
    “Gween the kiwin, gween the kiwin” Aidan started chanting as Jessica gave me the stink eye.
    “And there better be cake with all this batter everywhere.”
    I heard her laughing, Aidan too, as they disappeared up the stairs. They were probably even now talking about my lack of prowess on the battlefield.
    The cake had just gone in the oven when I heard the sound of the garage door opening a few minutes before Kit walked into the kitchen. Jessica and Kit were high school sweethearts, married after college and as in love now as they had been then. His blond hair was cut short, his suit tailored around his muscular frame and he always had a smile on his face. I supposed when you were living your dream, you smiled…a lot. As branch manager for one of the larger banks in our town, Kit was known around town, trusted and liked. He was a good guy, like the brother I always wanted.
    He flashed me his smile as he dropped his keys in the tray on the counter. “Smells good.” Reaching my side, he kissed my cheek. “Where’s Jess?”
    “She’s giving Aidan a bath. He and I sort of had a battle.”
    Kit’s eyebrow rose, as he leaned against the counter and crossed his arms over his chest. “Battle?”
    “With batter.”
    “Who won?”
    Blowing a rogue lock of hair from my face, I tried to ignore the question and Kit caught on immediately. “Bested by a four-year-old. Oh, Avery.”
    Bested , Kit and Jess even sounded alike. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
    “I can understand why.”
    He wasn’t even trying to control his laughter. It was instinct, lifting the whipped cream covered whisk. Kit moved, backing up from me, his hands up. If he was going for fear, his uncontrollable laughter kind of ruined the effect.
    Kit was saved from getting his hair streaked with whipped cream when Jessica and Aidan returned. I’d seen it before, countless times, and every time I got that ache in the center of my chest. Kit’s face softened, his eyes just soaking up his family. I envied them. I never had someone who made me feel that. I’d had dates, had lovers, but I never had what Jessica and Kit had.
    Kit walked to Jessica and kissed her, long enough that I looked down at my shoes. He took Aidan, who squealed with laughter.
    “Hey buddy.”
    “Dadwe.”
    “I’m going to get changed. I’ll take little man with me.”
    “Okay. Want a drink?”
    “Yeah, a beer. Thanks, babe. I’ll be down in a few.”
    I watched Jessica as she watched Kit and Aidan. “You’ve got an awesome family, Jess.”
    “I really do.” She turned to me. “Let’s get dinner on.”

    After dinner, Aidan had a small slice of cake before Kit and Jessica put him to bed. I cleaned up the dinner dishes, put the coffee on and was serving the cake when they returned arm in arm, whispering like schoolgirls. Kit’s attention shifted to me, well the cake I was cutting.
    “That looks fantastic.”
    He pulled Jessica’s chair out before he settled next to her.
    “Chocolate raspberry cake with a whipped chocolate icing. It is good, if I do say so myself. Hey, I’m sorry about earlier, the kitchen, but Aidan did start it.”
    Two sets of eyes turned to me, both thinking exactly the same thing, a sentiment Jessica spoke out loud. “You’re blaming a four-year-old.”
    “Yeah. A freaking military genius four-year-old, who distracted me with assault number one so he could nail me with assault number two.”
    “You’re silly.” Jessica said.
    Followed quickly with Kit’s reply, “That’s my boy.”
    “The cake isn’t the only overly sweet thing at this table.” I muttered.
    “Jealous?”
    “You know very well that I am jealous of the two of you, Jessica.”
    Kit forked up nearly half of the