The Thing About Trouble Page 21
“Is this it?” Tawny asked eagerly, yanking on her seatbelt.
Cam looked at Blue. She still had that glow from their early morning loving, and he moved close to give her a kiss.
“You guys kiss all the time,” Tawny piped up. “Even when you think I can’t see you.”
Cam chuckled and opened his door. “Come on sweets. Let’s look at the spot we’re going to build our new home.”
He scooped her up into his arms and the three of them, with Rufus trailing behind, made their way up the path and past the crumbling cottage to their right. Cam pointed up the hill. “We’ll build for Melody there.” He turned and they looked at the wreck of a building behind them. “We’ll tear this down and our new home will look out over this.”
Blue slid close to him, her gaze following Cam’s which was settled on the lake.
“It’s beautiful.”
He waited a few moments. “Are you sure you’re good with this? We can’t do something as big as what you’ve got now. And there won’t be a pool. The boathouse will be a lot smaller.”
She smiled and his insides melted. “You could build me a shack and I wouldn’t care. As long as we’re together.” She tweaked Tawny’s cheek and the little girl’s laughter was like music on the wind.
Her brother Cash was going to stay on at her place. Said he was fine living in the apartment above the garage for now, until Blue decided what to do with it. Turned out her brother was okay. Cam still wasn’t sure exactly what he’d used or how he’d threatened Edward Barnes. All he knew was that the man had backed off and neither he, nor Blue, had heard a peep from him since they’d come back from Nashville.
“Can I go see Rufus?” Tawny squirmed in his arms and he let her down. The dog had run to the edge of the lake.
“Don’t go near the ice, okay?”
She nodded and took off, leaving him and Blue to contemplate their future. She turned in his embrace and rested her head on his chest. “Thank you,” she said quietly.
“For what?”
“For saving me.” She offered up her mouth and he took it, greedy for contact. For taste and feel. He kissed Blue until her knees wobbled.
“We better stop this.” Cam broke their kiss and yelled for Tawny to come back. The young girl and Rufus started running at his voice.
“This will be your first Booker Thanksgiving.”
“It will,” she murmured.
“Your brother still coming?”
“He said he was.”
“Are we going to tell them our news?” Cam smiled wickedly, nibbling along her ear, causing her to shriek.
“Cam. You said we should wait.”
“I don’t think I can. I’ve never been good at keeping secrets.”
“What secret?” Tawny gazed up at the two of them, her purple knitted hat askew, hazel eyes bright with health, happiness, and curiosity. “Do you have a secret?”
Cam knelt down in front of her.
“Remember when I said we were going to be a family?” He and Blue had started adoption proceedings the moment they returned from Nashville.
She nodded.
“Well, our family is going to be a little bit bigger.” Tawny waited patiently. “You’re going to be a big sister.”
Her eyes widened comically. “I am?”
Blue gave her a hug. “You are.”
“And it’s our secret?” Tawny asked.
“I think we should keep it for a little while longer.” Blue looked up at Cam and he saw how anxious she was. They hadn’t planned the pregnancy and she was still very early on, but hell, he wanted to shout it from the rooftops. Write it in the snow. Take out an ad in the local paper.
“Okay,” he replied. “Let’s keep this between us for now.”
They headed back the way they’d come and twenty minutes later pulled in behind his brother’s vehicle. Thanksgiving breakfast at his parents was the tradition and this year was no different. His dad was deep into his treatments, but for the moment taking them well. No one could look ahead and see his outcome, but for now things were good.
There was a lot to be thankful for.
Tawny ran ahead, Rufus once again on her heels, and yanked open the front door. Cam and Blue were nearly there when they heard the little girl shout.
“Guess what? I have a secret but don’t ask me what it is because I can’t tell you that I’m going to be a sister!”
A loud crash could be heard. A dog barking. And then some swearing.
Harry Booker appeared in the doorway, a smile on his face. He looked down at Blue and winked.
“Welcome to the family.”
Afterword
I hope you all enjoyed Cam and Blue’s story! There’s something about Crystal Lake I adore and rest assured I will be writing more books that take place there! For up to date information please visit my website and sign up for my newsletter!
www.julianastone.com
As for what’s next. Something a little different. A little hotter with a lot more edge! MISTER DICK is a book I had a blast writing! Page through to read the entire first chapter! You can also pre-order this book, which is coming January 2019, followed by another Crystal Lake book in the Spring!
As always, much love to my readers. I couldn’t do the job I love without you!
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Juliana
Mister Dick Excerpt
Chapter one
Echo
The fact that I’d spoiled New Year’s Eve didn’t surprise anyone. The fact that every second of it was documented by a rabid pack of paparazzi didn’t surprise me. They’d been on my ass the moment I left my hotel. And when I screwed up. When I did something so awful that I wanted to puke, they were there. In my face. Camera’s flashing. They didn’t care. The more upset I was the better. Even when my heart was bleeding pain faster than a drunk sucking back a bottle of JD. Even then.
Welcome to my life.
The paps swarm, they push, they punch either other, looking for that one photo to make their payload. And I’d given it to them. Of course I did. Echo Mansfield never fails to deliver. But this time I didn’t stick around for the fireworks. This time I’d cut and run, because even for me, the night had gone way off the rails. Which is why I found myself in the middle of a snow storm, out in the Catskills, trying to force open a door to my dad’s cabin that was frozen stuck.
It was four in the morning. I had one bag of clothes with me and hell if I knew it was enough. I’d packed so fast that I was pretty sure it wasn’t. And now this stupid door. I swore and looked over my shoulder. I would have called the car service to come back and get me but my cell was dead, which meant I was pretty much screwed, and since I’d slipped past my security to get here I didn’t have them to bail me out of another one of my bad choices.
“Jesus, you’ve done it this time,” I muttered, teetering on silver four inch heels that were totally inappropriate for winter. To be honest they were totally inappropriate for just about everything except prowling the clubs looking for a hookup. Or maybe swinging from a stripper’s pole.
I hadn’t bothered to change and wished I had. I still wore a small leather jacket, a barely there black top, and a skirt that just covered my ass. When I say barely there, I mean the top was sparkly and cropped and showed a generous amount of under boob. As for the skirt? At least I was wearing underwear.
“Shit.” I looked around, shivering, tired, and miserable. Could this night get any worse?
The main house of the bed & breakfast was in darkness and most likely locked up tighter than Fort Knox. My dad owned the place, something he bought on a whim years ago when he’d come for a weekend with one of his girlfriends, and the cabin I stood in front of was his own private space. Not many people knew about it which is why it was my go-to when things got rough. I could hide out for a week or so until the shit storm I’d created died down, and then go home.
Home.
Tears spiked the corners of my eyes and I scrubbed at my face. I was angr
y (at myself) and upset (with the world). Would Harmony forgive me? I sniffled. It’s not as if I’d actually screwed my sister’s boyfriend. I was just looking for a distraction, something to take my mind off the fact that my boyfriend had screwed someone else. Her guy, Douchebag Drake was the answer.
If anything, I’d done Harmony a favor because Drake was totally down for some skin on skin. Hell, he’d almost got his wish to. I shuddered at the thought of his hands pawing up my skirt. His mouth on mine. If not for one very well placed knee to his junk the night would have turned out differently. We would have had sex. And not because I wanted it.
I rubbed my hand across my forehead. How did I always land in the middle of a crap covered landmine? Harmony had walked in on me and her asshole boyfriend and we’d gotten into the biggest catfight ever. I touched my cheek, still raw from Harmony’s claws, and winced. I’d be surprised if the pics hadn’t already hit TMZ or the Daily Mail.
A brisk wind ran along the porch and rattled my bones, bringing with it a wave of ice pellets. Great. Freezing rain. This is where I would die. Alone. The black sheep of the Mansfield family. A half-dressed frozen popsicle. A drunken dumbass who’d hurt her sister so badly, Harmony would probably never talk to me again.
Geez. I could tap my toe and hum a song to go along with the pity party I was having. This wasn’t me. This wasn’t me.
I kicked the door and swore a mean streak as pain radiated up my leg. “Fuck.” I shouted, slamming my fist against the damn thing. “Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.” Breathing hard, I rested my forehead against it. What the hell was I going to do? The other cabins were dark with no vehicles that I could see. I couldn’t remember if there were any more homes nearby. Maybe? A couple miles away? I tried not to cry as another shudder wracked my body. How in hell was I supposed to walk one hundred feet in this snow wearing the ridiculous shoes that had cost me a fortune?
“Fuck,” I yelled again.
“You got something against that door?”
My head whipped around so fast I got dizzy. A man stood on the porch of a cabin up the hill. It was about twenty feet away and I couldn’t see his features clearly, but certain things stood out.
Deep, husky voice. An accent I couldn’t quite place. Tall. Broad shoulders. Long muscular legs. His bare chest glistened from the muted lighting that spilled from inside his cabin, and his loose pants hung low on his hips.
Relief flooded me. I wouldn’t die. I would be saved and warm and the world was not so bad after all. “I…” My tongue was fuzzy and it took a bit to get the words out. “I can’t get in. The door’s stuck.”
“I don’t want to sound like an asshole but this is private property. Do you have the key?”
Okay. My Knight in shining armour wasn’t exactly chivalrous. “Of course I have the key. I’m not an idiot. I’ve got it unlocked. It’s frozen.” Annoyed I glared at him.
“Where’d you get it?”
“Where did I…” I took two steps forward and damn near landed on my ass when my heels hit a patch of ice. If I hadn’t been so busy trying not to fall I might have heard him swear like a trucker. I might have known then that he’d recognized me. “What does it matter where I got the key?”
“Answer the question sweetheart.” The way he said sweetheart was the exact opposite of how it should be said. It came across as an insult. It rang a bell and my heart took off like a rocket. This couldn’t be happening. No fucking way could this be happening.
He took a step forward and suddenly the shadows disappeared, revealing a face I hadn’t seen in years. Wait. Hold on. We’d had a moment three years ago but it didn’t count. Still, it was face I knew well. Intense eyes. High cheekbones. Chiselled chin. Sensual mouth. My eyes dropped to his impressive body. To the tattoos on his shoulder. To the one snaking across his lower abdomen. Like way low. To the thin line of hair that disappeared beneath his pants. Huh. Some things never changed. If anything, the man was more gorgeous than I remembered, and that kind of sucked.
Boyd Appleton.
My step-brother. No. That would be wrong. Our parents divorced about six months after they got hitched. He was my ex step-brother. He was also the guy who’d taken my virginity along with my heart when I was sixteen and I hated him more than anyone on the planet.
He glared at me from across the way. I guess he felt the same.
Yeah. Welcome to my life.
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You can pre order your copy of Mister Dick by paging through to the order links! Amazon aren’t included here and will be available closer to on sale date! Visit my website and sign up for my newsletter so you don’t miss any important releases!
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About the Author
USA Today bestselling author and 2015 RITA® winner JULIANA STONE fell in love with books in the fifth grade when her teacher introduced her to Tom Sawyer. A tomboy at heart, she splits her time between baseball, books, and music. She’s thrilled to be writing young adult as well as adult contemporary romance—books that have garnered starred reviews from Publishers Weekly & Booklist—from somewhere in the wilds of Canada.
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Juliana
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