Free The Great Bedroom War by Laurie Kellogg

shrugged, gesturing toward the kid’s hairy muscled chest. “He looks a lot older than sixteen.”
    Ryan took the hint and pulled on his T-shirt, hiding his well-developed physique.
    “The rules haven’t changed,” Nick told Dani. “You’re still not dating till you’re fifteen.”
    “Can’t I even be friends with guys for the next six months?”
    He glared at her shorts. “Not if you dress like that.”
    “It was eighty degrees in the shade when I got home. I can’t help it if none of my summer clothes fit anymore.”
    At least Sam hadn’t let her go to school in that get-up.
    A horn tooted, making Nick flinch. As Sam turned her blue Prius into the driveway, he glanced toward the street at his SUV, praying the dog had gone to sleep. “Wow.” He waved as she slid out of her car. “That was a short hour.”
    “When Casey heard you were here, she told me I could leave earl—” Her smile dropped as she evidently caught sight of Dani. “What on earth are you wearing?”
    “We were discussing that,” Nick told her. “It seems summer lasted longer than our daughter’s wardrobe. We need to find her some cooler things in a larger size.”
    “I stored some of my shorts that are too small now in the attic. They might fit her.” Sam glanced at Ryan leaning against his car, and her eyebrows knitted. Her obvious lack of recognition indicated she’d never met the boy, either.
    “Meet Ryan Flynn,” Nick told her, “Dani’s friend.”
    Sam’s back became as stiff as the giant maple tree shading the front yard. “We need to talk,” she muttered through her teeth, gesturing toward the porch.
    Nick followed her to the front steps.
    “That’s the kid Ms. Carlson told me about,” she whispered. “You have to get rid of him.”
    “No way.”
    “What do you mean, no way ? That boy cuts school nearly as often as he attends. Do you want him corrupting our daughter?”
    “Of course not. But if we forbid Dani to see him, she’ll sneak around behind our backs.” Nick glanced at his daughter and added, “Believe me, Sammy, I know. Because that’s exactly what I would’ve done in her place. And you keep saying she inherited my rebellious streak.”
    As far back as he could remember, his mother had insisted he was destined to be as worthless as the lowlife who’d taken advantage of her. Only the loving man she had the good sense to marry had believed in him. Unfortunately, his adoptive father, who’d been a welder, died from asbestos-related lung cancer when Nick was barely thirteen.
    After promising to take care of his mother and Justin, Nick had cut lawns, delivered newspapers, and shoveled snow to help pay the bills until he turned fourteen and was able to get a real job as a mechanic’s assistant. Still, his mother never showed a speck of faith in him, which made Nick, as a teenager, determined to prove she was right to believe he was no damn good. Of course, when he supposedly forced himself on his poor brother’s girlfriend—as his mother automatically assumed—and got Sam pregnant, Nick merely confirmed what his mother had always known.
    Her bastard son was just like his natural father.
    “So once again,” Sam said, jerking his focus back to her, “you’re unilaterally deciding what’s best for our daughter without giving me any say in the matter.”
    “No. You’re welcome to order Dani to steer clear of Ryan. But I refuse to ostracize that boy.” Odds were he didn’t have a dad, either—or at least not one who cared about him. Most likely Ryan was a decent kid at heart and simply needed a little guidance. “You forget—I know what it’s like to be an outcast.”
    Besides, with any luck, the boy’s presence would prevent Sam from screaming too loudly about the dog.
    “Then what do you suggest we do?”
    “You know the old expression, keep your friends close and your enemies even closer ? Well, I plan to stick to that boy like lint on an Armani suit. As my new best friend, he won’t