Free Step Brother by Jayna King Page B

want?”
    “God, it’s like a sickness with him. He craves the attention, and he doesn’t care whether the other members of his family want the limelight or not. It’s what he lives for.”
    I laughed, and I could hear the bitterness in my voice. “Well, he’s met his soul mate, then. Mom is the original attention whore.” I stopped the car to give my name to the guard and pulled away slowly. “So you really resented all of the publicity you had to deal with when you were younger?”
    “You have no idea what it was like, Reed. I wanted nothing more than to be able to finish high school here with all my friends, but it just got to be too much. I couldn’t leave the house without reporters following me. It was horrible.”
    “Sounds like it.”
    “The only good thing was that I really enjoyed living with my mom. She moved to Texas when I was fourteen, after the divorce, and I chose to stay here to be with my friends. I think I was mad at her for leaving my dad, but when I got a little older, I realized why she did. He’s not an easy man to live with.”
    Something about the way she said it worried me. “Did he ever hit your mom?” I asked, hoping she’d be honest with me. I wasn’t exactly close to my mother, but there was no way I’d let a man lay a hand on her. Not again.
    “Oh God, no. He’d never do that, if only because he wouldn’t want it reported in the news.”
    I looked over at her, questioning whether I believed what she was telling me. “You’re sure.”
    “Absolutely. He may be vain and a little shallow, but he’s never been a violent man. He would never physically hurt your mother. I’m sure of it.”
    As I pulled in front of the house, I felt the weight of Tatum’s hand on my leg, and I forced myself not to touch her. I was afraid if I started, I’d never be able to stop. She was just extraordinary—I wanted her, alone, just the two of us, with days and days to explore one another. I knew that a few minutes alone with her in the car was never going to satisfy me. I wanted so much more.
    I stopped the car. “Hang on. I’ll get your door. Don’t damage my masterpiece.” I opened the door for her and took the pie while she unfolded herself from the car. “Tatum, have drinks with me after dinner. I have a situation I’d like your opinion on.”
    “Is it a legal problem?” she asked, her tone more professional that I liked.
    “Sort of. Is it a date?” I wanted to pin her down before we walked into the weirdness of a family Thanksgiving dinner.
    “I don’t think you’re supposed to call it a date. I’m your sister, after all,” she said with a giggle that somehow made her even more irresistible.
    I handed her the pie and leaned toward her to press a chaste kiss on her cheek. “Stepsister,” I whispered in her ear, and I could feel the shiver that went through her body.

7 -- Tatum
    My heart was still racing from being so close to Reed when my dad opened the door.
    “Happy Thanksgiving,” he said, shaking Reed’s hand and moving to give me a hug. He saw the pie and decided to kiss me on the cheek instead. “We’re so glad you’re here.”
    Tina was in the foyer, looking like she was posed for a magazine photograph. Her shiny red hair looked like polished copper, and the emerald green wrap dress she wore was very flattering. “What a lovely pie, Tatum,” she said, taking it from me. “Let’s go take it into the dining room.
    I followed her. “I had a little help from your son. I was … um … struggling with the topping, and he was good enough to lend a hand.”
    “He’s a multitalented young man,” she said over her shoulder, and I couldn’t help but agree.
    “Wow,” I said, walking into the dining room. It looked like Martha Stewart had puked up pumpkin prints all over the enormous room.
    “I did the decorating myself. Your father thought it might be too much, but I just love the holidays. Having you and Reed here for Thanksgiving just means the world to