Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 104869 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 524(@200wpm)___ 419(@250wpm)___ 350(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104869 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 524(@200wpm)___ 419(@250wpm)___ 350(@300wpm)
What had she missed?
“Now see here, young—” Her father began in his most intimidating voice.
He was interrupted by Niall’s quiet voice.
“Dad, leave her be. I won’t let you intimidate her.” The dark warning in his voice was unmistakable.
Kenny’s eyes widened. Her brother had never taken that tone with their father before.
“I’m not trying to intimidate the lass,” her father said, sounding chastened. “Just educating her as to how this family works.”
“Maybe this family doesn’t work as well as you think it does,” Fern said, and Kenny’s jaw dropped. Beth often challenged the old man, but this was wholly unexpected from the sweet, timid-seeming Fern. “I may be the new addition and I may not know much about anything, but it’s pretty clear to me that Cade has some hang-ups about this name business. No matter how much he might deny it. Our marriage may be a sham—” Kenny’s mind drifted to the doubts she was starting to have about the other couple’s belief that their marriage would be temporary. In fact, theirs would probably last a hell of a lot longer than Kenny’s. She tuned back into what Fern was saying, but caught only the tail end of it. “…I have no idea why the rest of you are so hellbent on ignoring that.”
She winced and cast an apologetic look toward Kenny, who was still too stunned by the way she’d spoken to their father to react.
It was about Niall’s name. Fern had questioned them about that before. Fern called him Cade. When Kenny had first heard the other woman calling her brother by that name, it jolted her.
Cade. Her big brother who’d always looked out for them all. He’d become so distant after their mother’s death. But even before that, when their father had insisted on calling him Niall after his divorce from their mother, Cade had changed. He’d seemed separate from them. And now, looking at him with that fierce glow in his eyes as he stared up at his wife with naked joy on his face, Kenny could see her big brother again. The Cade who’d been lost to them for so long.
She momentarily forgot her own problems, so happy for her brother she ached with it.
Fern was stammering apologies now. Everybody looked shell-shocked. Gideon had that same looked of awed recognition on his face that Kenny felt.
Beth was comforting Fern. The other two women were already firm friends and Kenny felt a pang at being excluded from their burgeoning friendship.
“Anybody want some dessert?” Gideon asked, the consummate host, trying to ease the awkwardness of the moment.
Their father had been quite comprehensively shut up, but he was also casting uncertain, searching glances at Nia—no, Cade. He would be Cade to Kenny from now on, as he always should have been.
The evening had been overwhelming and emotional, and Kenny needed to get out of there right now. She needed to have an honest conversation with Smith. She couldn’t continue pretending that everything was okay in front of her family anymore.
“We have long drive, so I think we’ll give it a miss,” she said, casting a quick glance at Smith, who’d once again lost interest in everything around him.
“What is going on with you two?” her father asked in his usual blunt way.
Kenny winced. She’d hoped to get out of here before the inevitable questions.
“Dad, it’s fine. We had an argument, that’s all. Isn’t that right, Smith?” She met his unfocused gaze, silently begging him to go along with her excuse. His lip curled.
“Massive fight, yeah.”
“See?” Kenny smiled brightly, hoping her desperation wasn’t evident. “We’re fine. It’s all good.”
“Are you scared of him?” Her father’s angry question startled her. And when Cade surged to his feet, and Gideon moved to join him, her eyes widened as she comprehended what the question and their response to it meant. They thought… Oh God, how horrifying. How utterly mortifying.
“Has he hurt you?” Cade asked, his hands forming tight fists as Gideon loosened his stance, as if preparing himself for an altercation.
They all three looked ready to pummel Smith to within an inch of his life. She cast a quick glance at Smith and bit back a despairing moan. He was grinning recklessly, clearly spoiling for a fight. Even though the odds were decidedly not in his favor. He was a big man, but so were her brothers and father. He didn’t stand a chance against all three of them.
How the hell had it come to this?
“What?” The word was a horrified wheeze. “Oh my God, no. Of course not. Smith would never…” She shook her head. “Oh, for God’s sake, everybody just calm down, okay? Smith and I are going home. We had an argument. That’s it. End of story.”
Smith said and did nothing to back up her words.
God, why did he have to choose tonight to turn into an absolute arsehole? He’d always been a perfect gentleman. Patient, kind, tolerant. But tonight she didn’t even recognize him.