Beautifully Used (The Beaumont Brothers Book 2) Read Free

it this morning.”
    “Figured.”
    “How’d you know that anyway?”
    “Know what?”
    Oh God, this was going to be a very painful journey if his sentences remained three word s or less. “About the Caramel Snickerdoodle Macchiato.”
    He shrugged. “Lucky guess.”
    I decided not to worry about how he knew. Besides, everybody loved the Caramel Snickerdoodle Macchiato, so I sipped the bit of heaven now warming my hands and closed my eyes as the taste of caramel, cinnamon and vanilla coated my throat. I couldn’t contain the “Mmmm” that escaped from deep inside me. “Thanks.”
    We rode in silence for a while until we hit some morning commuter traffic and Brodie swore under his breath and changed lanes, heading off the freeway onto some side road that I hoped he knew. I wasn’t in the mood to get lost, not with Brodie.
    I snuck a glance in his direction. The frown on his face showed his irritation and I wondered if it was the traffic or the fact that he had to pick me up from the airport so early in the morning that caused it. I secretly hoped it was the traffic , though I had my doubts.
    I finished the coffee, but I was still exhausted. The extra caffeine boost hardly scratched the surface of my brain. Normally, a double shot would have had me doing the jig and wiggle in the seat, but even the two shots of caffeine were no match for the loss of an entire night’s sleep. All I wanted to do was close my eyes. I rested my head against the window when all of a sudden a small pillow was shoved at me. “Here,” Brodie’s deep voice mumbled. “You didn’t sleep at all on that flight did you?”
    I shook my head and moaned something about snoring that I’m sure was incoherent as I wedged the pillow between my head and the window. I let the hum of the engine and the tires on the interstate lull me to sleep. Such a pleasure not to have that guy sawing logs in my ear.
    I woke up when our speed decreased and we turned onto the driveway leading up to the house Brodie owned and shared with his brother. Red and pink carpet roses graced each side of the lane, cheering up the eighth of a mile long gravel driveway. The old farmhouse sat on the largest piece of property I’d ever had the opportunity to stay on. Growing up in Southern California beach towns meant smaller yards, but great beach access, though lately, apartment living was more to my norm. There were no cars in the driveway, which meant Lena and Jackson were not there. Great. That meant more alone time with Brodie. How lucky for me.
    Brodie grabbed his empty coffee container before he got out, prompting me to pick up mine too so I could throw it away. I was stunned silent when he opened my door, and thankful once again that he didn’t stick around to watch me try to climb down in this dress. Trucks were murder on girls with short dresses. As he hoisted my bags from the back of the vehicle, a car came barreling up the driveway and stopped right behind the truck. Lena jumped out of the passenger side and came running at me. I was glad to see she had dyed her hair back to her beautiful natural color. Like me, she wore a cute little sundress, only hers was a pretty shade of lime green with tiny red-orange rose buds that matched perfectly with her auburn curls. Her hair seemed to have grown about six inches since I last saw her and hung down way past her shoulders.
    “Yay, you’re here ,” she squealed embracing me in a huge hug. Then Jackson gave me a hug as Lena stepped back and eyed the empty Starbucks cup in my hand. “Good, Brodie remembered the coffee. Did he get you the Caramel Snickerdoodle Macchiato like I told him to?”
    I eyed Brodie suspiciously. He gave me a snide shrug and walked away. “Uh, yeah. Thanks,” I mumbled, disappointment coating my words as I realized he’d only pretended to know what I liked. I should have known.
    I smiled as I walked up the four wooden steps leading to the wrap-around porch and the two chairs with comfy looking