Bidding On The Billionaire (The Sherbrookes of Newport Book 8) Read Free

around.”
    Brooklyn dropped her gym bag inside the half bath off the kitchen. Later she’d wash out her swimsuit and hang it to dry. For now, she’d visit with Derek, perhaps the friendliest face she’d seen in three weeks.
    “I figured you’d have plans. I arranged for a car to pick me up. No big deal.” Rarely did a Friday night go by that Derek didn’t have plans. More times than not those plans involved some beautiful woman, although occasionally he did spend time with one of his brothers or another friend in town.
    Derek shook his head as he made a beeline for her refrigerator. “Nah, just hung out at my place this weekend. It’s been a crazy few weeks, and I needed some downtime.” He popped open the can of cream soda he’d pulled out. She only kept it around for him and his frequent visits. She couldn’t stomach the stuff.
    “How’s Allison doing?” She’d read all about the events that had transpired in Virginia and she couldn’t imagine what Derek’s twin sister must be going through.
    He took a long swig from the can before he answered her. “Better. She’s all settled in at Rock’s place, and her town house is on the market. She even went in to work this week for a couple of days. I think she’s going to be fine.”
    Brooklyn was glad to hear it. She knew how close Derek and his sister were. Actually, she knew firsthand how close the entire Sherbrooke clan was, and more than once she’d envied him. Her own family was nothing like Derek’s. While her two older sisters were extremely close and got along well with their parents, she’d always been the odd man out. That wasn’t to say they didn’t love her, because in their own way she realized they did. However, none of them understood her or made an effort to. The only two relatives she was close to were her Aunt Felicia and her cousin Cheyenne, her other best friend.
    “So what are you doing here tonight?” Brooklyn asked. Part of her wanted more details about what had actually happened down in Alexandria. Every media outlet in the country had covered the story for days, but she knew it didn’t mean they’d gotten all the facts correct. However, she wouldn’t pry. Enough people poked their big noses into Derek and his family’s lives, and because of that, she’d always gone out of her way not to.
    Derek gave a little shrug before he dropped down on the couch, his favorite place to sit in her living room. “I stopped upstairs to visit my nephew. Then I decided to see if you were back yet.” Derek’s eldest brother and his wife lived in the penthouse, which occupied the top two floors of the building. Even his second-oldest brother lived in the building now with his fiancée. “Weren’t you due back this morning?”
    Her original travel plans had her coming home this morning. She’d changed them the previous Wednesday, unable to take any more quality family time. “I was, but then I changed my mind. It seemed acceptable to leave right after the wedding on Friday afternoon.” She hadn’t even waited for the reception to end. Once the bride and groom had made their exit, she’d headed for the airport herself.
    “I’ll have to stop upstairs and congratulate Trent and Addie. How is the baby doing? He was really early wasn’t he?” The birth of Derek’s nephew had lit up the Internet, so even though she’d been in California when it happened, she’d known about it.
    “About a month, but he’s doing great,” Derek said, sounding quite proud. She knew he’d been looking forward to the birth of his first niece or nephew. As a general rule, family was important to all the members of the Sherbrooke clan, as she liked to think of them.
    “Does he look like your brother or more like Addie?”
    “Definitely Trent. There’s no mistaking Kendrick is a Sherbrooke.”
    She couldn’t keep from shaking her head. “I still can’t believe he’s married with a baby. He’s the last person I ever saw as a family man. Your cousin,