Seduction (Club Destiny) Read Free Page B

expanse of water they could see
from where they stood. “Dad’s taking me up there in a few minutes.”
    “You excited?”
She knew he wasn’t, if his expression was anything to go by.
    “Anything will
be better than where we came from.” He admitted, turning back to the house, but
not moving.
    Ashleigh knew
from talking to her brother Dylan that Nate was having a hard time at school,
and it had nothing to do with academics and everything to do with the cruelty
of the kids.
    Just last year,
the Thomas family had been shocked by Nate’s revelation that he was gay.
Although not a single one of them had any issues with it, including Xavier, her
grandfather, which had surprised the hell out of damn near everyone, not
everyone seemed to be as accepting as Nate’s family. Ashleigh wasn’t sure
whether it was the small town, or just ignorance that had the kids being so
cruel, but either way, Nate seemed to be dealing with it.
     “At least
the year is almost over, right?”
    “I wouldn’t quite
say that. We’ve still got the rest of this semester.”
    “Oooh. A
semester. That’s like what? Eighteen more weeks?” Ashleigh laughed.
    “Fifteen, thank
you. Don’t make it longer than it has to be.” Nate teased.
    “Sorry. I’ll
work on getting my facts straight next time.” God she missed her nephew. He’d
always been the fun loving, exuberant child who had kept them all on their
toes. Despite the difficulties and the challenges he seemed to be facing, it
was good to see he hadn’t changed much.
    “Well, I’ve put
it off as long as I could.” She told him, turning back to the house. “Time to
check out the chaos.”
    Steeling herself
for the chaos , better known as Alex McDermott – but she wouldn’t tell
Nate that – Ashleigh followed her nephew up the steps to the house. The front
door stood wide open, the screen door propped open with a small box – great,
the box read “panties and bras”.
    Lovely.
    Every light in
the house was on and the low sound of people talking filled the space. As soon
as she was inside, Ashleigh remembered everything she had loved about the house
the first time she saw it. Her realtor hadn’t seemed too excited about showing
her the place, apparently it had been on the market for quite some time, and
she hadn’t figured it would be what Ashleigh was looking for.
    It had taken one
trek through the house, and less than five minutes for Ashleigh to turn to the
woman, telling her to draw up the papers. After seeing at least twenty other
properties, Ashleigh had been sold almost the minute she stepped inside.
    Open, airy, it
was just what Ashleigh was looking for.
    The back wall
was nearly all glass which offered a serene view of the small pond and a
handful of trees. The inside was warm and comforting, something that struck
Ashleigh immediately. Dark wood floors and cream colored walls, along with
stone accents on the fireplace, and the bar that separated the kitchen from the
rest of the house, had caught her eye immediately. The rest was a bonus.
    Speaking of bar.
From where she stood, just inside the front door, Ashleigh could see her
brother who was animatedly talking to the man she’d dedicated way too many
thoughts to for the last decade. Alex’s back was to her, and she fought the
urge to stand there and stare at him while he was unaware.
    Right. As if
anything ever got past him.
    Alex McDermott
and all of his sexy as hell goodness was a weak spot Ashleigh had never been
comfortable with. The man was hot as sin, but Ashleigh had sworn off his type
at a young age. Or maybe it was just him that she’d sworn off.
    Not that he
didn’t visit her in some of her hottest dreams. But during waking hours, she
did her best to avoid him. Living so far away had made that easy, but
apparently being this close, and the fact that he worked with her grandfather,
Ashleigh would have to put forth some effort to keep him away.
    Time to change
the locks.
    “What’s he doing
here?”