Trial Run: Addicted To Love Romance Collection Read Free

there’s no trace of a woman’s touch in your room.” Jason shrugged but said nothing. “Maybe women are not your thing…” Rob drawled, making a face at his friend.
    “Asshole.”
    “Really, man, you know you can tell me.”
    Jason reached for Rob’s head and fought to push him under, but Rob kicked away from the edge of the pool.
    “When was your coming out party? Did I miss it?” he taunted.
    Jason cupped his hand on the water and thrust sharply toward Rob. Rob closed his eyes and waited for the waterfall to pass before he laughed loudly.
    “Dick!”
    Rob laughed and swam back. “Hey, I was just joking. You know that, right?”
    “Yeah, I know,” Jason sighed. “It’s just not that easy to have a life … not with Amelie around the house. I’m tired of playing lookout and protector around that kid. It’s worse than having a bunch of kids of my own. At least I’d raise mine right.”
    Rob chuckled, the image of a skinny girl with long hair and a slight gap between her front teeth floating to the forefront of his mind.
    “Is she still here, then? Amelie? She must be... what?”
    “Twenty-two in a few days,” Jason answered.
    Rob let out a long whistle, trying to picture a grown-up version of the sweet girl from years ago. He shook his head. All he could come up with was still the rounded child face, only on a longer body.
    “What about you?” Jason asked. “Love found you yet?”
    Rob’s face fell. “Yeah, you could say that. Found me, ran me over, cut me to pieces, kicked me in the gut and left me for dead.” He shook his head. “Never again. Women are a dangerous species.”
    Jason let out a single burst of laughter. “Which is exactly why I’m happy taking my sweet time.”
    “Wish I had that kind of immunity,” Rob muttered, dejected.
    Jason grimaced. “Ouch. That bad, huh? Still not over it?”
    “Yeah, I’m over it. Over it forever. Don’t talk to me about love, my friend. Been there, done that. Got the t-shirt. And the leg cast, and the bruises…”
    “Sounds like a lesson you won’t forget in a hurry.” Rob nodded. “So that must have been ‘this.’ What’s ‘that’?”
    “I was still licking my wounds when I decided to take up a job as a stunt double.”
    “Whoa!”
    “Yeah. It was only going to be temporary. I’ve been doing that for the last eight years. The money’s good, but I’m still trying to find a way to get out…” His voice trailed away and a long-forgotten sadness reared its ugly head from beneath the layers of dust he’d blown over it. He pulled in a sharp breath and rallied. “Just finished filming in the Keys, so I thought, since I’m in the area...”
    “I’m glad you came, Rob. Things haven’t been the same since college.”
    Rob hesitated. “I saw the article about the helicopter crash, but by the time I could get away...”
    “It’s all good, don’t feel guilty for that. Handling a funeral was not the hardest part of the last ten and a half years.” At Rob’s inquiring glance, Jason sighed and continued. “Let’s put it this way: dealing with a rebellious little sister is the bane of my existence.”
    Rob laughed. “Little Amelie? Really?”
    “You wouldn’t believe how much trouble one small kid can get herself into. It was bad enough being her guardian before business school. I thought she’d calm down, you know, find a boyfriend, get her hormones under control... But she’s been worse since she came back. It’s like everything she does is designed to annoy me.”
    “Yeah, right. You’re just being oversensitive.”
    “I’m not. Honestly, stay a few days and see for yourself.”
    “So why is she still here if you don’t get along? I would have thought she’d have moved out by now.”
    “She won’t do that until I sign her inheritance over. Until then, she’s intent on torturing me.”
    “See? You’re exaggerating again. A woman can only torture you if you let her.”
    “Oh, you think so, do