Joseph stood, considerably more gracefully. “I just wanted to bring you your purse.” He turned toward the patio door and took one step before turning back. “That’s not exactly true,” he admitted. “You seemed troubled at Nate’s. I really wanted to see if you were okay.”
Katherine chuckled nervously. “I-I’m fine. I just… well... Larry… he’s repulsive.”
Joseph’s brows wrinkled. “I thought you guys were friends. Honestly, the way he describes your relationship, one would assume you were more than friends.”
“Larry Crane is a lying dirtbag!” Katherine spat, unable to hide her disgust at the thought of any kind of relationship with Larry.
Joseph laughed and threw his hands up in submission. “I stand corrected.”
He turned and moved toward the patio, but Katherine grabbed his hand. His warm skin sent a jolt of fire through her veins. Joseph froze in his tracks and glared down at her hand before looking her in the eye. The emotion swimming in his vivid green gaze was an affirmation that he felt it too.
“Thank you,” she whispered once she found her voice.
Joseph moved closer and caressed her elbow. “You’re welcome.”
His deep, sincere baritone was a hum to her core. Katherine had to force herself from pushing her body against his muscular frame. She wanted to slip her arms around his neck and force him into a passionate kiss that would convince him to take her right there on the patio. Instead, she released his hand and pointed to a pathway at the side of her house.
“You can go out this way,” she told him, hearing the regret in her voice.
Joseph nodded and walked toward the path.
Katherine watched his back until he disappeared around the house. Then she stood, wishing she’d stopped him. But what would she have said if she had? After about a minute, she forced her feet to move. She turned toward the house and froze when she discovered her father watching her from a window in the kitchen. A shiver ran down her spine at the thought of him spying on her. Katherine frowned, rolled her eyes, and stormed into the house, wishing she had different parentage.
Chapter Five
JOSEPH
Joseph groaned and rolled over, trying to avoid the sun beaming through the window of his childhood bedroom. He suddenly remembered where he was when his body jerked from nearly falling off the tiny twin bed. After flipping the linen off, he sat up and glared at the window, recalling that he’d closed the shades before going to bed. His mom must have raised them. When they were younger, it was her way of waking him and his brother in the morning.
Joseph smiled. Some things never changed.
He grabbed his t-shirt from the floor and pulled it over his head. In a t-shirt and boxers—his usual breakfast attire—he left the bedroom and followed the smell of bacon.
“Good morning, sweetie,” his mother greeted when he entered the kitchen.
She was at the stove, stirring something in a pot. Her long dark hair was pulled into a ponytail. She smiled with a sparkle in her bright blue eyes. For a woman with two grown sons, she was still so beautiful.
Joseph walked over and kissed the top of her head. “Good morning, Mom. Whatcha cooking?”
“Well, I have some oatmeal here,” she said, waving toward the pot. “I scrambled a few eggs, fried some bacon, and I have biscuits in the oven.”
Joseph inhaled the delicious aroma and moaned. “You’re the best mom in the world.”
“So, I’ve heard,” she teased with a chuckle. “What are you doing here?”
He had his own apartment, but he sometimes slept over his mother’s on Saturday nights so he could wake up and have breakfast with her on Saturday mornings.
Joseph raised a brow. “Can’t I come see my favorite girl?”
“Anytime you want, sweetheart,” she said with a smile. “Go and wake your brother. He’s in his room.”
Joseph squinted at his mom. “Jon is here?”
“He drove in this morning. Got in around four.”
Joseph gave her another kiss before leaving the kitchen. He took the hall to his brother’s room, opened the door, and found Jonathan buried under the covers.
Joseph walked over and yanked the blanket off his twin’s head. “Get up!” he shouted, absent of all delicacy.
