Stepbrother Broken (The Hawthorne Brothers Book 2) by Colleen Masters

getting on each other ’ s last nerve from the start.
    “ Did you know this place was going
to be a mansion? ” she asks finally, crossing
her arms, “ There ’ s no way Mom can be affording this easily. ”
    Oh,
dear. It looks like Maddie wasn ’ t briefed about the details of this
trip either. She has no idea about John, or his sons, or the fact that our
mother has been living here for the past couple of months or so. On the bright
side, I get to watch her head explode as she learns the true nature of this
little getaway. Maddie is an obsessive over-thinker, phased by the smallest
wrinkle in her plans. I can ’ t help but be a tiny bit amused as
she unknowingly steps up to a wrinkle the size of a mountain.
     
    Sure
enough, my older sister ’ s mind promptly melts as our mother
sweeps in and divulges the salacious details of her stay in Montana. Anna and I
trail along as Maddie is introduced to John — the
latest of Mom ’ s unlikely paramours. To her
credit, Maddie keeps it together just long enough for us girls to escape into
the backyard. When the levees finally break, I ’ m
there to lend her a shoulder to cry on. I forget how hard Dad ’ s death hit her sometimes. He really was her hero, her
role model. Seeing Mom with another man is harder on her than it is on me.
    Luckily,
something comes along to distract all of us Porter girls from our discomfort.
Finally, we get to meet one of John ’ s sons in the flesh. He roars up
out of the woods on an ATV, nearly mowing us over in the process. Anna wasn ’ t kidding about these boys being hot as hell. This
one, who tells us his name is Cash, has the bad boy biker thing down pat. His
body is covered in heavy black ink, and his dark curly hair hangs just above
his collar. Definitely easy on the eyes, but not really my type. The second he
opens his mouth, I can tell there ’ s more brawn than brains to him.
    What
can I say? I like my men sharp.
    Things
cool down a bit as the four of us Porter women set to making dinner. John ’ s expecting his two younger sons home tonight, so it ’ ll be the first time that all eight of us will be in
the same place at once. My mom is fluttering around the kitchen like a deranged
50 ’ s housewife, bent on everything
being perfect for our first big group dinner. Maddie ’ s lost in her own thoughts as she hacks away at a pile
of vegetables, and Anna is quiet as a mouse as she makes sure Mom doesn ’ t accidentally lose a finger or something in her
frenzy.
    Me?
I make myself comfortable with a glass of Merlot at the rough-hewn kitchen
table. Someone ’ s got to taste-test the wine
pairings for tonight, right?
    “ Maddie, ” our mom chirps as she puts the finishing touches on
her feast, “ Why don ’ t you go round up the boys? Everything ’ ll be ready in a sec. ”
    My
older sister promptly drops her knife, the color draining from her face.
    “ Oh. I don ’ t. I mean —” she sputters, even more flustered than usual, “ I don ’ t really know where they are …”
    “ I think they ’ re down by the lake, ” Anna
replies, plucking a tray of dinner rolls out of the oven.
    I
didn ’ t even realize the younger boys had
returned from their camping expedition. We haven ’ t
gotten so much as a grunt out of any of them, much less a “ hello ” . But after catching a glimpse of
the sexy, brooding Cash this afternoon, I ’ m curious to see what the others
look like. Besides, Maddie seems downright terrified to wrangle them on her
own.
    “ What, do you need a chaperone to
face the big bad boys? ” I tease her, rising to my
feet, “ Come on. I ’ ll go with you. ”
    Resigned,
Maddie trails me out the back door onto the patio. The night is warm and
breezy, and dusk gathers quickly as the sun plummets toward the horizon.
    “ I still haven't met the younger
guys, ” I say over my shoulder to Maddie, “ They ’ ve been making themselves pretty damn scarce. Not that
I have high hopes, having met Cash. ”
    “