Page 29

Narrowing her eyes on him, she nodded firmly as she allowed Chloe, who Mikey was assuming was her older sister, to pull her away as she said, “We’re selling cookies in my Wilderness Girls’ troop next month and guess who’s not getting any?”

“I’m your best customer and we both know it,” Cole bit out as he got to his feet to stare the little girl down.

With a smug expression, the adorable little girl that was quickly becoming Mikey’s favorite person on earth said, “You?

??re really not though. Your father is.”

“Without me, you won’t earn your cookie badge and we both know it,” Cole said, leaning down to get in the little girl’s face.

“The only thing your cookie sales got me was a participation badge,” Katie said, moving to get in Cole’s face when Chloe pulled her back with a mumbled, “Please stop.”

“Better listen to your sister,” Cole said in a taunting tone.

“Why would I listen to her when she thinks you’re cute,” Katie said, matching his taunting tone as every gaze swung to Chloe.

“I…I…” Chloe mumbled weakly, somehow managing to turn an even brighter shade of red as she reached over, grabbed hold of her sister and averted her gaze as mortification set in and once it did, she turned around, dragging her sister along with her, tripped and stumbled her way to the house next-door.

“I’ll be back and when I am, you better have my money, punk!” the little girl yelled while they stood there, looking from the little girl that had managed to take Cole down, back to Cole and…

“Don’t,” Cole bit out in warning, a warning that his cousins immediately ignored.

“They live next door?” Mathew asked, looking greatly amused.

“I will kill you,” Cole said, dusting himself off.

“She’s cute,” Jessica said, nodding solemnly as Cole narrowed a glare on her.

“Which one?” Mathew asked, clearly enjoying himself as he helped himself to another brownie.

“His future wife,” Jessica said, making Mikey frown and before she could ask them what they were talking about, Sebastian was grabbing her hand and dragging her toward the house.

“What was that all about?” Mikey asked, letting him drag her inside.

“Nothing,” Sebastian said as he dragged her through the kitchen and into the living room, but something, mostly the way that he was grinding his jaw, told her that it wasn’t nothing.

“Why must you lie to me?” Mikey asked with a disappointed sigh as they paused by the large bookshelves that took up one wall.

“And why must you be a pain in my ass?” Sebastian countered as he selected a book before continuing to drag her toward the back door.

“Because it’s my job,” Mikey said, nodding solemnly as he dragged her outside and headed toward the lounge chairs that had been placed off to the side to make room for the tables they’d set up for the party and gestured for her to sit down.

“Read,” Sebastian said as he dropped down on the lounge chaise beside her with a pointed look at the book in her hand.

“I’m afraid that I can’t do that,” Mikey said with a sad shake of her head as she reached inside her sweatshirt pocket and pulled out her baseball.

Within seconds, she was rolling the ball between her hands as she glanced around the large backyard, taking in the line of barbeques set up next to the patio, the tables covered with food, coolers, the men of their family working the grills while some of the women were relaxing on the other side of the patio only to frown when her gaze landed on the small group of people standing off to the side, looking decidedly uncomfortable in their designer clothes and the looks of disgust on their faces as they pointedly ignored the rest of the party. They would never be mistaken for Bradfords, Mikey thought before she moved on to a boy their age with dark brown hair and a scowl that looked painful, watching them with bored interest as he dropped down in a chair at one of the tables.

“You really can,” Sebastian said, reaching over to give her braid a gentle tug that had her focusing back on him.

“You’re probably right,” Mikey said, nodding in agreement before adding, “but we won’t know that until you tell me what I want to know.”

Chapter 14

“I thought you wanted help with this book report,” Sebastian reminded the brat determined to drive him crazy.

“And I thought you knew me better than to think that I would drop something like this,” Mikey shot back.

“It’s nothing,” he bit out, refusing to talk to her about this.