Stepbrother WHOA! (The Stepbrother Romance Series #5) by Claire Adams Page B

wrong but always bounced back.
    I was psyching myself up to get out of bed and take
the shower I wanted so badly when I heard a knock at my door. I groaned into my
pillow. On the long list of people who might be at my door, there was only one
name on the list I actually wanted to see. It could have been someone from Phi
Kappa, it could have been my mom, or Bob, or one of my roommates; I hated the
thought of being around any of them. I decided that I was going to pretend to
be asleep with my stereo on and just ignore whoever it was—it wasn’t likely to
be the one person I wanted it to be, anyway.
    There was another knock and I almost stirred myself
to tell the person—whoever it was—to go the hell away. I didn’t want to talk, I
was exhausted and all I wanted to do was be alone to wallow in my misery and
get some sleep. “Mia? I know you’re in there you never leave your stereo on and
you can’t be asleep.” My heart started beating faster—I recognized the voice.
It was Jaxon.
    “ Jax ?” I called out
through the door, turning over in my bed. It was too good to be true; but maybe
he was coming to break up with me. Maybe he had finally had the last straw and
was ready to end things. Maybe Bob had called and told him it was either break
things off or be disowned. I wouldn’t blame him if that was the case. Even if
Jaxon hated Bob, Bob was paying the bills. It would be hard not to give in.
    “Mia, I got some great news!” I sat up in bed.
Jaxon’s voice sounded surprisingly cheerful. I climbed down off of my bed and
rushed to the door. I pulled the door open all at once, still shaking but full
of more hope than I would have thought possible.
    “News? What? What happened, Jaxon?” Jaxon grinned at
me and closed the door behind him, closing the distance between us and wrapping
his arms around me. He kissed me hungrily, his hands wandering over my body,
caressing and teasing me for a long moment until I couldn’t think about
anything but how happy I was to be in his arms again.
    “First things first, I’m really glad you got back
okay—how did you do that, anyway?” I laughed and told Jaxon about hitching a
ride with one of the other competitors. Jaxon grinned and lifted me up into the
bed, kissing me once more. He broke away and laughed, taking a deep breath and
shaking his head.
    “God, Mia, I don’t know what you did, but it was
totally brilliant.”
    “What do you mean?” I thought of the showdown
between Bob and me—it had been anything but brilliant, as far as I could see.
Jaxon laughed again.
    “Dad called me a little while ago.” I cringed. That
had to have gone badly. “Seriously—it was great.”
    “What did I do?” I asked as Jaxon kissed along my
neck.
    “I have no idea. But Dad was like a totally
different person. He apologized for how terrible he’d been to me over the last
several years.”
    “Oh god, really?” I was shocked. Bob had actually
apologized? I couldn’t help smiling.
    “Yeah! It was weird. It was totally bizarre. He said
he realized that he’d been acting like an asshole, and that if he didn’t fix
things with me he had no hope of ever being happy with anyone.” Jaxon hesitated
a moment, shaking his head. “He also thanked me for not killing him.” I pressed
my lips together to keep from laughing again. Apparently my words had hit Bob
the right way. “The best part is that he said all he wanted was for me to be
happy.”
    “Really?” I could tell that Jaxon was building up to
something. “That’s awesome.” Jaxon gave my hands a squeeze.
    “He told me that if being with you was what made me
happy, I should keep seeing you. Also that you were way too good for me—and
that if I was capable of making you happy, I’d better keep it up.” Jaxon leaned
in and kissed me hungrily. His hands began to wander over my body slowly,
touching me everywhere, and I could tell that for him at least, the news had
been inspirational.
    The fact that Bob was encouraging