Because of Kian Read Online Free PDF Page B

the night before he left.”
    “I’m so sorry, Sage,” I murmured .
    “ My dad had died of cancer about a year before, and then my mom just shut down after Matt died. I lost everyone in that accident. I just wanted to fade away too. But then I found out I was pregnant. It forced me to grow up pretty fast. Not a lot of time to fall apart.”
    “Mattie is named after your brother.”
    Sage nodded with a sad smile.
    Mattie plodded back into the kitchen, dropping a chubby little armload of My Little Ponies on the floor by my chair.
    “Okay,” she said seriously, “this is Pinky Pie. And she’s really funny. I have a movie of her that mommy lets me watch at bedtime every night. And this is Twilight Sparkle. She’s my favorite because she’s purple .”
    “ You don’t like purple, do you?” I asked with mock disbelief.
    “I love it,” she responded with wide blue eyes and a tremendously dramatic breath.
    “I love purple, too. It’s my favorite color.”
    Mattie’s eyes went wide as saucers, as though she’d just met a Twilight Sparkle in real life. “Really?” she whispered in awe.
    One by one, I was introduced to Mattie’s ponies, allowing Sage a little time to compose herself and join back in the conversation. Finally, we’d worked our way through the pastel pony pile, and the little girl rounded up her herd to put them away.
    “Sorry about that,” Sage mused. “I didn’t think she’d actually bring out all her ponies, but that’s about the only way I can distract the kid. You should see her room. It looks like the My Little Pony store exploded in there.”
    “It’s okay. It was fun. She’s a really sweet kid.”
    Sage smiled, and took a deep breath. “So, anyway, new topic. So what’s going on with you and Kian?”
    “Um… nothing?” I murmured.
    “Brynn, that sounds more like a question than anything. And before you wonder why I’m asking, I just want to let you know that it isn’t because I’m after the guy. It’s just that I’ve been seeing Jeff for about three months now, and I’ve gotten to know Kian pretty well. He’s a good man and I just sort of want him to be happy.”
    “Wait a minute… You’re seeing Jeff. I didn’t know that,” I commented.
    “Nice try, but we’ve talked about me. Your turn.”
    Dammit .
    “Okay, fine,” I chuckled softly. “We’re kinda like friends, I guess.”
    “So he’s never come onto you?” Sage looked a little incredulous .
    I shook my head and took a sip of my tea.
    “Seriously? Never? Because he sure doesn’t watch you like a friend.”
    I took a deep breath and exhaled deeply. “I had a run-in with an ex in the alley behind Hyper one night. Kian ran him off.”
    Sage leaned her face on her hand, saying nothing, waiting for me to fill in the massive gaps in the story.
    “Evan could be… violent. And that night in the alley, Kian saw him hit me.” Sage’s eyes grew as wide as her daughters when I said I liked purple. “I’m not even too sure what happened. Evan knocked me cold. Kian took care of me, made sure I was okay.”
    “And?” Sage asked softly.
    “Nothing, really. He just… he offered to show me some self-defense. To help me kick Evan’s ass.” I smiled jokingly.
    “Now it makes a little more sense.”
    “What does?” I asked, knitting my brow in confusion. “Sage, I’m not following you here.”
    “ When he comes in to Hyper, he’s protecting you.”
    “ What, like he feels responsible? He shouldn’t.” I shook my head. “I’m a big girl.”
    “Brynn, I think it’s more than that,” Sage grinned. “Do you like him?”
    “Ummm… What is this,” I laughed. “Junior high? Oh, yeah, he’s just dreamy.”
    “Because I’ve seen him with some of the chicks in Hyper before, but I’ve never seen him as focused on someone as he is with you.”
    I scoffed at her. “Sage, he’s never once even hinted. Not even in the slightest.”
    She narrowed her eyes and shook her finger at me. “Well, mark