Dating Daniel (Cloverleaf #4) Read Online Free PDF Page B

different. Liam was tall and made of lean muscle, sharing a similar build with Patrick. In contrast, Daniel was stout and noticeably shorter than his over six-foot-tall brothers.
    “She was still pretty tired when I called her this morning. She said that she and Hannah will come by a little later,” Daniel explained, but failed to mention how terribly cranky and extremely hung over Nina had been when he phoned her earlier.
    “Well, that’s cool. You guys have a good time last night?” Liam asked, fishing out an enormous blue tube out of the back of the truck.
    Daniel considered that for a moment. He could tell Liam just about anything, and he knew it wasn’t going to get back to the rest of the family. Liam was the best when it came to talking to about problems and seeking advice. He never betrayed anyone’s trust and always had other people’s back. He didn’t like confrontation or drama. Liam preferred his life to be simple, easygoing, and mellow, but that all had changed when he’d met Rachel. With a new bride and twins on the way, life couldn’t be any further than simple, but Liam was handling it all pretty darn well.
    “Well, you know, I picked her up and she had us go to Spokane,” Daniel said, starting to tell the story of the night before, but he saw Patrick heading their direction. “Maybe we should talk later.”
    Liam nodded, but Patrick had already heard Daniel. “So what happened last night?”
    Daniel rolled his eyes. As close as he was with Patrick, he didn’t feel like he could open up to him, at least without any kind of judgment. “Nothing really.”
    “Nah, I’m not buying that. You were about to tell one helluva story. I could tell when I heard you talk.” Patrick placed his hand on Daniel’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “Go on.”
    “There’s really not a lot to tell,” Daniel lied. He had planned on explaining to Liam how Nina had acted: partially seductive but craving attention from anyone and everyone.
    “Come on, don’t be like that. How was the date?” Patrick insisted, taking his hand off Daniel. He leaned against the side of the truck. “Damn, that’s hot.” He hissed as the scorching metal burned his naked torso.
    “Why don’t we grab a cool drink and get in that water? I’m burning up just standing here,” Liam said, winking at Daniel.
    “Fine.” Patrick reached for another tube, this one neon orange. He started to lead them back down the sandy slope.
    Daniel and Liam trailed behind. “Hey, thanks. It’s not like anything major happened, but you know.” Daniel nodded in Patrick’s direction.
    “I do. But you know, Daniel, he just wants to be there for you too.”
    “Well, yeah, I get that, but either he’ll run and tell Mom or he’ll give me crap. I guess I’m just not in the mood today.”
    Liam shifted the tube he was carrying and grinned. “We all have days like that, trust me. But maybe include him. He’s a little different now.” Daniel watched as Liam’s eyes, the same deep green as his own, focused on Amber.
    “I’m glad. I really am. He has been a lot cooler,” Daniel admitted as they inched closer to everyone. “But he’s still Patrick.”
    Liam laughed. “True, very true.”
     
    ***
     
    The water was frigid, but it was a good kind of cold—the kind that instantly chilled him from the wicked heat. Daniel released a huff as felt the water lick up his waist. Okay, it was a little more than cold. The snow runoff which fed this wild river helped keep the temperature cool.
    “Ah, get in there. It’s not that bad,” Patrick insisted as he easily plopped himself inside a tube. Daniel’s older brother had already helped Amber and Dylan, and he now floated next to them. They had tied some thin white rope between the tubes, tethering all of them together. Liam and Michael had tied themselves to Melanie’s fluorescent pink tube. Michael was tightening the straps of her lifejacket, a mixture of fear and concern present in his eyes