Nemesis (Southern Comfort) Read Online Free PDF Page B

huge to ever grow into them.
    But they’d clearly managed the trick.  Apart from hair that still seemed a bit unmanageable there was nothing left of the skinny boys they’d been.  They were tall and broad-shouldered and a rough kind of gorgeous that put her in mind of something primitive.  One had shoulder length hair caught back in a ponytail – a deeper brown now, though still shot with subtle hints of red – and one shorter locks but a rather intriguing goatee.  Green Murphy’s T-shirts pulled taut over hard muscles, the kind gained from manual labor rather than three hours a week at a gym.  Both of them looked sort of… menacing.  The kind of men you didn’t want to meet in a dark alley. 
    Or maybe the k ind you did.
    And what was she doing, sitting here drooling over the first attractive men she’d seen?  And these were Kathleen’s little brothers, mind you.  She’d grown up with these two, damn it.  They were basically, almost, relatives.  Not some man candy for her to be ogling.  Feeling disgusted with herself as the one with the goatee sauntered over, a white bar towel over his shoulder, Sadie noted he looked both bored and a little bit pissed.
    Declan, she thought, sniffing.  She’d bet anything.
    “What?” he asked Kathleen flatly. 
    “A Smithwick’s for our special visitor.” 
    Goatee eyed her skeptically, apparently failing to see why she should be special, then started off toward the taps before whipping his head back around.
    He stared for a good twenty seconds in a way that had goose-flesh popping out on her skin.  Then a slow-dawning smile transformed his face and she caught a glimpse of the skinny boy inside the man.  Suddenly she was twelve years old again, backed against an oak tree. 
    She angled her chin in unconscious challenge.
    “I don’t believe it,” he said finally.  “If it isn’t little Sadie Rose Mayhew, all grown up.”  His eyes flicked toward her breasts. “Sort of,” he amended, the smile lurching to a crooked grin.
    Any doubt she might have harbored as to this twin’s identity was extinguished by the sudden tide of ire.  “Declan Murphy,” she said coolly, in counterpoint to the heat creeping up her neck, “I see you’ve matured not one whit.”
    His bark of amused laughter caused Kathleen’s brow to raise and brought a swamped Rogan to see what was happening. “Glad you’re all having a good time over here, but we’ve got customers expecting…”
    His words trailed off and he regarded her blankly.  Then, as with his brother, recognition dawned.  The deep lake-blue eyes that were so much nicer than the other idiot’s crinkled in a welcoming smile.  “Sadie!” he said delightedly, elbowing Declan out of the way so that he could hobble around the corner of the bar.  Sadie noted a soft-sided walking cast surrounding his right foot and recalled Kathleen’s e-mail regarding a bad accident he’d been involved in last summer – something terrible involving another man’s attempted kidnapping of their cousin Tate’s five-year-old son.  He drew close, smelling pleasantly of male sweat and soap and just a hint of strong whiskey, and planted a friendly kiss smack dab on her lips.  Sadie was relieved to feel nothing the least bit sexual.
    Ignoring his lesser half, who was still smirking on the other side of the bar top, she regarded him with open affection.
    “Rogan.” She tugged his ponytail in a teasing gesture.  It was quite a reach, now, as he’d grown almost a full foot taller since the last time she’d seen him, to an inch or two over six feet. “All those times Kathleen and I tried to play beauty-shop with you, and you finally grow some decent hair.”
    Rogan groaned, no doubt recalling one particularly unpleasant experience with some bows and a large can of Aqua-Net.  “Let’s not talk about that in mixed company, shall we?”  He stepped back, looked her up and down.  “You grew up good, Sadie.  I’ll try to forgive