Shackled: A Stepbrother Romance Novel Read Online Free PDF

know what happened between you two, but don’t you dare try to imply that it was all on Fiona,” Leslie chided. “It takes two to tango.”
    I couldn’t help but chuckle at her words, even though the truth of what had really gone down between us gave me a sinking feeling that I wasn’t entirely comfortable with. I just couldn’t bring myself to admit to either of them that the fight itself was entirely my fault.
    So I did the only thing that made sense to me. I lied.
    “Yeah, well… I suppose we both screwed up.”
    I had a nagging feeling that if I didn’t put things into play soon, Fiona was going to be gone before I even had a chance to get a word out. Knowing her, she was probably on the phone right now with Brenda, begging to be rescued from her big, bad, ex-best friend.
    For someone who was supposed to be a mature college student, sometimes she acted as if she had never left middle school. Fiona was the type who had a hard time letting go of habits once they formed, many of which were learned from the few female friends she had over the years.
    I could just picture it now—her lying back on the bed and staring up at the ceiling while she whined on the phone about spending time with me to whomever would listen.
    But then again, I supposed that was one of the things that I absolutely loved about her. Fiona was nothing if not predictable.
    Whenever she was lying, she would bite her lip and avoid eye contact. When she got even the slightest bit embarrassed or flustered, her cheeks would burn red. If anything sexual was said around her, she would fidget. If she disagreed with someone but didn’t want to say anything, I could tell by the way she pursed her lips together. It was subtle—but it was there. It seemed that no matter how old she got, she still couldn’t figure out how to control her reactions.
    Which, in my opinion, was a good thing.
    Sure, spontaneity was great sometimes, but there were arguments to be made about people who were easy to read. Especially when it came to women. They were hard enough to figure out already without any additional mystery.
    I could provide all the spontaneity we ever needed. I had done so during our entire friendship and it always worked out well.
    Except that one time.
    My jaw clenched at the reminder. I needed our parents to leave pretty much immediately . I had a lot to do and a very limited amount of time to do it in. The sooner I got started, the better.
    “I’m going to do everything I can to fix things between us,” I promised when I realized Leslie and my dad were still staring at me warily, hoping my confident tone would ease their concerns.
    “Good. Now give me a hug,” Leslie ordered, opening up her arms. I gave in to her request, but refused to let the moment get too emotional. Too motherly .
    Because I was quite sure Leslie would gut me where I stood if she knew what I was really planning to do with her daughter this weekend.
    “See you Monday, son.”
    After a brief pat on the back, our parents w walked out of the cabin and headed back to the car. I subtly watched from the front window, forcing a smile and waving as they backed out of the driveway.
    When I lost sight of the car, I turned back to the luggage and grinned.
    If she really was sleeping, then this was going to be easy.
    If not, then it was going to be ridiculously difficult.
    Either way, I was going to do it.
    No time like the present, I thought as I dug between my carefully arranged clothes and pulled out the pile of chains.

Chapter Eight

Fiona
    I had no idea how long I was out for, but it was an unfamiliar noise that pulled me out of my nap. It was almost like a snap or a click, and for a brief moment, my half-asleep mind panicked at the thought that I might have actually broken the door when I slammed it.
    When I moved to sit up, I was abruptly jerked back by something on my arm.
    “What the—”
    “Morning, sunshine!” Jonathan chimed from beside me, startling me to the point that a