Hull grabbed Susanna off the sand in one swift motion, scooping her into his arms
and carrying her over to a sun lounger off to the side.
His face was thunderous, and Susanna started to panic, squirming in his grip.
"What are you doing? Put me down! Right now!"
Her mind shed back tost night-him, the bathroom, the way he was. Oh
God... Surely he wouldn''t try anything crazy out here, would he? The ind
looked peaceful enough, but she was sure there were people around, watching
from the shadows.
Her heart began to race.
Hull dropped her onto the lounger and leaned over, trapping herpletely
beneath him. Susanna blurted out in a rush, "Okay, okay! I take it back. I was
joking, alright?"
See? All she did was tease him a little about his size and he got all huffy. But
when he made fun of her figure in front of other people, she wasn''t supposed to
get mad?
Hull caught her chin in his hand and kissed her fiercely.
Susanna''s eyes went wide in shock. Ohe on! Why did this always happen to
her? Not here, not now, and she couldn''t even fight back.
Thankfully, Hull wasn''t as shameless as she''d feared. After a long, lingering
moment, he finally pulled away from her lips.
"Getting brave, aren''t you?" he murmured, eyebrow raised.
He remembered how she used to be-nervous and skittish, like a kitten. Just one
look from him and she''d practically jump out of her skin.
But now? After twenty-odd days hanging out with Yvonne, Susanna had definitely
toughened up.
She whimpered, "Would you please get off me?"
This was way too intimate, way too public. She was terrified Hull might actually
lose control right here, in broad daylight, and she wasn''t sure she could handle it.
After everything that had happened since yesterday... she felt like she was falling
apart.
Hull''s nose brushed against hers, their breaths mingling. "Yvonne''s been a bad
influence on you."
Susanna protested, "Don''t say that about Yvonne! She didn''t teach me any of
this."
Honestly, Yvonne spent most of her time ranting about that jerk Dan. Susanna
had to admit, Dan really was the worst-ying with people''s feelings, faking his
own death? Who even does that? And somehow, they were rted by blood. Life
really wasn''t fair.
She hated being associated with that kind of guy.
Hull narrowed his eyes. "Defending her, huh?"
"I''m not! I''m just stating the facts."
The time with Yvonne had opened
Susanna''s eyes. She finally
understood why there was never any
catfight drama between Ste and
Yvonne, like you''d see in a cheesy
soap opera. The Quinn family just
wasn''t like that. They were
open-minded, easygoing, and
big-hearted. Ste, raised in that
environment, would never stoop to
Urs''s maniptive games.
No wonder Ste never bothered to
argue with Urs-she just couldn''t
be bothered. Most of the time, she''d
just roll her eyes and, if Urs
pushed too far, settle things the
quick way.
"Anyway, I think Yvonne''s great," Susanna grumbled.
Hull grinned, stood up, and pulled her into his arms as if she weighed nothing at
all.
"Put me down. I can walk by myself!" she protested, wriggling.
He ignored her, carrying her straight toward the kitchen.
Inside, the dining table was already set, but Barnaby and Ss were nowhere to
be seen.
Susanna''s eyesnded on the
spread: stacks of pancakes, crispy
bacon, golden scrambled eggs and
a tter of fresh fruit. Instinctively,
she nced down at her chest.
t. So t.
Hull dished her up a bowl of creamy chowder and set it in front of her. Susanna
looked up at him, eyes wide and a little hurt.
"What?" Hull asked, puzzled.
Susanna pouted, "You''re judging me, aren''t you?"
Hull looked genuinely taken aback.
She sniffled, feeling sorry for herself. Back in Portis City, she''d always done things
her own way. No one had ever made her feel self-conscious-until now.
The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and
continue reading tomorrow, everyone!