Step F*#k: Part Three (A Stepbrother series Book 3) by Scarlett Ward Page A

a step to the side, putting more distance between us.  
    “The lake or the pool?” I ask, trying to match his easygoing tone, and failing miserably. My own voice sounds uptight and forced.  
    “Both. And I would like to reiterate my father’s offer last night. If you’re at all interested in going out on the lake—be it by boat, jetski, or any other means—I’d be more than happy to take you.”
    “You’re so sweet!”
    Jessica has appeared, wearing a sleeveless purple sundress, looking like she actually enjoyed a decent night’s sleep and didn’t wake up naked on a cold bathroom floor. She beams at me. “I guess we lucked out getting such a nice stepbrother.”
    Mom and Zack come out before I have a chance to reply, Mom carrying a serving plate heaped with scrambled eggs, Zack with pancakes and bacon.  
    “Good morning, good morning!” Zack says heartily as he sets the stuff down on the table. “Have a seat and let’s dig in! Steph and I are so happy that we’re all here together. It really is something.”
    I move to sit as far away from Jai as possible, but the table isn’t huge so I don’t have many options. Mom and Zack are at either end, so I am left with either sitting across from Jai, or sitting next to him. I try to wait for him to sit down before me, but he’s gazing out toward the lake, with what I believe to be a faux-faraway expression on his face, like he’s reliving some especially wonderful lake memory. Jessica sits down to my mother’s right. I can sit next to Jess and have Jai be across from us, or I can go to the other side of the table and take the chance that he’s going to sit next to me. And I can’t decide which is worse: being next to him or across from him, having to look directly at his face.  
    He, apparently, though, is doing his best to make me choose first.  
    “Em?” Mom looks at me. “You going to sit down, sweetheart?” She pats the empty spot to her left, and now I have no choice but to sit there. Jai waits another few beats and then comes and takes the seat next to me. Mom hands me a plate and I dish myself up some eggs, some bacon, and a pancake. After my scant dinner of oysters last night, I figured I’d be ravenous, but sitting so close to Jai is really the only thing I can focus on, and my stomach twists into a complicated knot.  
    “This looks delicious,” Jai says, and his own plate is heaped with food. He pours himself some coffee from a silver carafe. “Can I pour you some coffee? I’m normally a tea drinker myself, but I know how much you Americans love your coffee.”
    There’s the tiniest of smirks as he says this.  
    “Oh, Emma does love her coffee,” Mom says.  
    “No,” Jessica says as Jai fills my coffee mug without waiting for me to actually say yes. “Emma likes coffee-flavored drinks.”
    “And what is that distinction?” Jai asks, filling the mug.  
    “She doesn’t like the actual taste of coffee, but rather coffee enhanced with sweeteners and accessories. I, on the other hand, do love the true taste of coffee. So fill her up!” She pushes her mug across the table and Jai grins.  
    “Ah. I see.” He pours Jess a cup and then sets the carafe down. He looks at my cup. “If that’s true and you’re going to add sugar and milk, then I do believe I overfilled your mug.”  
    “It’s fine,” I say. I shoot a look at my sister, who is sipping her un-doctored black coffee. “And I don’t see what the problem is with drinking coffee with cream. Which is how I take mine—just cream.”
    “Ah, a cream lover.” Jai grins.
    “It’s like,” I continue, doing my best to ignore him, “saying that you don’t actually like hot dogs if you put ketchup and mustard on them. But who doesn’t put ketchup and mustard on their hot dog?”
Jai’s grin widens. “You like hot dogs, too?”
    “I don’t eat hot dogs,” Jess says, shuddering. “So I don’t have a comment about that.”
    “Oh, well, Emma loves hot dogs,”