Deadly Addition (Hardy Brothers Security Book 9) (10 page)

“Because you just showed up out of nowhere after not seeing your daughter in – what – six years? You can see why that might be cause for alarm,” James said.

“I don’t want anything but to spend some time with my daughter.”

“Then how come you haven’t tried to contact her since you stopped at her apartment?” Mandy asked.

“How is that any of your business?”

“Emma is part of our family,” James said carefully. “We don’t want her hurt, or upset.”

“And why would I upset her?” Sheila asked.

“Well, let’s face it, you’re not exactly Mother of the Year,” Mandy said.

“How dare you!”

“How dare you?” Mandy exploded. “Emma wants to believe the best about you, but I know you knew what that animal you married was doing to her. Don’t even bother denying it. There’s no way you couldn’t have known. You just sacrificed your children to his … appetite … and then when the going got tough, you took off and abandoned them.”

“They were adults,” Sheila said. “You can’t abandon adults.”

“Emma wasn’t an adult,” Mandy said. “The state used the two weeks she was still a minor to take her into custody and run some rather … invasive … tests on her.”

“She was an adult,” Sheila countered.

“We’re not here to argue about this,” James interjected. “For the record, though, I happen to agree with my wife. I think you knew, and I think only a disgusting person would put her own happiness ahead of that of her children.”

“Is that why you’re here? You’re here to accuse me of atrocities that should have been forgotten years ago?”

“No,” James said, shaking his head. “We’re here to make sure that you’re aware that any … shenanigans … where Emma is concerned are not going to be tolerated.”

“Oh, whatever,” Sheila said.

“Your daughter is pregnant,” James said. “I’m sure she would rather have told you herself, but it’s very important that you understand, if you upset her – if you make her sad for even a moment – then we’re going to drum you out of this town and make it impossible for you to return.”

“Emma’s health is our priority,” Mandy said.

“And you think it’s not mine?” Sheila asked.

“You just need to think long and hard about what your end game is here,” James said. “Because if anything you do comes back to hurt Emma? You’re going to wish you’d never met us. I promise you that.” He turned to Mandy. “Come on, wife. You can pick wherever you want for dinner. Let’s just get out of … here.”

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Emma looked around the baby shop, unsure.

“Of course I am,” Sheila said, her face flushed with excitement. “I’m going to be a grandmother. I love the idea of shopping together.”

When Sheila had shown up on her front doorstep Friday morning, Emma had been shocked. Finn had already left for work, eliciting a promise from Emma that she would eat more than fruit, and then left her to her endless lists and planning. She was happy with her tasks, and had been considering staying in her pajamas all day, when her mother showed up.

To Emma’s surprise, not only did Sheila already know about the pregnancy, but she also seemed effusive and excited at the prospect.

“We’re not buying anything until we find out if it’s a boy or a girl,” Emma said. “We’re just kind of looking right now. We need to find another place to live, so buying stuff now just means we’re going to have to move it twice.”

“Oh, where are you going to move?”

“We haven’t decided yet,” Emma said. “Finn wants to buy a house, but he wants to wait until he has a bigger down payment saved up. That means we need a three-bedroom apartment until then.”

“Are you going to stay in the same complex?”

“Finn doesn’t like it,” Emma said.

“Does Finn get to decide everything?” Sheila asked.

Emma frowned. “I know you two got off on the wrong foot … .”

“It’s not that,” Sheila said. “It’s just … you keep saying that Finn wants this, and Finn doesn’t like that. What do you want?”

“I just want a happy life with Finn,” Emma said.

“He seems like a … strong man,” Sheila said, choosing her words carefully. “I’m sure he’s a much better man than your father.”

“Every man is a better man than him,” Emma said. “I don’t want to talk about him.”

“Okay,” Sheila said, holding up her hands in surrender. “We won’t talk about him ever again. It’s not like I have fond memories of the man.”

Emma straightened her shoulders. “I think I like a natural wood crib.”

“That’s nice,” Sheila said. “That would be good for a girl and a boy. You should be careful of the spindles, though. If they’re too delicate – and these are a little thin for my taste – they’ll break. Especially if you have a boy.”

“Really?”

“Boys are hard on furniture,” Sheila said. “You never destroyed a thing as a child. Your brother shredded entire books because he liked ripping paper.”

Emma searched her memory, but she couldn’t ever remember having a book in the house when she was little. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. Her mother had a hidden stash of Harlequin romances, but there had never been any children’s books.

“See, it’s good I have your perspective,” Emma said. “I don’t know anything about kids.”

“None of Finn’s siblings have children?”

“Not yet,” Emma said. “I don’t think Mandy and James are going to have any, and Sophie and Grady seem on the fence, too. Jake and Ally haven’t been dating all that long, although she seems gung-ho on the idea of kids. She’s already been shopping for my baby.”

“Yes, I met Mandy and James,” Sheila said. “I think it’s wise they don’t have any children.”

Emma stilled. Her mother had admitted how she found out about the pregnancy, and while she found Mandy and James’ interference rather invasive – she understood why they stepped in.

“They’re warm people,” Emma said.

“They didn’t seem warm to me.”

“They’re just protective,” Emma replied. “Trust me, you’ll like them when you get to know them.”

Sheila pursed her lips. “I’m sure I will,” she said. “How long have they been married?”

“Just a few months,” Emma said. “They’ve been together for about a year and half now, but they’ve known each other since they were kids. Mandy and Ally were best friends back then.”

“And they all grew up together up north somewhere?”

“It’s a little town called Barker Creek.”

“Have you been there?”

“No, they don’t go up too often,” Emma said. “Sophie has been there. She was horrified. She’s a city girl at heart, and she said it only had one stoplight and six bars. She also said they had a buck pole.”

“What’s a buck pole?”

“It’s some wooden
thing
downtown where hunters hang dead deer during hunting season.”

“Why?”

Emma shrugged. “I think it’s a country thing.”

“It sounds gross.”

“Yeah, I don’t want to see it either.”

Sheila shook off the offending visual. “Have you met his parents?”

“Yeah, they’re great,” Emma said. “They came down for Mandy and James’ wedding. His mom is so cute, and his dad is just a doll.”

“Well, it’s good that you like them,” Sheila said. “If you’re going to marry into their family, you need to like your in-laws.”

Emma ran her hand over a stitched comforter, averting her gaze. “We’re not getting married, at least not right away.”

“You’re not?”

“No,” Emma said. “We’re just moving in together right now.”

“But … .” Sheila worried her bottom lip with her teeth. “Don’t you want to get married?”

Emma’s heart flopped. “Of course, but … .”

“He didn’t ask you, did he?”

“No.”

“Why do you think that is?”

“I think it didn’t occur to him,” Emma replied. “This is a lot to absorb all at once. I think he’s handling things pretty well – all things considered.”

“But you should be married when you have a baby,” Sheila said.

“Says who?”

“It’s just proper, Emma,” Sheila said. “A family is a mother and father who are married.”

Emma made a face. “Who are you to say what a family is? A family is the people who love you. A family is not a family just because people are married. I’d much rather have the family I do now than the one I had … then.”

“I’m not criticizing you, Emma,” Sheila said. “It’s not your fault he didn’t ask you to marry him.”

“Leave it alone,” Emma warned. “I’m happy right now. Finn is happy. Things will happen when they’re supposed to happen. Don’t press this situation.”

Sheila wet her lips. “Okay. I’m sorry.”

“Good,” Emma said. “Let’s go and look at strollers. We didn’t get a chance to check them out yesterday.”

“THIS
looks like a nice restaurant,” Sheila said, pasting a bright smile on her face as she looked between Finn and Emma.

“It is good,” Finn said, forcing himself to be pleasant. He still didn’t trust the woman, but there was no way he was going to be hostile when a relationship with her mother meant so much to Emma. He wasn’t going to be the reason Emma didn’t get everything that she wanted. “We come here quite often.”

“You don’t go to steakhouses? Not that I want a steak or anything,” Sheila said. “I know they’re expensive.”

“There’s steak on the back page of the menu if you want it,” Finn said. “Order what you like. Emma doesn’t eat meat, so we have Italian a lot. It’s just easier.”

Sheila wrinkled her nose. “You still don’t eat meat? I thought you would’ve outgrown that.”

“I try to eat healthy,” Emma said. “And I don’t like the idea of eating animals.”

“Steak is good, though,” Sheila said. “I love steak.”

“So, get steak,” Emma said.

“What are you going to get?”

“Just some pasta and vegetables.”

“I don’t suppose you’d consider adding shrimp to that, would you?” Finn asked.

“Shrimp is meat.”

“Barely,” Finn said. “The doctor says you need iron, sweetie, and the pills aren’t enough. You also need protein. You don’t have to eat all of the shrimp. If you just eat half of them … .”

Emma sighed. “Fine, but you have to eat the other half so they don’t go to waste.”

“Sold,” Finn said. “I happen to love shrimp. I think I’m going to get a steak, too.”

Emma made a face. “You shouldn’t eat so much red meat,” she said. “It’s bad for you.”

“Yes, but it tastes good,” Finn countered. “We’re celebrating. I want to celebrate with steak.”

“Me, too,” Sheila said, smiling broadly.

After placing their orders and receiving their drinks, the conversation stalled. Sheila seemed uncomfortable, so Finn tried to break the silence. “So, Sheila, where do you live now?”

Emma lifted her head, interested.

“I’ve lived a few places since I left here,” Sheila said. “I was pretty mobile for the past couple of years, but I finally settled in Vegas about three years ago.”

Finn arched an eyebrow. “Vegas?”

“I work at one of the casinos,” Sheila said. “I’m a dealer.”

“That sounds like a good job,” Finn said. “I’ve heard the dealers out there make good money.”

“I make decent money,” Sheila said. “The cost of living is kind of high out there, too.”

“I hadn’t thought of that,” Finn said. “Are you on vacation?”

“Yes. I had some time built up, and I’d been considering coming to see Emma, and then I finally just decided to do it,” Sheila said. “Sometimes … sometimes the longer you stay away the harder it is to come back. I kept telling myself that I would come back, but each day made it harder. It’s a trap.”

“It is,” Finn said. “At least you finally did the right thing.”

“I always wanted to do the right thing,” Sheila said. “When things started happening … I know you don’t believe that I didn’t know what Lance was doing to Emma … but I didn’t.”

“I don’t want to talk about that,” Emma said, focusing on her plate.

Finn reached over and rubbed the back of her head. “We won’t talk about it.”

“I just want you to know that I didn’t know,” Sheila said. “I wouldn’t have subjected my children to that.”

Finn didn’t believe her. “What’s important now is getting to know each other again,” Finn said. “You’re going to be a grandmother. That means you have an important place in this family.”

“Yes,” Sheila said, smiling. “It’s a very exciting time in my life.” She lifted her wine glass to make a toast. “To family.”

“To family,” Finn said, sipping from his own glass of wine. He’d said the words, but he knew in his heart that Sheila would never be a part of his family. He just hoped Emma would be strong enough to realize that on her own. He didn’t want to be the one to crush her with the truth.

“So, how do you think dinner went?” Emma asked, pulling her pants off and situating them on a hanger before putting them in the bedroom closet. She wasn’t a neat freak, but she liked things in their proper place.

Finn knew what she wanted to hear. “It seemed fine.”

“Seemed?”

“I’m not sure what you want me to say, Emma,” Finn said carefully.

“I want you to tell me the truth.”

“Your mother and I are never going to be best friends,” Finn said. “I don’t believe her.”

Emma’s brown eyes were conflicted as she turned back to the closet so she could hang up her blouse. “Okay.”

“Emma, I know you don’t want to talk about it, and I get it,” Finn said. “I’m never going to ask you to talk about it if you don’t want to. If you do want to, I’m here to listen. I love you. Nothing you could say … nothing that happened to you … changes that. I already know what he did to you. You seem to forget, I heard you that day outside of the apartment. I heard you tell Andrew Wayne everything he did to you – in excruciating detail.”

Emma’s back was still to him. “I remember.”

“I loved you that day, Emma,” Finn said. “I love you today. Not one thing he did to you can ever change that. It doesn’t define you as a person. That’s something that happened to you, it’s not who you are.”

“Thank you.” Her voice was so tiny Finn was having trouble hearing her.

“No thanks are necessary,” Finn said. “Why don’t you come and cuddle with me?”

Emma finally shifted, and Finn was relieved to see that her eyes were free from tears. “Cuddle? Ally said that men never admit to cuddling.”

“You shouldn’t listen to a thing Ally tells you,” Finn said. “Ally is crazy.”

“Ally is your sister,” Emma said, crawling under the covers as Finn lifted them and rolling so her head was on his chest.

Finn tucked Emma in snugly. “Ally is my sister,” Finn agreed. “That doesn’t mean she isn’t crazy. You have to realize, Ally lived in a bubble her whole life. She had three older brothers who fought every battle for her, and she had a best friend who encouraged her to do crazy things all the time.”

“What was it like to be a kid in your family?” Emma asked. “I want our baby to have a happy childhood like you guys did. I want to know what you did as kids.”

Finn pursed his lips, considering. “Well, I was the third child,” he said. “My view of the family might be skewed.”

“How?”

“I had two older brothers who liked to beat me up,” Finn said. “James once hung me up on a hook behind our bedroom door by my underwear.”

“He did not!”

“He did,” Finn said. “Don’t worry. That’s normal brother stuff.”

“Did you pay him back?”

“I may have did a few things to him,” Finn said, smiling. “I remember, he was dating this girl named Ann in high school, and one day she was over and they were making out on the couch. I was in middle school at the time, and while I’d discovered girls, I did not see why James liked Ann.”

“She’s the one who was mean to Mandy, right?”

“See, I can’t remember that,” Finn said. “Mandy and Ally were a year behind me in school, and because that’s a weird age, I liked to pretend I didn’t know them.”

“That’s horrible.”

“That’s the reality of a big family,” Finn said, rubbing Emma’s back. “Anyway, James and Ann were making out on the couch, and I decided to drop water balloons on them from the second-floor landing. Ann was screeching – she was really annoying – and James came tearing up the stairs. I had to lock myself inside the bedroom until Mom got home.”

“Why do you think James dated Ann if she was so horrible? I just can’t picture him with anyone but Mandy.”

“Before Mandy, James dated so many women I’ve lost count,” Finn said. “I’m not sure he wasn’t waiting for her.”

“Waiting for her?”

“It’s like … it’s like he knew she would come for him one day,” Finn said. “And when she walked through the door, even before he realized who she was, he was already staking a claim.

“You know what’s funny? Grady and I picked up on a … thing … between during that first meeting,” he said.

“What kind of thing?” Emma was enjoying the story.

“He was just kind of aware of her presence,” Finn said. “Grady immediately tried to get under his skin by offering to take Mandy back to her apartment to check out her security. He was purposely trying to flirt with her, and it was because he recognized James’ interest.”

“What did James do?”

“Well, he was one step away from thumping his chest like King Kong,” Finn said. “He took her to the apartment, and the rest is history.”

“Were they together that night?”

“No,” Finn said. “James managed to fight off his inner urges for a couple of days. He kept checking in with her, though, even when he could have called her. It was obvious that she was it for him that day.”

“But he still did the bad thing,” Emma said.

“Yes, he still slept with her and had one more freak out,” Finn said. “Ironically enough, Ann showed up at our office that day. Her husband had left her, and she was sniffing around James and trying to put a claim in on him.

“While James was trying to get rid of her, Mandy stalked in and fired us because she was so mad and … you could just see it on his face … he was done hiding. He chased her out of the building and all the way back to her apartment. They haven’t been apart since.”

“They were apart the night she freaked out after the explosion,” Emma reminded him. “I found him trying to talk with her through the door. He was really upset.”

“They got through it,” Finn said. “When people are destined to be together, they always find a way to get through it. Just like us.”

Emma lifted her chin. “You think we’re destined to be together?”

“I think there’s no one else in this world who I could ever love,” Finn said. “If that’s not destiny, I don’t know what is.”

Emma kissed his strong jaw and ran her hand down his chiseled torso, not stopping until her hand was cupping his manhood beneath the covers. “I think it’s destiny, too, and I’m really glad you didn’t bother putting underwear on tonight.”

Finn shifted, her fingers causing him to spring to life. “Are you feeling frisky this evening?”

“Well, in addition to the crying and mood swings, the hormones are also making me a little … excitable.”

Finn raised an eyebrow. “Excitable? You mean you’re horny.”

“If you want to put it that way, go ahead,” Emma said. “I just … I want you. My skin is humming.”

“Well, while I don’t like the crying,” Finn said. “I can definitely enjoy the horniness.”

He pushed down the covers and pulled Emma on top of him. She straddled his naked waist, reaching behind her back so she could remove her bra. Finn caught her breasts as they fell, lifting his head and suckling a nipple.

“Oh,” Emma moaned. “I can’t believe how good that feels.”

Finn flicked out his tongue, playing with the hardened nub as he pulled her down on top of him to give himself easier access. He played with her, alternating his mouth between nipples as she continued to make mewling sounds in the back of her throat. She was so sensitive that every touch was enough send her over the edge. It was like he had a new toy, and couldn’t wait to wind her up.

Finn’s mouth was insistent as he sucked, his fingers kneading her slim back.

“Finn, I need you inside of me,” Emma said.

“Soon,” Finn said.

“Now.”

Finn sucked harder.

“Oh … oh … oh!”

He could feel her grinding her moist center against his hardened length. Even with her panties still on, he knew she was damp and ready.

“I need you now,” Emma implored. “Please … I … do you want me to beg?”

“Begging would help my ego,” Finn said around her nipple.

“Please,” Emma said. “I need you.”

Finn moved his hands down to her rear and grabbed it roughly, flipping her so she was on her back, never letting her nipple fall from his mouth. After a few more licks, he reluctantly pulled his mouth away and raised himself to his knees between her thighs.

He shimmied her panties down, resting her ankles on his shoulders. He kissed each of her calves as he slipped his hands beneath her rounded bottom and tugged her lower on the bed.

Emma hooked her knees over Finn’s shoulders as he started to rub himself against her.

“Come on,” Emma urged.

Finn smiled. “You’re so impatient, love,” he said. “We have all night.”

“Yes, but I need you now,” Emma pleaded. “I … you have no idea what this feels like. It’s like torture.”

“Are you saying that you’re going to die if I don’t make love to you?” Finn teased, rubbing her sensitive clitoris for good measure.

Emma bucked up, a sudden orgasm washing over her. Well, that was interesting, Finn internally mused. He wondered how many times he could bring her to completion in one night. That was a challenge he was readily up for.

Finn positioned himself at her opening. “What do you want, Emma?”

Emma’s eyes were squeezed shut. “I will never forgive you if you don’t make love to me right now!”

Finn pressed forward, angling Emma’s legs for maximum entry.

“Oh, yes.”

Finn pushed himself in as far as he could before pulling out at an agonizingly slow speed. “What do you want?”

“Finn!”

Finn grinned as he slammed back inside of her.

“Oh,” Emma said, her head lolling to the side. “Faster.”

Finn obliged, rubbing his thumb against Emma’s straining clitoris.

“Harder,” Emma ordered.

Finn increased his pace and hardened his strokes as he rubbed her.

“I … oh!” Emma bucked up underneath him, orgasming again. Finn fought to steady himself, but she was clutching him from inside, and he tumbled over the edge before he was ready and exploded inside of her.

He lowered her legs, trying to catch his breath as he rested on top of her. They were both gasping, and Emma’s hands were busily running up and down his strong back as she kissed his neck.

“Let’s do it again,” she whispered, slipping her tongue in his ear.

Finn raised an eyebrow. “I might need a second, sweetheart.”

Emma pushed him off of her and rolled on top of him, engulfing his shrinking package into her mouth for a quick taste before meeting his curious gaze with a devilish smile. “No, you won’t.”

Finn was sensitive from his orgasm – too sensitive for what she was doing – but she was ruthless. It only took her moments to make him hard again, and this time he lasted long enough to give her the ride she was really looking for.

It turned out, Finn’s new toy was a boundless source of energy. He wasn’t sure he could keep up – but he was open to giving her what she needed, as often as she needed it.

“I think I’m going to like these pregnancy hormones,” Finn murmured when Emma was finally sated and drifting off to sleep at his side.

“Good,” Emma said, yawning. “I’ll wake you up in a couple of hours.”