Southern Exposure (Southern Desires Series Book 2) (13 page)

“So what do I do to stop the dreams?”

“One person said to write them down in a journal or diary. And this way they lose the power they have over you at night.”

It sounded corny to Hannah, but she’d try anything. She was going to lose her mind if she couldn’t stop the images each time she closed her eyes.

“It’s worth the try. And Bailey, thanks for listening.”

Bailey replied, “I’m glad I could be some help. Now sleep. I want you ready for those cowboys when we land.”

Hannah laughed but it wasn’t sincere. “Ready, willing, and able.”
None of the above, but one white lie won’t do any harm.

She looked out the window.
Remember. It was only a dream. Focus on what’s ahead and that’s going to be a desperately needed mini vacation with Sissie and Bailey. Time to leave the bad dreams behind and fill them with some sweet memories.

H
ow did I
forget how hot it is in Texas? Dang, makes Savannah feel like a spring day.
As they entered the Wild Sass Saloon, Sissie practically leaped from behind the bar to give Hannah a big grizzly-bear hug.

“Sissie, you’re going to crack my ribs.”

“I need to toughen you up, don’t I? Wait till these boys start draggin’ you on the dance floor. You’re gonna need to know how to stand your ground.” Then she turned to Bailey. “I guess you’re the young lady I need to thank for draggin’ her here. Was she kickin’ and screamin’ all the way?”

Bailey laughed. “I’m hoping the bruises won’t show because I brought my boots, and I’m not planning on fighting the boys off.”

“Hell, yeah. My kind of gal. Did you spill the beans yet?” She nudged Bailey with her elbow.

“Nope.”

Hannah looked at them both. “Are you sure you two haven’t met before, because you’re pretty chummy right now.”

“Two peas in a pod.” Sissie laughed.

“This is going to be a great vacation.”

“For some of us,” Hannah added.

“Don’t you worry, Hannah. I promise you’re gonna have a wonderful time. The three of us are goin’ to a weddin’ on Saturday, and you’ll soon forget all your troubles,” Sissie informed her.

I really hope so.
“Whose wedding?”

“Derrick Nash, he’s a local ’round here. A very sad story that’s havin’ a happy endin’. Not my place to tell it, though.”

Since when? I know you’re the gossip hound here.
“Guess a lot has changed.”

“Oh yeah. You noticed I had the bar spruced up? I needed to get with the times.”

That’s not what I meant.
“Looks good. I hope you still serve your homemade lemonade.”

“You bet I do. Just tell me, do you want it with a kick or without?”

“With,” Bailey answered.

“Without,” Hannah said.

“Go find yourself a table, and I’ll bring them right over.”

As Sissie left, Hannah turned to Bailey and said, “Am I going to forgive you for whatever little secret you and Sissie have?”

Bailey winked at her. “You’ve forgiven me for worse.”

Great. That tells me nothing. Maybe I should’ve gotten my lemonade with an extra kick.

As they sat listening to the music, a familiar face arrived.

“Don’t tell me that’s little Hannah Entwistle all grown up.”

Hannah got up and greeted him with a hug. “Jack, you look great. I thought you would’ve moved away from here.”

“Hell, no. I love Honeywell just like you love Savannah. You know it’s home.”

That it is. But love it, well that’s not how I’d describe my feelings exactly.
“Jack, let me introduce you to my best friend, Bailey Tasca. Bailey, this is Jack Bullard.”

“Howdy. Any friend of Hannah is a friend of mine.”

“Pleasure to meet you. Am I reading that badge correctly? You’re the sheriff?”

Jack reached a hand up and tipped his cowboy hat to her. “Yes, ma’am. I’m the law ’round here, so if any of the boys get out of hand, you just let me know, you hear?”

“I like Honeywell already,” Bailey said, grinning from ear to ear.

“So what brings you to Honeywell?”

“Visiting Sissie,” Hannah answered.

“And we’re attending the Nash wedding,” Bailey added.

Jack said, “I didn’t know you knew Derrick, Hannah.”

“We don’t, but Sissie said we were invited as her family. So here we are.”

Jack looked at her puzzled and turned to Sissie as she approached. She was grinning and gave him a playful wink.

“Yes, sir. These ladies have a special invite to the weddin’,” Sissie said.

Special invite? Why special? I thought the family was invited. Am I missing something?

“Well, it’s late, and my deputy needs the morning off tomorrow, so I best be heading out. I guess I’ll see you two at the wedding.”

“Looking forward to it, Sheriff. I’ll save a dance just for you,” Bailey said.

Hannah rolled her eyes. “If she only knew that you dance like an ox and will be stepping all over her feet.”

Jack walked away shaking his head.

“Now there’s the old Hannah I know,” Bailey said. “Good to have you back.”

Hard not to be when I’m around you.
She raised her glass and said, “To a much-needed vacation.”

Bailey raised hers and said, “To happy endings.”

“Isn’t that supposed to be happily ever afters?”

“Happy endings are fun. You should give them a try.”

That’s going a bit far, but okay. We are attending a wedding.
“I think I’m going to follow Jack’s lead and head to bed. I’m not sure if it’s the heat or the flight, but I’m exhausted.”

“Okay. You go. I’m still waiting for one of those cowboys to ask me to dance.”

“Bailey, they’ve been working all day and won’t be asking anyone to dance till Friday night. Trust me. I know them.”

Bailey looked disappointed and got out of her chair. “Heck, then I might as well get some beauty sleep. I hope your cousin’s place has air-conditioning.”

You and me both. But I don’t want to get spoiled because going home won’t be pleasant if I do.

“I can’t believe you had the men at the house so quickly.”
Almost as quick as I can pull my team in for a mission. Now I see you have loyalty around your men as well. Different reasons, but still loyal men.

“Why not, Mark? You think you’re the only one who can bark orders and people jump? The only difference is, mine don’t jump, they strap on a tool belt.” Don laughed.

Not the only difference. But I get the point.
“I’m impressed. You’ve got me believing that when we get back Monday morning, this place will be practically complete.”

“Don’t doubt it for a second. These guys are the best. If anything goes wrong, they’ll have it fixed even before we hear about it.”

Things going wrong are exactly what worries me. Hannah has to come back to this being completed. Her future is at stake, and I don’t want to let her down.

“Quit worrying.”

“I’m still trying to figure out what I’m going to say to Casey when she sees you at the wedding.”

Don laughed. “Don’t worry about it. I’ve already spoken to her. By the way, why didn’t you tell me she was marrying Derrick Nash?”

“You know him?”

“Yeah. One tough businessman. I’m not sure how someone as sweet as Casey is going to handle someone like him.”

“That was my thought at first, but Casey is not the little girl we knew. She’s toughened up a lot. Been through a lot. Derrick loves my sister. When I was in Texas with them, I saw a man willing to die to protect her. That’s all I needed to know.”

“Guess we don’t always know what lies beneath, do we? Because that’s a man I never thought would get married again. Maybe there’s hope for you yet.”

Mark shot him a look. “Don’t be looking at me. We’re the same age and I don’t see a wedding ring on your finger.”

Neither of them were husband material, but it was for totally different reasons.

“That’s because I enjoy the single life.”

“And so do I,” Mark said plainly.

“Then I guess we’re both going to enjoy this wedding. Lots of single women.”

“Yeah. Think about it, Don: a bunch of single women all wanting what Casey and Derrick have. And neither of us are going to give it them.”

“Damn, Mark, why do you gotta ruin a man’s dream?”

Because I live in reality, my friend. I don’t lie to myself.
That didn’t mean he didn’t deny himself things he wanted. Because he wanted Hannah, he just couldn’t have her. Not the way he yearned to. “Don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll find someone who can put up with you someday.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

It means I’m done talking about it.
“If you don’t mind, I’m going to get some long-overdue, much needed sleep while we fly to Texas.”

He closed his eyes, but sleep wasn’t what he was after. He replayed everything he’d heard on the recordings of the tenant. The guy was smart enough to watch everything he said, but every once in a while he’d slip and say the transfer was made or payment was delivered and waiting on orders. Who they were paying and for what reason was crucial needed information. Since the guy didn’t leave the apartment, he had to be doing it through someone else. This was some kind of professional ring. He wasn’t ready to say a terrorist ring, but whatever it was, it was most likely illegal. He’d already sent some of the recordings off for analysis to see if they could identify any of the voices. So far nothing had come back. What he needed was a picture of the guy or a damn good description ASAP.

Just because Hannah was safe didn’t mean his duty to his country was over.
I can’t rest until I know what we’re dealing with. Don wants to be back by Monday. I want to be there Sunday. Something isn’t right, and I’m going to find out what.

A
lthough Casey and Derrick insisted, Mark and Don decided not to stay on the ranch. They both wanted privacy, but for entirely different reasons. Don seemed to think he was going to find some sweet young thing who wasn’t going to be able to resist his charms. Mark wasn’t about to remind him he wasn’t all that charming.
Enjoy your fantasy buddy. I have no time for such distractions. Beside, there’s one sweet thing already causing me enough distraction right now; I don’t want to think about another.

Now alone in his hotel room, Mark pulled out his phone and dialed his second-in-command, Johnson.

“Getting in isn’t going to be as easy as you’d like to believe, Johnson.”

“Never stopped us before, Collins. Other complications?”

“None.”

“Right. So . . . the landlord and her friend?”

“Explain your hesitation.”

“Just ensuring this is a duty mission, not one of . . . love.”

What the fuck?
Mark wanted to jump through the phone and straighten Johnson’s ass out. He had never questioned him like that before. All these years, he of all people should know better.
I don’t love Hannah. I just don’t want her hurt.
There was no way Mark was going to answer Lionel’s
concern.
He was a damn good second-in-command but had crossed a boundary this time.

“Johnson, I have intel on a possible terrorist, POI. Do your job.”

No matter how good the team was, they really had no idea what they were walking into. If anything went wrong, he wanted no civilians, especially Hannah, anywhere nearby.

“Hannah Entwistle and Bailey Tasca should be away until the end of next week, which provides time for us to get in and get out. If there is no evidence of criminal activity, no harm done, but if there is, we need to act fast. Just have the team close by so when I return they’re ready for the mission.”

“Roger that. The team is on standby if you need us. Text me, and we go in.”

“Thanks.” He slipped the phone back in his pocket and saw Don standing in the doorway. Johnson may have given him shit, but he was a good man, and there was no doubt he’d have Mark’s back. He just needed to plan for the perfect time.
Get Don’s men out of there and then we go in that night. One way or another, we are getting some answers before Hannah returns.

“My jet is at your disposal anytime, Mark. If something is going down and you need to move quickly, you don’t have to ask.” Don handed him a business card. “The number on the back is the pilot’s cell. I’ll let him know to keep it fueled and ready for you.”

He took the card and slipped it into his wallet. He normally traveled by chopper when a mission arose, but it wasn’t a bad idea to have a backup plan. “Thanks.”

“Still no name for the upstairs tenant?”

“Nope. I tried to get it from Hannah, but boy, that woman can be tight-lipped when she wants to be.”
Or maybe she doesn’t want to talk to me.

“You need a new tactic,” Don suggested.

“Mine has been working for years.”

“This isn’t an interrogation of someone suspected of a crime. If you haven’t noticed, this is a sweet, innocent woman. I know this is going to be difficult for you, but you might want to try some humor or light conversation.”

“What the hell, Don? You’re making it sound like I’m some caveman who’s never seen a woman before. I have plenty of experience.”

“You’re missing the mark. I’m not talking about sex. I’m talking about how to pet them to get the information you want. How do you think I knew about their travel?”

If you fucking tell me you were petting Hannah, I think I’m going to knock you on your ass.

Don must’ve read his mind as he raised his hands in defense. “Bailey! I got the information from Bailey. Damn, man. You should know I’d never use my charm on your girl.”

“Stop saying that.”

Don looked puzzled. “Saying what?”

“You keep referring to her as my girl. She is not now, nor will she ever be, my girl. I am there for one purpose only, and that’s to do the fucking repairs.”

Don glared at him. “So you’re all pissed about something that doesn’t mean anything to you? Isn’t that a contradiction?”

I know what the fuck it is.
“You’ve known me almost all my life. In all that time have you ever seen me in a serious relationship?”

After a minute Don shook his head.

“That isn’t by mistake. I choose not to become involved. My profession means I could leave a woman a widow. I don’t want that.”
Especially not Hannah. She’s already suffered enough loss. She doesn’t need to think about losing another person she loves. Hell, what am I thinking? I’m not the man she wants any more than I’m the right man for her.

“I’m not buying that excuse. Tell me the truth: why are you still single?”

Because I’ve never met anyone I wanted that much. So what? I’m incapable of love. It works out perfectly for my job. No entanglements. I come and go as I please with no one to tell me no. I wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Probably the same reason you’re single, Don. No woman would put up with either of us. Stubborn bastards to the core.”

Don laughed. “Oh, I think you’d fall if the right woman came along.”

“Okay, but you first. Remember, we never leave a man behind,” Mark joked. Don joked about remaining single until the day he died, but Mark knew it was just a matter of time before he turned a new leaf and settled down. When they were young, Don talked about the type of woman he was going to marry. He even said he was going to have six children.
Turning forty in a few years, buddy. I don’t know what you’re waiting for.
Don would be a good husband and father. However, those were two things he never thought about for himself. He was in a routine that would be nearly impossible to change.
Damn. I’m thirty-eight. This old dog isn’t about to change now.

“Well, if that’s the case, I think we should head over to the saloon and see if I can get a jump on it.”

Mark knew Sissie. She wasn’t a bad person, just too damn upbeat for him. There was no way he was going to be able to walk into that bar without her coming up and hugging him. He’d never been the hugging type, but Sissie wasn’t the type of person to care.
I could warn Don, but that would take all the fun out of it.

“To the Wild Sass it is.”

As soon as they exited the hotel, heat slammed them in the face. “Damn it. How can people do this every day?”

“You’re getting soft. Can’t do a five-minute walk without your AC?”

“Just because I enjoy living the good life doesn’t mean I’m incapable of roughing it. Or are you forgetting who you left upstairs in that apartment for hours while you handled other business?”

Even Mark found the cool air refreshing as they entered the bar. He quickly scanned the room but didn’t see Sissie.
Maybe she’s out. This might be our lucky day.
Mark had been there several times on his last visit. She had never left the place.

“Let’s sit at the bar.”

He was there but had no intention to get comfortable. He had too much on his mind.
Like what is Hannah doing right now? Why didn’t she tell me she was going away? Did she think I wouldn’t miss her? She’d be right, but weirdly, also wrong.

Normally there was at least one person behind the bar. The bar was far from empty, so there should have been a waitress around somewhere.

“This is a bar where we can get a drink, right?”

Don apparently felt the same. The service was lacking. He wasn’t an expert on how she ran her business, but this surprised him. “We can try the diner. No alcohol, but the food is good.”

“Sounds good.”

Both he and Don got up from their seats and were just about to head out the door when that high-pitched voiced echoed through the room. “Mark Collins, don’t you dare try sneakin’ outta here without givin’ me a hug.”

I was so close.
Turning he said, “Wouldn’t think of it, Sissie.”

“Oo la la. Who do you have here with you?” She walked over and put her hand on Don’s bicep.

Mark stood back and grinned. As she lifted her arms and pulled him in for a hug, Don gave Mark a
payback is a bitch
look.

“Y’all don’t look like brothers.”

“No, ma’am. Just a friend.”

“From Buffalo too?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Sissie shook her head. “You two are so darn fine lookin’ I’d think you’re Texans who wandered too far north. What’s your name?”

“Don Farrell. And you must be Sissie. My friend Mark wasn’t able to stop talking about you the entire flight over. I think he missed you.”

Mark shook his head at Don.
I’ll fucking get you for that.

Sissie ate it up like candy as she winked at Mark then linked her arms in each of theirs and said, “Well, you two are coming into the back with me. Me and my gals are shootin’ some pool. They’re pretty good, and I need y’all to come and distract them a bit, so I have a chance to win.”

“Can I get a beer with the game?” Don asked Sissie.

“I tell you what. Y’all go down that hall and at the end there’s a private pool room. I’ll bring you each a cold one on the house.” She was off toward the bar.

“Welcome to the Wild Sass. I hope you know what you just did by agreeing to play whoever is in the back. It’s probably some of her friends, who by the way, are just as . . . effusive as Sissie,” Mark said as he headed to the pool room.

He opened the door and waved Don to enter then he followed. There was a woman with her back to them wearing a pair of short shorts, cowboy boots, her T-shirt tied around her waist. She was about to take her shot, so he stood quietly. She leaned over, so her upper body practically touched the table. Her fine ass was all he could see from where he stood.

Fuck. This woman reminds me of Hannah.
Thinking of her, his cock started throbbing. He tried to concentrate on anything but the fine view he had. Mark heard Don speak very softly to someone behind him then the sound of the door closing. He was tempted to look over his shoulder, but Mark couldn’t pull his eyes off
her
. He tried to focus on the pool stick she held, but he could only picture her slender fingers wrapped around his cock, stroking him.
And for some weird reason, probably because I had just been thinking about missing Hannah, I feel guilty. As if I’m cheating on her. Ridiculous.

As she pulled the pool stick back, her shorts rode up even higher.
God, you’re killing me
. If this woman didn’t take the shot soon, he was going to come right up behind her and take one himself. There was no way she didn’t know how enticing she was in that position.

When she took her shot, the ball flew off the table and onto the floor. He heard her moan in defeat as she laid her face on the table.

“Really? There must be a better use for this table than for me to knock balls around.”

Hannah!
Even though her voice was muffled as she spoke, he’d know it anywhere.
For that matter, I should’ve recognized that ass. Perfect.

He watched her as she slowly stood upright, pulled her cowboy hat off, and shook her lovely blonde locks loose so they floated to her shoulders. When she turned around, she had a sweet smile he’d become accustomed to. Unfortunately it faded quickly when she saw him standing there.
Shocked or disappointed?

Hannah looked around the room and asked, “Where’s Bailey?”

“Don’t know. Don’t care.” He had no idea how he would’ve missed seeing Bailey in the room. He was so fixated on her beautiful ass; the rest of the room didn’t matter. He was in Honeywell, where crime was a parking ticket.

“What are you doing here, Mark? Are you following me?” she asked, planting a hand on her hip.

That sounds like something I’d do, but no. Not this time.

“I was invited.”

“You mean Sissie invited you?”

He shook his head. “My sister is getting married Saturday to—”

“Derrick Nash.”