Hard as Stone (Passion in Paradise: The Men of the McKinnnon Sisters) (22 page)

“Don’t start. 
We’re going to
my
house to work on improvements to
my
home.  I’m
paying,” he stated flatly, pressing the bills into her hand when she would have
pulled her hand from his. 

Sighing, Harmony
rolled her eyes.  “Fine,” she muttered, pocketing the cash. She could feel all
her sisters’ eyes on them, and she didn’t want to have this argument in front
of an audience.  “But we’re talking about this nasty habit of paying for
everything later.”

“Nothing to say,”
Jake returned with a shrug as he cupped her hip and tugged her toward him. 
“Now, give me my kiss and get your ass moving.  Heaven’s hungry.”

Meeting his lips
for a short, but satisfying closed mouth kiss, Harmony smiled against his
lips.  “Don’t blame my daughter.  It’s
you
that’s hungry.”

“Yeah, I’m hungry
alright,” he agreed against her mouth, “but, not for food, darlin’.”

“Behave yourself,”
Harmony admonished breathily, thumping his muscular arm as she pulled away from
his embrace.  Meeting his glittering eyes, she couldn’t help her shiver.  She
and Jake hadn’t quite made it to consummating their relationship.  She had a
feeling that he was trying to give her time to adjust to having a man in her
life again and was keeping her relative inexperience at the forefront of his
mind when they were alone together.  They’d satisfied each other numerous times
with their hands and their mouths, but hadn’t crossed that ultimate line yet. 

“I’m tryin’, baby,
but you make it
hard
on a man,” he replied with a wicked grin, the
double entendre hanging in the air between them.

The look she saw
burning in his eyes at that moment only reinforced his statement.  It plainly
told her that his restraint just might finally crumble once and for all when he
got her alone tonight.  Her Momma had always told her that good things came to
those who waited, and she was willing to place a cash bet that when Jacob did
take her, it would be an unforgettable experience.  And truth be told, she
couldn’t deny that she was finally ready to take that step with him.

Hearing Zeke clear
his throat behind them, Harmony willed herself to stop blushing.  She was a
grown woman.  A mother.  It was okay for her to want to have sex with the man
she was seeing, damn it.  “We won’t be long,” she promised, squeezing his hand
before she hurried toward her youngest sister and Zeke. 

She watched the
rest of her family begin pulling out of the parking lot as she climbed into the
backseat of the SUV and strapped her seatbelt. 

“Looks like things
are gettin’ serious between you and Jacob,” Zeke noted as he started the engine
and Honor settled into the seat beside him.  “You like him a lot, huh?” he
asked, shooting her a curious look in the rearview mirror.

“We’re taking
things slowly,” Harmony murmured, shooting Zeke a shy smile.  “But, yes, I like
him a lot, Zeke.”

“Heaven adores
him,” Honor added enthusiastically, glancing at Harmony over her shoulder. 
“It’s good to see her interactin’ with men besides her honorary uncles, don’t
you think?  Jake is wonderful with her.”

Harmony nodded.   What
Honor said was true.  Heaven enjoyed having each of her uncles in her life.  
Zeke, Cain, and Abel had each taken an active role in Heaven’s life since the
day she was born, spoiling her and making sure she felt special.  Her daughter
also loved her two quasi grandfathers, Uncle Jethro and Cain and Abel’s father,
Seth.  Beyond them, however, Heaven hadn’t been around all that many men.
Before Jake, Harmony had refused to date and this was the first time her child
had ever experienced anything resembling a father figure.  “Yes,” she
acknowledged softly, “They’ve gotten really close in the last few weeks.”

“So, tell me about
Jake,” Zeke invited, his gaze darting to connect with hers in the rearview
mirror.  “What do you know about him, Harmony?  Jake doesn’t talk much about
himself.  What does he do?”

Harmony watched as
Honor shot the Sheriff an irritated look.  “Why are you pumpin’ my sister for
information on her boyfriend, Ezekiel?  Is there somethin’ you’re gettin’ at
here?”

Harmony watched
Zeke stiffen and quickly moved to intercede.  Arguments between Honor and Zeke
could become heated in a hurry, and it was fairly clear that this was headed
toward a scene.  It was much too pretty of an afternoon to waste being mad. 
“I’m sure Zeke is just curious, Honor.  He’s right; Jake is a private person
and to be honest, I don’t know all that much about what he does.  Something
related to security.  Honestly, when we’re together we talk more about me and
my new event planning business than anything else.”  It was true, too.  Somehow
the topic of conversation always got turned back around to either her or Heaven
when they talked.  She had to admit, thinking on it now, it was strange how
Jake always shied away from confiding much about his own life.

“Hmmm,” Zeke
hummed, drumming his fingers against the steering wheel as they stopped for a
red light.  “Security,” he mumbled, his lips pressing together as he stared out
the windshield.

“He must do pretty
well, Sheriff,” Honor began primly.  “He paid for his new house outright, and
word around town is that he’s scouting locations for a security firm,” she
continued, defending Jacob.  “Not many men can say that.”

“No,” Zeke agreed
softly.  “Not many men can. Problem is, the man doesn’t say much at all,” he
added quietly, ignoring the scowl Honor leveled him.

“He’s a nice man
that treats my sister and her daughter well,” Honor retorted, crossing her arms
obstinately over her chest.  “And since she’s too sweet to say this, I will. 
Mind your own business, Ezekiel.”

Harmony was
relieved when they turned into the local market and parked.  The tension had
grown thick inside the vehicle.   Maybe it was time to insist on having a
discussion about Jake’s life with him.  She didn’t want to pry, but if he was
going to be a permanent part of her and her child’s life, she should at least
know
something
about him.  Shoving that worry into a box in her mind and
closing the door on it until later, she smiled at her sister in the front seat
as she opened the door.  “This won’t take two minutes.  I’ll grab some buns and
burgers and we’ll be on the road.”  She already knew Jake was well stocked in
soda, chips, and beer.  Those seemed to be his favorite food groups.

“You sure you don’t
want help?” Honor asked eagerly over her shoulder, one hand already on the door
handle.  Her wide eyes begged Harmony to say yes.

Harmony’s lips
twitched.  She knew what her baby sister was doing.  Trying to escape Ezekiel
Monroe’s company had been a way of life for Honor for six years.  Unfortunately
for Honor (but fortunately for the rest of the family who loved and wanted her
protected), the man wouldn’t budge.  He was as immoveable as a mountain, much
to her sister’s dismay and agitation.  “I got it, Sis,” she said, slamming the
car door before the other woman could say anything else.

Honor’s parting
glare had Harmony giggling all the way to the sliding glass doors.

Fifteen minutes
later, Harmony cheerfully handed over forty dollars to the sweet cashier behind
the register at the local Piggly Wiggly.

“Are you sure you
can help us out on such short notice, Harmony?” Millie, the pretty redhead that
she’d known since high school, asked her excitedly.  “I was gonna try to
organize Mom and Dad’s anniversary party myself, but between nursing school and
working here… oh, well!  Anyway, when BethAnne told me how reasonable your
rates were for her wedding, I thought it was worth a shot to ask you.”

“Millie, I’d love
to help out.  It’ll be great.  Just call me tomorrow and we’ll work out all the
details,” Harmony told her childhood friend.  She’d known Millicent Robbins for
years.  She was a hardworking girl that had been married and divorced to a
total loser, too.  Both of them were finding their way in life a little later
than all their other friends, but they were doing it.  They were kindred
spirits.

Millie breathed a
sigh of relief as she quickly made change in the till and handed it over to
Harmony. “You are a lifesaver.”

Laughing, Harmony
reached for her plastic bags and glanced out the bank of glass windows at the
front of the store.  Gasping as she caught the familiar lanky form standing
outside, facing away from her, her heart pounded in her chest.  “It can’t be!”
she whispered, squinting at the man as he began walking down the sidewalk. 

“Harmony?” Millie
called, her face confused as she stared at the other woman.

“Just call me
tomorrow, Mills,” Harmony called over her shoulder as she hurried toward the
door, determined to catch up to the man and assure herself that her eyes were
deceiving her.

Jogging down the
supermarket sidewalk as the man disappeared around the side of the building,
Harmony quickened her pace as a slight gust of wind blew her hair.  No, no,
no!  This wasn’t happening to her.  Tanner Suarez could
not
be back in
Paradise!  Not when she finally had her life back on track!  “Hey!” she called
as she reached the edge of the building.  Catching her breath when the dark
headed man turned to face her, she nearly sagged against the wall in relief.

“Yeah?” the
stranger called out, lifting his chin at her.

“Sorry!”  Harmony
called, lifting one hand weakly in front of her as she got a good look at the
Hispanic man standing in front of her.  Now that she was closer, she could see
that he was taller and leaner than her ex-husband had been.  He was a handsome
guy, though he looked forbidding with the long scar that ran down his jaw.   “I
thought you were someone else,” she apologized as the man shrugged his broad
shoulders and turned on his heel, walking away and throwing a tanned hand up in
farewell…or it could have been a go to hell gesture for all she knew.  Either
way, it didn’t matter to Harmony.  The man wasn’t Tanner, thank you, Jesus.

“Harmony?” she
heard a deep voice yell from behind her.  Looking over her shoulder, she
watched Zeke wheel around the corner, one hand on his gun at his hip.  “You
alright?” he asked, scanning the now empty sidewalk ahead of her.  “I saw you
fly around the corner like the hounds of hell were chasin’ you.”  Scanning her,
he frowned.  “You’re pale as a damn ghost. What happened?”

“I’m fine.  I
thought I saw….” Harmony broke off, looking at the empty sidewalk as she
realized how stupid voicing her fears aloud would be.  Tanner was
gone
. 
Hell, Zeke was a large part of the reason he was gone.  He wouldn’t look
favorably on her chasing down a lookalike of her ex-husband.  “I thought somebody
was watching me.  I was tryin’ to catch up to ‘em.  Turns out, somebody just
walked over my grave, I guess.  I got spooked.” 

“So you decided to
head straight
toward
possible trouble?” Zeke growled, his large body slowly
relaxing.  “You’re smarter than that, Harmony,” he chided, shaking his head at
her as his hand dropped away from his gun.

“Sorry, Zeke,” she
apologized, offering Zeke a shaky smile.  He had a right to be irritated with
her.  Chasing after the man she’d thought was her ex-husband had been a stupid
decision.  What exactly
would
she have done if that man had been
Tanner?  The bastard had already proven that he could kick her ass once, and
she had a daughter to think about now.  It had been a foolish thing to do.

 “What’s goin’ on
back here?” Harmony heard her sister ask as Honor appeared behind Zeke, looking
around in concern.  “Harmony, are you alright?” she asked, her eagle eyes
honing in on her pale sibling.

Turning sharply,
Harmony watched Zeke glare at her sister furiously.  “I’m fine, Honor.  I just
thought I saw somebody I knew.”

“I thought I told
you to wait in the SUV, woman,” he barked impatiently, the muscle in his jaw
flexing wildly as her sister merely shrugged back at him.  “For once, can’t you
cut me a break and stay where I put you?”

Honor raised an
eyebrow at the angry man.  “I’m sorry.  You must have mistaken me for a German
Shepherd.  I neither sit nor stay on your command, Ezekiel,” she returned
sharply.

“You’re absolutely
right, Honor.  A dog
would
listen better and he’d be a damn sight more
obedient,” he bit back, taking her arm and gesturing for Harmony to walk ahead
of them.  “Let’s go, ladies.  At this rate, Jacob’s going to think I kidnapped
you both.”

With a last look
over her shoulder, Harmony shook her head.  She could have sworn she’d never
mistake Tanner Suarez for another man.  Maybe she was finally losing her mind. 
Or perhaps, this new relationship with Jake was bringing all her past mistakes and
worries to the forefront of her mind, and she was looking for something that
could screw it all up for her.  Tanner could certainly do all that for her.

Either way, she
needed to get a handle on it.

Insanity wasn’t a
good color on either a girlfriend or a mother.

~~***~~

Jerking the door of
the black Camaro open with more force than was necessary, Dante de la Cruz
glared at the man sitting behind the passenger wheel.  “You wanna explain to me
what the fuck kinda game you’re playin’, man?” he snarled.  “You almost blew
every fucking thing to hell back there!”  He jerked his head toward the
supermarket behind them.  “What the fuck?!”