She held her breath until he said he wasn’t involved at this time.
“Have you ever been married?” Rebecca asked.
Quinn glanced at D.J. “You could rescue me here.”
“Why?”
He laughed. “No,” he told Rebecca. “No ex-wives.”
“What about significant relationships?” “My work keeps me on the move.”
“Uh-huh.” Rebecca delicately bit into a doughnut, chewed and swallowed. “That’s a better excuse than some people have.” She stared intently at D.J., then smiled at Quinn. “D.J. doesn’t get out much, which you may have noticed. Not that she doesn’t need to.”
D.J. glared at her. “I’m still right here in the room.”
“We all know that. I’m just stating the obvious.”
“So what exactly is her dating history?” Quinn asked.
“It’s very sad,” Rebecca told him. “It’s not that men aren’t interested. A lot of them are. Some of the problem is her surly attitude.”
D.J. had just bitten into a doughnut and found herself choking. Rebecca pounded her on the back until she waved the other woman off.
“My surly attitude?” she asked, outraged.
Rebecca merely smiled. “Am I wrong? Do you in any way encourage men to be a part of your life? Don’t you make a habit of scaring off anyone even faintly interested?”
“Okay, then,” D.J. said as she stood. “You probably need to get going.”
Quinn leaned back in his chair and grinned. “Don’t make her rush off on my account.”
“Of course not,” D.J. said, trying to ignore him and her rising embarrassment. “You would love to sit here and listen to wild stories about my past.”
“It’s more interesting than cable TV.”
Rebecca rose. “I’m trying to help,” she said as she collected her purse. “Quinn seems
very nice.” D.J. wanted to die. She couldn’t believe that her friend – make that her ex-friend – was acting this way.
“I’m not going to be speaking to you later,” D.J. told her.
Rebecca patted her arm. “Of course you are.” She walked to the front door, then turned back. “It was nice to meet you, Quinn. Don’t let her scare you off.”
“Likewise,” Quinn said. “Your husband’s a lucky man.”
Rebecca sighed. “He knows. Oh! There’s going to be a big dinner at my house tomorrow night. Just another Haynes get-together for the new members of the family to commingle with the rest. I hope you’ll be there.”
“I wouldn’t miss it.”
Rebecca turned her attention to D.J. “I’m really going to need your help setting up things.”
“Not even on a bet.”
“D.J., you have to.”
Rebecca wasn’t being subtle, but D.J. figured arguing in front of Quinn would only increase his entertainment factor. She gritted her teeth and nodded.
“Fine. I’ll be there.”
“Good.”
Rebecca wiggled her fingers at them both and ducked out of the room. D.J. stared after her and thought briefly about throwing a chair across the room, but wasn’t sure it would do anything for her frustration level. At least she had plenty of energy to continue sparring with Quinn.
“Let’s get back to work,” she told him as she rose and headed for the back of the office.
He didn’t budge. “Not so fast. I have a question.”
D.J. could only imagine. “How did Rebecca and I get to be friends?”
“Nope. What do the initials stand for?”
She blinked at him. He wanted to know her real name? “Not even on a bet.”
“I’m not going to help you until you tell me.”
She narrowed her gaze. “I’ve already paid for my lessons. You owe me.”
“Maybe, but I’m not moving until you cough up the truth.”
She stared at him. He looked comfortable and more than prepared to sit there well into the afternoon. She considered her options: there weren’t any. She couldn’t force him to move and she couldn’t continue the lessons without him.
She sucked in a breath and braced herself for the laughter. “Daisy Jane.”
Quinn’s mouth twitched, but that was his only reaction. “It suits you,” he said.
She took a step toward him. “Don’t make me kill you.”
His twitch turned into a grin. “You couldn’t even bruise me, little girl. Let’s go.”
Quinn arrived at the party shortly after seven. Judging by the number of cars in the driveway, there was a houseful of guests. After parking his rental car, he sat in the driver’s seat for a few seconds and told himself this was just a family event. No danger, no threats.
The reminder wasn’t to make himself feel better, but to keep himself from going into work mode. Crowds usually put him on alert. He’d had to rescue more than one hostage from an overflowing temporary prison or a bustling outdoor marketplace. He knew how to move without being seen, how to slip in and out with no one realizing he’d ever been there at all. Not exactly qualities that would make him a favorite guest.
He climbed out of the car and pocketed the keys, then headed for the front door. It opened before he could knock.
Rebecca Lucas stood in the foyer and smiled at him. “Right on time.”
He jerked his head toward the crowd behind her. “Was everyone else early?”
She laughed. “The women and kids started arriving around four. The husbands are just starting to follow. As for this being ‘everyone else,’ you haven’t seen all your extended family in one place yet, have you?”
He shook his head.
She smiled. “Then brace yourself.”
She took his arm and drew him inside her large, welcoming home. He had a brief impression of warm colors, oversize furniture and lots of people.
“Most of the kids are out back playing,” Rebecca said. “But a few of them are running around. I won’t even try to match them with parents just now. You’ll be doing well if you can remember who is married to whom.”
She paused by three women and introduced them as Elizabeth, Travis’s wife, Jill, Craig’s wife and Holly, Jordan’s wife.
Quinn nodded and shook hands. He had a good memory for faces and names, but keeping this group straight was going to be a challenge.
“Hannah’s around here somewhere,” Rebecca told him. “She’s an actual Haynes. Her mother is over there. Louise knew Earl back when she was in high school. There’s still Sandy, who isn’t here yet. You know all the Texas clan, as we’re calling them. Oh, there’s Gage.”
Quinn turned and saw his brother walking toward him. Gage smiled at Rebecca. “Quinn’s getting that trapped look, so I’m going to rescue him before he bolts.”
Rebecca nodded. “We are overwhelming all at once. I had the advantage of meeting the brothers individually. When I married Austin, only Travis had a wife. So I’ve been able to get to know everyone slowly. You’re being thrown into the deep end. Let me know if you need a life preserver.”
“Will do.”
She patted his arm and walked off.
Gage led him to the kitchen where a cooler filled with beer and sodas sat on the counter.
“How you doing?” his brother asked.
“Fine.”
“Too much family?”
Quinn considered the question. He’d never been much of a joiner, and he rarely hung out with friends. But that was more about circumstance than temperament.
“I’m okay as long as there’s not a quiz on names.”
Gage chuckled. “We’ve all been through that one. You’ll figure it out.”
While Gage pulled out two beers and opened them, Quinn glanced around at the kitchen and family room. Several kids gathered around the coffee table and played a board game. Nash and Kevin sat on the sofa. Stephanie stood next to Nash, her hand on his shoulder, his arm around her waist.
He turned in the opposite direction, back the way he’d come. There were the wives he’d met, a few kids and...
Damn, he thought silently and shook his head. He wasn’t just checking out the surroundings; he was looking for D.J.
She was prickly, difficult and spent most of their time together wanting to bash his head in. So why was he so hot to see her again? He accepted the beer his brother offered, and grinned. Because she was never boring.
He spotted movement by the back door and glanced toward it. D.J. stepped into the house. She wore a short-sleeved shirt tucked into jeans. Instead of her usual boots, she had on open-toed sandals. Her hair was loose, her expression happy. She had a little girl by the hand and bent down to hear what she said. After listening intently, D.J. nodded, then pointed toward the front of the house. The little girl – tiny, with pigtails and a bright-pink shorts set – released D.J. and ran in the direction she’d pointed. D.J. straightened.
He knew the exact second she caught sight of him. Not only did their gazes lock, but the temperature in the room climbed about forty degrees.
Gage handed him a beer. “Isn’t that the woman from the war games?” he asked when he saw her.
“Yeah. D.J.”
“Short for?”
Quinn shrugged. No way was he going to tell the world her secret. Calling her Daisy Jane would be something he did in private.
Kari walked into the kitchen, and Quinn greeted his brother’s fiancée.
“How was San Francisco?” he asked.
Kari leaned against Gage and smiled. “Good. How are you, Quinn? I haven’t seen you in forever.”
“I’m well. Congratulations on your engagement.” He waved his beer bottle toward his brother. “You know Gage is getting the good end of the deal, don’t you?”
Tall and pretty, with big blue eyes and an easy smile, Kari had always been a small-town beauty. Gage had been crazy about her from the second they’d met. But once she’d left Possum Landing, Quinn had figured they were through for good. Funny how they’d finally hooked up again.
Kari rested her head on Gage’s shoulder. “I think we’re both getting a good deal.”
“All that and a diplomat,” Quinn said. “How’d you get so lucky?”
Gage shrugged. “The results of living right.”
“Dumb luck if you ask me.”
Kari eyed him. “You could find someone, Quinn.”
“Not likely,” he told her, then took a long drink of his beer.
“My brother’s lifestyle doesn’t allow for anything longer than a fifteen-minute relationship,” Gage said.
“Lifestyles change.”
Kari had a point. Quinn excused himself and turned. D.J. wasn’t by the back door any longer, but he knew she hadn’t left the house. He headed for the living room and found her talking with Rebecca.
“Ladies,” he said as he approached.
Rebecca winked at D.J. “It’s your young man.”
D.J. groaned. “He’s not my anything.”
“He’s something, because I can feel the heat between you two from here.”
“What you’re feeling is a premature hot flash.”
Rebecca laughed. “Not even close.” She looked at Quinn. “Maybe you should consider getting her drunk.”
D.J.’s eyes widened. “Rebecca, you can’t be serious. That’s a horrible thing to say.”
“Quinn isn’t going to hurt you, and you need to lighten up. And I need to take care of my other guests.”
She smiled at them both, then sauntered away. D.J. narrowed her eyes and watched her go.
“I can’t believe she would sell me out like that. Statistically women who get drunk while –”
“Shut up, Daisy Jane.”
Her mouth dropped open. “What did you say?”
“You heard me. Whatever the statistics may be, they don’t apply to this situation and you know it. Quit acting like I’m some college kid out to take whatever he can regardless of the consequences.”
Several emotions flashed across her face. If they had been alone, he was pretty sure she would have exploded into some kind of fit, but the presence of the extended Haynes family would keep her quiet.
“Don’t call me that name,” she whispered through gritted teeth.
“Why not?”
“I hate it.”
“It’s charming.”
She looked mad enough to spit. Instead she crossed her arms and contented herself with glaring. “I can’t believe I’m stuck here,” she grumbled. “Rebecca lied about needing help. When I arrived, there wasn’t one thing for me to do, so this was all a ploy.”
“Sure. She’s trying to get us together.”
“Doesn’t that bother you?”
“Nope. It shouldn’t bother you, either. Rebecca cares about you.”
D.J. grunted in response. “She needs a hobby.”
“I think you’re it.”
Three kids about ten or eleven burst into the house and ran toward the kitchen. D.J. stepped out of the way.
“There’s a pool table in back,” she said. “Want to see if it’s available?”
“Sure.”
As she turned to lead the way, he put his hand on the small of her back. She froze and looked at him.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“Being polite,” he said.
She’d gotten all stiff. He could feel her muscles practically locking in place. Despite her obvious displeasure, tension crackled between them.