Rory (Hope City #7) - Maryann Jordan Page 0,46

SUV down the street. Hustling inside, he scanned the interior, zeroing immediately on Sandy sitting with Harper and Bekki King at a high-top table with Sean and Blay standing next to them, arms crossed over their chests. Stalking over, he offered a chin lift to his brother and his best friend before greeting the women.

“Oh, my God!” Harper said, “Are you here to stand guard as well?”

He grinned as she turned her gaze up toward Sean and said, “Honey, we are perfectly capable of watching our drinks. You don’t have to stand here while we try to have a conversation.”

“It’s not up for discussion, babe,” Sean said, bending over to kiss the top of her head. His words may have sounded a bit harsh, but his tone was full of concern, and at his kiss, Harper smiled in return.

Rory knew Blay was there to keep an eye on his sister and continued grinning as Bekki rolled her eyes. Settling his gaze on Sandy, he battled the desire to tell her she was beautiful. Her hair was pulled away from her face but the length waved down her back. Her blue sweater matched her eyes perfectly. Her skirt was not short but made her legs look amazing. Blowing out his breath, he focused on her face. “It’s nice to see you again. How are you?”

He could feel Harper’s eyes boring into the side of his head, but he ignored her. He only cared about what Sandy thought.

She looked up, her brow furrowed slightly, and pulled in her lips for a moment. “I’m fine. Um… fine. Thank you.”

Wanting to be close but not intrusive, he said, “I’m sorry to interrupt your conversation. Please, go ahead.”

She nodded slowly, a little crinkle in her brow still evident, then turned back to the women. “You said you were working on a story about abuses with contracts in City Hall, Bekki. Do you remember a couple of years ago about a scandal with Perkins Electrical? They got contracts by under-bidding and then didn’t follow regulations.”

“That was before I was working at the station, but it sounds familiar.” Bekki grabbed her phone and began tapping. “Any particular reason you’re thinking of them?”

“They have the contract to do the wiring in the Partridge Tower that I’m working in.” Sandy shook her head. “I like the elder Mr. Partridge and his son. I just hate to see them taken advantage of by having someone unreliable working there.”

“Well, I’ve got great contacts and resources. I’ll see what I can find.”

“My insurance company didn’t cover any of the buildings they’d worked on, but I do remember a couple of fires being attributed to their poor work.” Harper was an arson investigator for an insurance company. “I can probably get some information for you as well. Electrical fires are a real concern.”

“I’d appreciate that,” Sandy said. “I don’t know that it’ll make a difference, and I certainly don’t want to make trouble, but I’m already seeing some shoddy work that makes me concerned.”

Rory shifted slightly to her side. She twisted her head around and chuckled. “Look, guys, if you’re going to insist on guard duty, why don’t you sit down and have a drink with us? We look sort of ridiculous with three men standing over us as though you expect someone to swoop in and carry us off.”

“Look around, Sandy,” Rory said. “The whole place is like this.” He had noticed that many of the police and EMS patrons were keeping a sharp eye on the women sitting at the bar or tables. Torin still appeared furious as he served at the bar, cautioning the women to keep an eye on their drinks.

“Oh…” Her breath rushed from her lungs and she swallowed audibly.

Rory caught Harper’s eyes pinned on Sandy, and he dropped his gaze back to her, noting the tension radiating. He moved closer, shooting Sean and Blay a pointed look. “But there’s no reason we can’t have a drink with you ladies as long as you’re sure we’re not intruding.” He grabbed a chair from a nearby empty table and scooted it close to her. Sean slid in next to Harper and Blay next to Bekki.

Sandy’s fingers clutched the stem of her Lemon Drop glass, and as she brought it to her lips, the liquid jiggled as her hand shook slightly. He stretched his arm out and placed it on the back of her chair, his thumb barely skimming her back. Not wanting to take liberties, he breathed easier when