She Loves Me (Harmony Pointe #3) - Melissa Foster Page 0,46

yard near each of the buildings. Boarded-up and broken windows gave the structures lifelike features, as if they were winking, blind, or all-seeing.

“Welcome to the Mad House, ladies,” Piper said as she parked by the stone house. “I know it looks creepy, but trust me, when you leave here you’re going to feel a whole lot happier than you do right now.”

“I doubt that,” Jolie said under her breath.

Sophie moved her face closer to the window and said, “I think I’ll stay in the truck.”

Piper took off her seat belt and turned around, perching on her knees and holding the back of the seat with both hands. Her eyes filled with mischief, and still, her underlying determination shone through. “This property has been in my family for generations. At one time it was a dairy farm. When I was a little older than Jolie, I went through some tough stuff, and I was so angry and sad, I couldn’t stand to talk to anyone. My father took me here, and if you’ll let me, I’d like to show you why. I promise nothing bad will happen.” She nodded toward Harley and said, “Uncle Harley might be on crutches, but he’s pretty badass. Even hurt, he could protect all of us like a superhero.”

Harley searched for a hint of bullshit, but she appeared to believe her own words. That did funky things to his stomach, and he freaking loved it. He nodded reassuringly to the girls. “Damn right I can.”

“Like the Hulk,” Sophie said excitedly.

“Pretty much,” Piper said. “You girls in?”

Jolie and Sophie exchanged a wary look.

“Come on, let’s check it out,” Harley said, and they all climbed from the truck.

“We need to start at the big barn,” Piper said as they traipsed through the long grass.

The barn was set up like a workshop, with antique tools, machines, workbenches, and even an old tractor. The girls were mesmerized by the tractor, and after Piper did a visual sweep of the machinery, which Harley was sure was to check for unwanted critters or reptiles, she told the girls to climb in if they wanted to. They scrambled into the tractor, and the tension in the air came down a notch.

A flash of bright blue and white hanging on the wall caught Harley’s attention, out of place in the rustic barn. He stepped closer, recognizing the sharp blue paint with a fine white line through it. He’d mixed that specific shade of blue for the rowboat Piper and Marshall had built together. A pang of jealousy shot through him. Had she kept it as a memory of his brother?

Piper grabbed goggles for each of them from where they hung above a workbench and called the girls over. She handed them to the girls. “Put these on.”

Harley shook off the ridiculous notion about Marshall and focused on his three girls.

Piper handed them work gloves. “You’ll need these, too.”

As the girls put the gloves on, Harley realized what Piper had in mind and thought she just might be the most brilliant woman on earth. She took two small sledgehammers from beneath a workbench, handing one to each of the girls.

“Want one, Hulk?” Piper asked.

“No thanks. I’ll stand watch.”

“Suit yourself.” Piper picked up a larger sledgehammer and rested it on her shoulder. “Let’s go, ladies. Time to do some damage.”

“Damage?” Sophie asked. “To what?”

Piper grinned. “Anything you want, as long as it’s not structural.” She pointed at the older barn and said, “There’s furniture in there that you can destroy.” She pointed across the grass to a courtyard behind one of the outbuildings. “The kitchen of that house could use a good demolishing.” She pointed to two other outbuildings and said, “Those have a few walls that could come down.”

“You want us to break things?” Jolie said in disbelief.

“Absofrigginlutely. That’s what the Mad House is for, to get rid of all that pent-up anger, hurt, and frustration.”

Jolie strode toward the barn with a devious grin. “This is so much better than the diary.”

Sophie ran after her.

“The Mad House, huh?” Harley asked as they followed the girls.

“Some people aren’t as good at talking things out as others.”

Several hours, three destroyed walls, and lots of broken furniture later, they all left with lighter hearts. At Jolie’s request, they stopped to say good night to their mother, and both girls came out looking like a great weight had been lifted from their shoulders. They went out for pizza and ice cream, and when they got home, everyone was emotionally