Speak From The Heart - L.B. Dunbar Page 0,8

wall, the bar along the opposite wall, and a string of scattered tables in between.

What the . . .? My brother’s making a huge fuss of her and gripping her elbow, guiding her to take a seat at our table. I don’t want her at the table, and I definitely do not want AG at our table. Asshole Gabe.

“Seems appropriate Gabe found her,” I mutter to myself and Sami stops stroking my neck. Karyn meets my eyes, warning me to play nice, although she’s equally confused why my brother is making a big deal of the new girl. The temporary girl. He met her yesterday when she came into the shop with her grandmother’s old radio, and he fawned over her as though he hadn’t seen a pretty woman in years.

Damn flirt.

Good thing Karyn would kick his ass if he even thought of straying, which he would never do. While Debbie and I were high school sweethearts like Tom and Karyn, my brother and his wife are the real deal. Sweet. Committed. They have girls in high school and a son in middle school. Tom and I run the repair shop together, and Karyn is a nurse.

“Jess?” Sami prompts from beside me, and I forgot what I was even talking about. My eyes remain on my brother as he animatedly speaks to Emily and Gabe sitting next to her.

As Sue and Joe Carpenter’s late-in-life miracle child, he’s something special to them. But he didn’t have a whole lot of other people fooled, except for my ex-wife. Or maybe she’s the one who fooled him.

I don’t care. I hate them both.

Still, it’s fitting to see someone like Gabe with someone like Emily.

They’re made for each other.

“How’s it hanging, Gabe?” I toss to the end of the table. Real mature, Jess. But seriously—he can eat me.

“Very well, Jess. And you?”

“Seems you found yourself another catch,” I say, my meaning clear.

“Ignore these boys,” Karyn says, leaning over to Emily, hoping to defuse what she knows I won’t be able to contain. “They act like they haven’t seen a pretty thing in years, so let the pissing match begin.”

“No one’s pissing,” Tom jokes, thinking he’s funny, only I have another retort.

“He pissed on my parade.”

“What’s your problem?” Emily snaps from the other end of the table.

What does she mean? I said he, not she, but hellfire is blazing from her.

“Why don’t you go back to luring children into your backyard?” It’s a low blow, but I’m still not certain why Katie was drawn to Elizabeth’s garden or the fiery woman sitting opposite me.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“How’d you tempt my daughter into your yard?”

“Katie?” Karyn interjects, looking from me to Emily and back. My sister-in-law knows I’m extra protective of my daughter, and the reasons. “Katie went into her yard?”

“She’s Elizabeth Parrish’s granddaughter.” I tip my beer bottle in Emily’s direction, and Karyn swings her head back to Emily. Her dark head of curls flap like she’s watching a tennis match.

“How did that happen?” Karyn asks.

That’s the very question I’d like answered.

“Are you implying I was trying to kidnap your daughter?” Emily’s voice rises, her astonishment at my accusation evident. I might have gone a bit far. She wasn’t kidnapping her, but I can’t seem to let it go.

“Give her candy? Make her false promises?” It is something Debbie would have done. She’d give her candy, which was a hazard, and make her bogus promises, which she never intended to keep.

“Are you insane?” Emily stammers. “I’m not a kidnapper.” She stands as she speaks and the entire bar goes quiet, everyone looking at her. Her face pinks, and a glass of wine wobbles before falling over as her leg hit the underside of the table when she stood.

“Everybody, calm down,” Tom says, rushing to stand and throwing napkins on the liquid spreading across the table. “It isn’t a party until something gets spilled.”

I don’t move. Emily doesn’t either. Our eyes lock, and we glare at one another.

God, she’s pissing me off, and I don’t even know why.

She’s under my skin, which sparks and prickles when she looks at me like that.

And I’ve never been so turned on in my life. I could lay her out on the table.

Screw the crowd.

No, screw her.

Fuck, I scrub a hand down my face to calm my thoughts. My palm heads to my chin when I open my eyes, and see she’s hoofing past the table.

“Emily,” Gabe calls after her, but I’m not about to let Gabe Carpenter chase