Chapter 11
T
he roads had been treated, and the drive into Mill Pond wasn't too bad. The town itself was small with quaint brick buildings lining Main Street. They passed the diner and found the grocery store at the other end of the business district.
“What if I push the cart and pay, and you choose what we need?” Brody looked slightly lost, and Harmony suspected he'd never done serious food shopping before. They wandered the aisles for over an hour, filling the cart with everything on Brody's list. Harmony started to wonder if the cart would hold everything.
Every time someone stopped Brody to say
hi
, he made a point of wrapping his arm around her waist and introducing her. Not a bad thing. Her body tingled every time he pressed her close to his side. But once she left Mill Pond, she'd never see these people again. He was stretching good manners further than necessary. Brody was an old-school type of person, though. He stuck to protocol.
An attractive, young woman with a short Afro and a stunning, heart-shaped face stopped him in aisle three. Her dark eyes danced with curiosity. “We heard you were back in town, helping Ian at his place.”
Brody reached for Harmony's hand to introduce her. “Harmony, Darinda. Darinda's one of Tessa's oldest friends. Darinda, Harmonyâone of Tessa's writer friends.”
“Tessa's told me about you, girl.” Darinda noticed the hand thing, and her full lips curled in delight. “Spill, Brody. Are you two an item? I thought you'd sworn off women after your divorce.”
An item? Embarrassed, Harmony pulled her hand away. Shaking her head, she said, “We're just shopping so we can cook for Tessa a while.”
“That's so sweet of you!” Darinda glowed with excitement. “I can't believe my BFF's gonna have a baby.”
“Does everyone know?” Brody inched closer to Harmony, and she glanced up at him. Did Darinda make him nervous? He didn't look nervous. It would be hard to shake Brody. Had she hit on him the last time he visited here, and he was warning her off? No, Darinda was happily married. Tessa talked about her husband and kids, what a neat family they were.
Darinda rolled her eyes. “This is Mill Pond, sweetie. There are no secrets here. Grams has been spreading the word.”
Brody grinned. “I've heard about Grams.”
Darinda threw her arms around him in a quick hug. “Baby, you're gonna be an uncle soon. You won't be able to stay away from Mill Pond. We'll see more of you.” She left them to their burgeoning cart, and Brody kept adding things they didn't need. Harmony kept complaining, but her words fell on deaf ears.
“Do you like chocolate? Should we buy some of that? What about wine? What's your favorite?” Brody acted like the proverbial kid in a candy shop.
She finally stopped, hands on hips, and demanded, “When was the last time you were in a store?”
He shook his head. “I don't remember. This is great, isn't it?”
“Your bill's going to be horrible.”
He shrugged. “A vacation would cost a lot more, and it wouldn't be half as much fun.”
“Really? This is your idea of a good time? Where the hell do you go when you want to get away?”
He grinned. “This is a different kind of fun.”
She knew he was rich, but her middle-class mind could hardly wrap itself around busting a budget like this. When she finally got him out of the store, he reached for her hand again on the ride home. He was sure in a touchy-feely mood today. As usual, though, he woke up her hormones. What girl could resist such blatant masculinity?
He patted her hand, then pulled away to place his on the steering wheel. “Thanks for this. I think the world of Tessa, and this is something we can do to help her.”
How could she argue with that? Mr. Responsible had a big heart. When they turned into the resort's drive, Brody called Ian and Luther to help them carry everything into the lodge. Luther stared at the army of bags in awe. Ian's eyebrows rose. He looked at Harmony.
She grumbled, “Don't ask.”
Ian grinned. “Next time, I get to go with you. Tessa never lets me buy everything I want.”
“Harmony's no better. She kept telling me no.”
Ian gaped at the bags. “Then I don't even want to know what you thought you needed to buy.”
It took a while to put everything away. When they finished, Harmony found a huge, deep pot to start making the soup. She whipped into work mode, and Brody faithfully chopped onions, carrots, and celery to sauté. While he cut chunks of potatoes, she added the chicken broth and seasonings. They barely finished in time.
“Should we put the soup in the refrigerator?” Brody asked.
Harmony shook her head. “No, we're taking it to Tessa's in an hour. It'll be fine.”
The kids saw them walk out of the kitchen and came to traipse up the stairs with them. On the way, Brody studied Aiden. “Are you feeling better now?”
Aiden nodded, but looked nervous.
“Are you doing all right with your classes at school?” Harmony asked. “Are you worried about your grades?”
Aiden gave her a look. “School's easy.”
Brody tried next. “Do you like your teacher?”
He got a dreamy look on his face. “Miss Fredericks is great.”
Harmony smiled. He had a crush on her. When they reached her room and settled into their chairs, and Aiden flopped on the bed, she said, “Then what's the deal? Why did you skip today?”
“A mean kid's picking on him,” Bailey blurted.
Aiden gave her a dirty look. “Shut up!”
Brody's shoulders squared. He glowered. “Like calling you names or hitting you?”
Aiden pulled up the sleeve of his shirt and showed them a big bruise. “Mom told me to tell my teacher about it. I don't want to, but Mom says Dirk won't stop if I don't.”
Brody nodded. “Your mom's right. Bullies enjoy hurting people, and they keep doing it until someone makes them quit.”
Aiden frowned at him. “Did anyone ever pick on you?”
Harmony couldn't imagine anyone picking on Brody. First, he was big. Secondly, he had an attitude. He'd fight back, even if he lost.
Brody shook his head. “No one bothered me or Ian. Ian was too antsy, too mouthy. No one wanted to find out what would happen if he got riled.”
“Even you?” Bailey asked.
Brody looked surprised. “He was too smart for that, but he found ways to bug me. Bridget had a terrible temper, and that scared people away, but some mean girls picked on Maeve.”
“What happened?” Aiden glanced at Bailey, worried.
“I was in high school, and she was in middle school, but Ian took care of it.”
Harmony was almost afraid to ask, but couldn't stop herself. She was too nosey. “What did he do?”
“He left presents for each of them in their lockers.”
Bailey bit her bottom lip. “What kinds of presents?”
“Garter snakes, black racers, a few corn snakes. Girls scream a lot around those.”
Harmony burst out laughing.
Brody grinned. “He let it be known he could find other things. He hinted he knew where a skunk had a den.”
Aiden said, “I'd get in trouble if I took a snake to school.”
“Ian did, too, but he didn't seem to mind. The girls left Maeve alone after that.”
Harmony patted Aiden's head. “Your teacher will know what to do. Your mom gave you good advice. Talk to Miss Fredericks. She'll help you.”
Aiden was more subdued when they read the new chapter, and he was quiet when he and Bailey followed Brody downstairs to their apartment.
Brody glanced back at her. “I'll load the soup in the SUV and meet you at the door.”
A cue for her to hustle. The man was getting a little too damned demanding, but she glanced at the clock and sped up. Ten minutes later, she climbed into his warm vehicle. He gave her a sheepish look. Harmony's heart did a funny twist. How could she stay irritated with him when he looked repentant? Repentant for what, though?
He cleared his throat. “I need to apologize. I bulldozed you today, and you lost all of your writing time. That's what you came here to do. I'm sorry.”
She stared. How could one man disrupt her routine so much and then manage to make her feel fine about it? She shook her head. A contrite Brody was hard to resist. “You're on a time schedule, too,” she said. “You gave up your work time to help Tessa. So can I.”
His smile came too readily, and a tiny part of her wondered if she was being played. No, this was Brody. He was too intense, too moody to be that sneaky. Wasn't he? On the drive to Tessa's, she decided that she'd better be more cautious around this man. He might be cleverer than he looked.
Chapter 12
W
hen Brody carried the pot of soup into Tessa's kitchen, all of Harmony's reservations fled. Her friend looked so relieved, Harmony knew Brody had made the right choice. Tessa could use a little TLC right now. Brody sat the pot on the stove, and they carried their bowls over to dish up. Ian put crackers on the table and an apple pie, baked fresh that morning from Tessa's bakery.
Brody shifted spots at the table, sitting next to Harmony, so that she could look across at Tessa. When he tasted the soup, he sighed. “You're right, Harm, your recipe is killer.”
She raised an eyebrow. “Harm?”
He shrugged. “What in the hell is a nickname for Harmony? Harmy? Mony? What did kids at school call you?”
“
No one
would call me that anymore and live.”
He laughed. “What's your last name? Does anyone call you that?”
She glared. “What's the deal with a nickname? Is your tongue too tired to say three syllables?”
“No, but we're friends now. Ian calls Tessa
Tess.
I should have something to call you.”
“I haven't started calling you Bro, have I?” She reached for more crackers.
He grimaced. “That doesn't sound very endearing. Not like true friends.” He brightened. “Our last name's McGregor. You could call me Mac.”
“Or she could call you Knucklehead,” Ian offered.
Brody turned to Tessa for help. “What do you call Ian?”
She smiled. “Just plain Ian. Some names don't translate well into nicknames.”
He sighed. “Okay, I get it. Harmony, it is.”
Harmony bumped his shoulder with her own. “My last name's Meyer. Will that work?”
He considered it and shook his head. “Nope, I don't like that.”
“Why not?” She stood to get a refill on her soup, took his empty bowl with her, to get him more, too.
“Someday, when you marry, it won't apply.”
“Like that's gonna happen.” She ladled soup into their bowls.
“You never know, and then I'd lose my nickname for you.” He took his bowl from her, crunched a handful of crackers, and dropped them in.
Harmony shook her head. “I guess you're destined to be frustrated then.”
“Looks like it.” But she could tell his mind was still turning the problem over, and she dreaded what he'd come up with.
Harm
was bad enough.
She turned to Tessa. “How was baking this morning?”
“Fine, I love working with Grandma, but by the time we finished, I was ready for a nap.”
“Are you okay with being a mom now?” she asked.
Tessa's face lit up. “More than okay, I can't wait. I'm going to have to beat Grandma away, though. She and Miguel are already volunteering to babysit on weekends.”
Harmony laughed. Tessa had told her about her grandma hinting for a new baby in the family.
When they finished their soup, Brody carried the bowls to the sink, rinsed them, and put them in the dishwasher while Ian cut slices of pie. The three of them drank coffee with their dessert, but Tessa declined. “No use pushing my luck,” she said.
They ate on paper plates and threw them away. The rest of the cleanup went quickly, and Brody and Harmony were walking out the door at eight thirty.
Once they were on the road, Brody frowned at her. “I suppose this is going to prove your theory that once a woman's pregnant, she's no fun anymore.”
Harmony blinked at him. “Tessa will always be fun, no matter what.”
“But you wouldn't be?”
“I'm not fun now. If I'm grouchy during good times, why would a baby change that?”
He hesitated with his answer, slowing down gradually to give himself plenty of time to make the turn into the lodge's drive. The temperatures had dropped, and the roads were a little slippery again. He pulled to the front door and glanced at her. “I think you're fun.”
She snorted. “You're as grouchy as I am. What would you know?”
In the dim light, she watched him blink in surprise before he burst out laughing. “You might be right. Frivolous people get on my nerves.”
“You wouldn't like a little Miss Sunshine, who hummed in the kitchen and fetched your slippers?”
“God, no.”
She grinned at him. “See? I've been good for you. You know what to rule out now in your wife search.”
“I'll keep that in mind.”
She hurried into the foyer, then waited for him, like usual, but he looked as tired as she felt when he trudged across the resort's parking lot to join her. He stifled a yawn.
“I'm sorry. I don't think I can do a movie tonight,” he said.
She sighed with relief. “Good, because I'd fall asleep on you.”
“Really?” He gave her a look that could curl toes. “Do you snore in your sleep?”
She laughed. “Probably, but be warned. If you fall asleep first, I get to prank you.”
That caught his attention. “What would you do, draw a Sharpie mustache on my upper lip?”
“Nothing that nice. I'd make smiley faces around both of your nipples.”
“You'd have to unbutton my shirt to do that. Are you brave enough?”
“I've seen men's bare chests before.”
“The voice of experience.” He bent down and kissed her forehead. “Sweet dreams, Harm. Sorry I messed up your day.”
“You're back to Harm? Really?”
“A woman who draws on men's nipples gets what she deserves.”
She smiled. She'd brought that on herself. On the way up the stairs, she gently touched a finger to where his lips smooched her skin. Nice. She wouldn't wash her face there tonight. As she drifted off to sleep, her thoughts turned to Luxar and Serifina.
Ooh, they were getting naughty. Luxar had made it past first base, but Serifina pulled away, not ready to make a full commitment yet. And that's when Harmony realized that once again, Luxar looked exactly like Brody.