Melinda Di Lorenzo - Undercover Passion

“No!” The word came out of Liz’s mouth a little sharply, and both Teegan and Harley blinked at her.

The big man recovered quickly, his surprised look relaxing into a smile. “Well. Since apparently you really want to get the kiddo home...mind if I walk with you up to the apartment? I think I might’ve dropped my phone in the hall between your place and the studio.”

“Sure.” She wondered if the relief she felt was evident in her reply.

But if he noticed, he didn’t say. Instead, he offered her a grin and gestured toward their shared building. “Women and children first.”

Teegan immediately took off at a happy skip, and Liz’s heart thundered nervously in response to the open space between them. She took a step forward without even realizing she was doing it until Harley spoke.

“You want me to catch her?” he asked.

She didn’t stop walking, but she made herself answer calmly. “She’ll be fine. It’s only a hundred feet between here and the door. And Lord knows she’s done more dangerous things in the last five minutes.”

“True enough. Guess I’ll just have to settle for protecting you instead.”

He said it teasingly, but she noticed that he was quick to step between her and the road, and she couldn’t help but wonder if it was on purpose. Had he picked up on her distress? She suspected she hadn’t hidden it very well. She’d been so worried about watching the man who was watching her that she hadn’t even stopped to think if Harley was paying attention.

He gave her shoulder a nudge. “I sometimes think I might be one, by the way.”

“One what?” Liz replied, puzzled.

“A jungle gym.”

She let out a genuine laugh. “I’m sure Teegan agrees. I’m sorry if she’s bugging you too much.”

“I don’t mind. She’s got enthusiasm.”

“That’s a nice way of saying she’s a pain in the butt, huh?”

“I can hear you!” called Teegan from a few steps in front of them.

“Well, there wouldn’t be much point in saying it if you couldn’t hear me, would there?” Liz called back.

In typical Teegan-style, her daughter turned and stuck out her tongue before flinging open the door that led to the units above the shop.

“Still think she’s just ‘enthusiastic’?”

Harley grinned. “I plead the Fifth.”

“Yeah, I don’t blame you.” Her tone was ruefully amused. “And speaking of self-preservation...any idea where the sitter disappeared to? Did Teegan scare her off?”

“I can still hear you,” her daughter yelled from the top of the stairs. “And I didn’t scare her away. You were late, and Miss Wanda had to go pick up her boyfriend from work.”

“Late by five minutes,” Liz muttered under her breath. “I think I pay her enough to cover that.”

Harley took the handrail and gestured for her to take the first step. “To be more accurate, Wanda’s boyfriend had some kind of emergency—sliced finger or something—so I volunteered to bring Teegan down to you.”

“It doesn’t make me feel any better than my sitter left my kid with a strange man.”

“I’m not all that strange.”

“Ha ha. You know what I mean.”

“I do,” he agreed. “But Teegan assured Wanda that I was—and I quote—the best old man ever. And she was happy to remind Wanda that I was the one watching her the other day when you ran to that store.”

“I forgot about that.” She smiled ruefully. “I think my kid would make one heck of a lawyer.”

“She would. And she also used her powers of persuasion to rope me into the hide-and-seek.”

Liz sighed. “You really don’t have to indulge her like that. Because I promise you, she’ll take full advantage and have you wrapped around her little finger faster than you can blink.”

“I don’t mind. Really. I needed a break from work anyway.”

“Sculpture’s not coming along?”

“Sculpture’s actually shaping up well.”

“So you made some progress?”

“Well. I don’t know what it is yet. But yeah. The clay’s slightly more than a lump now.”

Liz laughed again. “I guess that’s good.”

“It’s awesome, Mom,” Teegan interrupted. “It looks like a mountain. But also a dragon.”

She groaned. “You have got to stay out of Mr. Maxwell’s workspace.”

“Since we rent it to him, isn’t it really our workspace?” countered her daughter.

Liz’s face heated. “Teegan!”

But Harley just chuckled. “Kid’s got a point.”

Liz shook her head as they started up the stairs. “Kid’s got an opinion. About everything.” She paused, then projected her voice toward her daughter. “And if you want to get technical, we sublet to Mr. Maxwell. But we lease the building from Jesse Garibaldi, so it’s his workspace, and his shop and his apartment, not ours. So just stay out of everything!”

She turned back to Harley and was surprised to find that his expression had gone stiff.

The sound of the so-called business owner’s name dug at Harley in an unexpected way. Not unexpected in that he was surprised to hear it. After all, Jesse Garibaldi had his finger in every pie Whispering Woods offered, and Liz’s Lovely Things was no different. Harley had known the man held the deed before he ever set foot in the building. The pretty brunette’s financial ties to the man were one of the main reasons she’d come under the microscope in the first place.

So, if you knew all that...then what’s bothering you?

It only took Harley a moment to answer his own question. It wasn’t hearing Garibaldi’s name. It was hearing it from Liz . He didn’t like the way she dropped the criminal’s name so easily. The way she made him a part of her lighthearted joke.

No one knew better than Harley that there was nothing funny about Garibaldi. A person responsible for so much death and chaos couldn’t provide any amusement. And for some reason, the way it just rolled off Liz’s tongue made it even worse.

You don’t want her to be involved.

The acknowledgment gave Harley serious pause. Obviously, he preferred it when people weren’t involved in illegal activities. Especially where Garibaldi was concerned. This felt different.

It was a part of his job to determine Liz’s guilt or innocence, not to be biased on whether it turned out one way or the other. Impartiality was the name of the game. Developing an emotional opinion would seriously hamper his ability to keep things as they should be.

“Are you all right?” Liz’s voice yanked him back to the moment.

He blinked, realizing the pretty brunette was three steps above him because he’d come to a complete stop in the stairwell.

And you’re probably not covering up your feelings very well, either.

That didn’t mean he could stop himself from staring at her for a second longer, wondering if he’d be able to get back that necessary neutrality. If his short time across the hall from Liz had already swayed him away from that even hand of justice, he had to consider whether or not he could maintain a professional distance. Or re gain one, as the case might be.

“Harley? Seriously. Are you okay?”

He forced a rueful headshake and answered in a light tone. “Sorry. Spaced out. Guess the amount of work I did today wore me out more than I thought.”

Her face relaxed into a sympathetic smile. “It probably doesn’t help that you’ve been sleeping in the studio.”

“No. Not much. Mattress on the floor never quite cuts it.”

“Any news on when they’ll have the apartment fixed?”

“Not a word.”

“Well. I’m sure you know, but you’re welcome to stay at the studio as long as you want.” Her smile changed into a teasing one. “I might actually miss you a little when you go. It’s only been a week, but I’m already way too used to having a handyman around.”