Crossing the Line (Daniels Brothers #3)

by Sherri Hayes

  Her sister looked at her husband and then back to Megan. Rebecca reached up to brush Megan’s hair back behind her shoulders. “You scared me, you know that, don’t you?”

  “I know. But I’m fine. Honestly. The doctor said all I need is to rest for a few days.” Megan hoped that would pacify her sister.

  “Well, I’m going to stay and take care of you. Gage has to fly back tonight, but I’m here for as long as you need me.” Rebecca hadn’t stopped touching her since she sat down.

  Paul cleared his throat. “I’m going to go finish getting our lunch ready. Gage, did you want to join me?”

  “Yeah. Sure. We’ll leave you two alone for a few minutes.”

  Megan watched Paul and Gage disappear into the kitchen. There must have been something that gave her away because when she turned back to her sister, Rebecca had a “deer in the headlights” look. “Becca? Are you feeling all right?”

  Rebecca’s expression went from shock to anger in a matter of seconds. “Something you want to tell me?”

  “About?” Megan asked.

  “Paul’s your mystery man, isn’t he?”

  Megan refused to lie. “Yes.”

  “Oh, Megan.” By the look on Rebecca’s face, Megan would have thought someone had died, not that she’d confessed to being in a relationship with the man she’d been living with for the last seven-and-a-half months.

  “Please don’t do that,” Megan pleaded.

  “He’s going to break your heart.” Rebecca said it as if it were a foregone conclusion.

  “No, he won’t.”

  Before her sister could berate her some more, Paul strolled into the room with a tray of food. Rebecca waited until he set it down on the coffee table before laying into him.

  “I thought I could trust you. Gage assured me you weren’t the type to take advantage of a woman, and I believed him.”

  Paul met Megan’s gaze, and she knew he realized the gig was up. Instead of retreating, or getting defensive, he shifted her a little to the side, and sat down behind her. He pulled her against his chest, and wrapped his arm protectively around her. His solid form behind her gave Megan strength.

  “Becca, he didn’t take advantage of me.”

  Her sister wasn’t listening to her. Rebecca was staring Paul down. But he didn’t seem bothered by her disapproval.

  “Paul?” There was a note of disbelief and confusion in Gage’s voice. He’d ambled into the room to find Paul and Megan cuddled together on the couch and Rebecca shooting daggers at his brother with her eyes.

  Paul never took his eyes off Rebecca. “Let’s get this all out in the open, shall we?”

  Gage moved to stand behind his wife. “Would someone please tell me what’s going on?”

  “Paul is Megan’s mystery man,” Rebecca said through gritted teeth.

  “What?” Gage’s loud voice reverberated off the walls of the living room.

  If there’d been any doubts, they were dashed when Paul tilted Megan’s head back and placed a chaste kiss on her lips. She smiled up at him. Megan knew her sister would be upset with the news, but knowing Paul was there beside her, supporting her, she knew she could tackle anything. Including Rebecca.

  After giving Paul another quick kiss, Megan turned back to face her sister. “Becca, I love you, but you need to get over it. Paul loves me, and . . .”

  Megan glanced up at Paul, and he nodded.

  She took a deep breath, and met her sister’s furious gaze. “We’re getting married.”

  Both Gage and Rebecca’s mouths dropped open.

  “Married?” Rebecca asked once she regained the ability to speak.

  Paul jumped in. “That’s right. We’re getting married. I love your sister, Rebecca, and I hope you can learn to accept us. You’re the only family Megan has, and I know she’ll want you to be part of everything.”

  There were no words to describe the look on Rebecca’s face.

  Gage noticed his wife’s distress. “Why don’t we go get some air?”

  Rebecca went with him reluctantly.

  Alone again, Paul reached for the sandwich he’d made, and handed it to her.

  “Thank you.”

  He smiled and kissed her forehead. “You’re welcome. Now, eat. You need your strength.”

  Megan took a bite, chewed, and swallowed. It was her favorite—baloney, cheese, and mustard. “I’m sorry it came out like that. Becca’s always been able to pick up on subtle things. I guess I must have been ogling you or something when you left the room.”

  Paul chuckled. “It’s fine. We would have had to tell her soon, anyway. If she’s going to be staying here for the next few days, I doubt we would have been able to hide it from her for long.”

  “You’re not upset?”

  He shook his head. “Why should I be?”

  “I don’t know. I guess I assumed you might want to keep it quiet until we talked to Chloe. You know, to make sure she approves and all.” It wasn’t that Megan was having doubts exactly, but Chloe’s endorsement meant more to Megan than anyone else’s.

  “I don’t think you have to worry about Chloe. Something tells me as long as it means you aren’t going anywhere, she’ll be all for it.”

  Megan forgot about her sandwich and pulled his head toward her for a kiss. “Nope. Not going anywhere.”

  He kissed her back and smiled. “Good.”

  A throat cleared, and they looked up to find Gage and Rebecca standing across the room right inside the doorway. Rebecca appeared calmer, but her eyes still held uncertainty.

  “May we come in?” Gage asked.

  Megan dropped her hand from around Paul’s neck. “Sure.”

  Rebecca took a seat in the high-backed chair a foot or so away from where Paul and Megan were sitting. Gage retook his position behind his wife, resting his hands on her shoulders. As anxious as Megan was to find out what her sister had to say, she held her tongue and waited.

  “You two are really getting married?” Rebecca asked.

  Megan nodded. “We are.”

  Her sister turned her attention to Paul. “You really love her?”

  “Yes, I love her.”

  Rebecca released a deep breath. “Okay.”

  “Okay?” Megan asked.

  Her sister shook her head. “I don’t understand it, but Gage reminded me how odd a match we appeared to be at first.”

  Megan smiled. “This is true. Trent thought I was Gage’s girlfriend instead of you.”

  They both laughed, and Rebecca nodded. “He did.”

  Everyone was quiet for a long moment.

  “So are we good?” Megan asked.

  “Yeah. As long as he treats you right, we’re good.”

  Megan wrapped her arm around Paul’s waist and rested her head on his shoulder. “I don’t think you have to worry about that.”

  Paul brushed his lips over her hair. “No, you don’t. I plan on doing everything I can to make sure Megan is happy. That’s a promise.”

  With the tension resolved, Gage rubbed his hands together. “Do you have any champagne around here, big brother? This is cause for a celebration.”

  Paul laughed. “No, but I think I’ve got some beers in the fridge.”

  Gage strolled into the kitchen and returned with three bottles of beer and a glass of water for Rebecca. He handed them all out and proposed a toast. “To my brother and my sister-in-law.”

  They all tipped their beverages and drank.

  “So when is the big day?” Gage asked.

  Megan looked to Paul. “We hadn’t really discussed it.”

  “Ah. Well, I recommend you do it soon. When Mom gets wind of this, you aren’t going to be able to contain her.”

  “We want to tell Chloe first,” Megan said.

  Gage smiled. “Somehow, I don’t think she’ll object.”

  Epilogue

  A knock on his bedroom door caused Paul to jump. He wasn’t normally so on edge, but it wasn’t a run-of-the-mill kind of day.
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  “Are you decent?” Chris called from the hallway.

  Paul chuckled. “I guess it depends on what you consider decent.”

  The door opened, and all three of his brothers walked in. Trent whistled when he got a good look at Paul in his new suit. “You clean up pretty well, big brother. I’d almost forgotten.”

  “I was in a suit for Chris’ wedding. And Gage’s. It hasn’t been that long,” Paul said.

  Trent laughed.

  Gage stepped forward and placed a hand on Paul’s shoulder. “Since Megan and Rebecca’s father isn’t a part of their life, I figure it falls to me to lay down the law and tell you that you better treat her right, or else.”

  Although he knew Gage said it in jest, he also knew his little brother meant every word. The Daniels family had embraced both Rebecca and Megan from the beginning. They were part of the family, and the devil help any person who hurt them.

  “Hey, stop giving Paul a hard time. He’ll do right by Megan. Won’t you?” Chris prompted.

  Their father strolled through the door with a small box. “Stop giving your brother grief. How are you holding up, son?”

  Paul ignored his brothers and concentrated on his dad. “I’m good. Is everything ready?”

  “Yep, we’re all set. You ready?” he asked, handing Paul the ring he’d asked his dad to pick up at the jewelers that morning.

  Tucking the ring in the inside pocket of his jacket, Paul nodded.

  He and his brothers followed their father downstairs and out to the backyard. Paul and Megan had discussed it, and decided on a simple wedding in their backyard at the end of July. She didn’t want anything overly fancy, although Paul was more than willing to have a church wedding. Plus, Megan insisted she didn’t want to wait the months it would take to organize such a thing.

  The biggest unknown had been Chloe’s reaction. They shouldn’t have been worried, though. When they explained that he and Megan getting married would mean Megan would be Chloe’s stepmom, she began jumping up and down screaming “Megan’s going to be my mommy” over and over again.

  After that, it was time to tell the rest of the family. His mom and dad didn’t sound all that surprised. Neither did Chris, Elizabeth, or Trent. Maybe Paul and Megan’s feelings for each other had been more obvious at Chris and Elizabeth’s wedding than Paul thought.

  The hardest sell, of course, had been Cindy. Because of her earlier comments, they decided to deliver the news face-to-face. He was extremely proud of Megan. She could have laid in to Cindy for what she’d said, but Megan took the high road and tried to reassure Cindy she loved Paul and Chloe, and was committed to both of them. By the end, both Cindy and Megan were crying and hugging each other.

  To prove how much Cindy’s feelings had changed regarding his and Megan’s relationship, Cindy and George were in attendance for the wedding. The only other people were his family, her sister, and his partner, Janey. Small, but in their opinion, perfect. They didn’t need, or want, anything flashy.

  Paul said hi to each of them as he made his way up to the front of the makeshift aisle. So much had happened in the last month and a half. Megan had moved all her things into the master bedroom the day after they told Chloe the good news.

  He’d also been busy at work tying up the loose ends on the serial killer case. It turned out there’d been an incident with a young woman overseas a few months prior to Rollins being discharged. The woman had ended up dead, her murder unsolved. It now appeared that Rollins had killed her, and whatever had prompted her murder had followed him home. The powers that be were blaming it on PTSD.

  The minister waited underneath a cluster of trees along the fence that surrounded the yard. Paul pushed the thoughts of Rollins and work out of his mind. This wasn’t the day for those thoughts. In a few minutes, his bride would be walking toward him. Megan had kept her dress hidden from him, but he knew it was white. He couldn’t wait to see it. To see her in it. And then to peel it off her later that night.

  Paul took his place beside the minister and turned to face the house where Megan would make her entrance. Everyone took their seats and waited.

  In addition to keeping the guest list small, Paul and Megan had also decided not to have anyone other than Chloe stand up with them. As if in tune with his thoughts, the back door opened, and his daughter tiptoed outside in her fancy white dress. She made it about halfway across the yard before she lost all sense of decorum and ran toward him with her little basket of flowers.

  He caught her and swung her up into his arms.

  “Did I do it right, Daddy?” she asked.

  Paul laughed. “You did perfect, sweetpea.”

  Giving her a kiss on the cheek, he set Chloe on her feet, and positioned her in front of him.

  Everyone stood as Megan entered the backyard. She wore a simple white dress that flared a little at the waist. It only came down to her knees, which showed off her legs—a definite plus in his opinion.

  The closer she got, the bigger her smile seemed to get. Paul was sure his expression mirrored hers. His cheeks ached with how much he was grinning.

  “Hi,” he said when she finally stood in front of him.

  She giggled. “Hi.”

  Their vows were simple and traditional. Chloe stood in front of the minister while they exchanged their rings and as the minister pronounced them husband and wife.

  Threading his fingers through her hair, Paul kissed his new bride. “I love you, Mrs. Daniels.”

  “And I love you, Mr. Daniels. Forever.”

  “Forever.”

  Thank you for your purchase. Please long onto Amazon.com or Goodreads.com and leave a review for this title. We would love to hear from you.

  Also by Sherri Hayes

  Hidden Threat

  A Christmas Proposal (a Hidden Threat short story)

  Slave (Finding Anna, Book 1)

  Need (Finding Anna, Book 2)

  Truth (Finding Anna, Book 3)

  Trust (Finding Anna, Book 4)

  Behind Closed Doors (Daniels Brothers, Book 1)

  Red Zone (Daniels Brothers, Book 2)

  About the Author

  Sherri spent most of her childhood detesting English class. It was one of her least favorite subjects because she never seemed to fit into the standard mold. She wasn't good at spelling or following grammar rules, and outlines made her head spin. For that reason, Sherri never imagined becoming an author.

  At the age of thirty, all that changed. After getting frustrated with the direction a television show was taking two of its characters, Sherri decided to try her hand at writing an alternate ending and give the characters their happily ever after. By the time the story finished, it was one of the top ten read stories on the site, and her readers were encouraging her to write more.

  Seven years later, Sherri is the author of eight full-length novels and one short story. Writing has become a creative outlet that allows her to explore a wide range of emotions, while having fun taking her characters through all the twists and turns she can create.

  Acknowledgments

  A lot goes on behind the scenes before a novel hits the shelves. My beta, Riane, and my editors Wyndy and Andrea helped make Paul and Megan’s story the best it could be. Thank you, ladies.