Mandy reluctantly sat at the end of the bed, clutching her clothes to her chest.
“I’m sorry you’re upset,” James said, stripping out of his suit coat and tossing it in front of his closet. “I don’t like it when you’re upset. I owe you an explanation, but you owe me the respect of listening to that explanation.”
“Fine. Explain.”
Under different circumstances, James would’ve found the obstinate tilt of her chin adorable. He knew better than commenting on it now. “I met Madeline a couple of years after I moved here once I got out of the service,” James said, unbuttoning his shirt. “I thought she was pretty and she seemed self-assured. I wasn’t looking for a relationship.”
“I’m sure you weren’t.”
James ignored Mandy’s bitter tone. “I never told her I loved her,” he said. “I didn’t love her. You are the only woman I’ve ever loved, and that will never change. At a certain point, I was looking for a new apartment. That was before we bought the security building and while I was running the business, our office was in rental space in Clinton Township at the time.
“Madeline suggested I move into her apartment and I did,” he continued. “She never pressured me before then, so I didn’t think it was going to be a big deal if we moved in together. I knew the relationship wasn’t destined to last. I thought it would be a few months and then things would move toward their natural ending.”
“I’m sure Madeline saw things differently,” Mandy said. “I’m betting she took you moving in with her as a sign that you were going to ask her to marry you.”
“Pretty much,” James confirmed. “She started dropping hints about the type of ring she wanted. She started checking my cell phone to see if I was talking to other women. She also followed me when I was working one night because she was convinced I was lying about having a job.”
“I take it you didn’t like that,” Mandy said. James couldn’t be sure, but thought he detected a softening in her demeanor.
“I didn’t ever see myself settling down back then,” James conceded. “Heck, when you walked through the front door of Hardy Brothers Security, I still didn’t think I would ever get married. I knew something was different about you – and the way my heart and body reacted to you – but I wasn’t looking for a wife.
“You changed all of that,” he continued. “At a certain point, I realized I couldn’t live without you. Not only that, I knew I wanted to get married … but only to you. You’re my one and only, Mandy. That will never change.”
Mandy wet her lips as she decided how she wanted to handle his admission. “You asked me to marry you six months after we started dating,” she said. “Did you really know that fast or did you ask me to marry you because I was hurt in the explosion?”
“You’ve already asked me that,” James reminded her.
“I know, but … if you didn’t know after dating Madeline for a year, how did you know with me?”
“Because you crawled inside of my heart and took up residence there,” James replied, guileless. “I can’t live my life without you. And, for the record, I knew three months after we started dating that I was going to propose. If you don’t believe me, ask Finn. I told him the day after he met Emma.”
Mandy’s mouth dropped open, surprise washing over her. “Really?”
James unbuttoned his pants and dropped them to the floor, stepping out of them before moving to kneel in front of Mandy. He rested his hands on her knees and locked gazes with her. “I happen to believe that some things are meant to be,” he said. “You and I were meant to be.”
“But … what did Madeline want tonight?” Mandy wasn’t ready to let go of her righteous indignation.
“She wanted to pick up where we left off,” James replied. “She wanted to know why I married you and walked away from her. You should know that when I broke up with her … well … it got ugly. She stalked me for a little bit and even interrupted a client meeting because she was convinced I was seeing the woman who hired us. She had a bit of a mental break for a little while.
“I had to get a restraining order that lapsed after six months,” he continued. “I didn’t think it was a problem because she stopped coming around. I was under the impression she got the message and accepted that I didn’t want to be with her.”
“Do you think she’s dangerous now?”
James cupped the back of Mandy’s neck and rubbed her cheek with his thumb. “I don’t think she’s dangerous,” he said. “I told her in no uncertain terms that I love you and only you. She was hurt when I mentioned I never loved her, but that’s a hard dose of reality she probably needed. I think we ran into each other by accident tonight and we won’t see her again.”
Mandy pressed her lips together.
“Baby, I love you so much it swallows me whole sometimes,” James said. “You don’t ever have to worry about me wanting to be with someone else. It’s not possible.”
Mandy nodded. “I’m sorry I yelled at you.”
“You didn’t really yell – well, maybe a little – but I’m not sorry,” James said. “You needed to get it out of your system. It wouldn’t hurt if you yelled a little more these days. You’ve been quiet for weeks.”
“I haven’t been quiet,” Mandy clarified. “I’ve been … thinking. I have a lot to think about.”
“I know you do,” James said. “I want to do that thinking with you if you’ll let me. You know you can talk about what happened if you need to do it, right?”
“I don’t want to talk about it. I want to forget it.”
“Baby, you’re never going to forget it,” James said. “You will move on, but not if you bottle all of this up inside of you.”
“I’m okay,” Mandy said. “I just … I’m not ready to go out into the guesthouse yet. I guess you caught me on that one.”
James smirked. He couldn’t help himself. “I guess I did.” He leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to her mouth. “I love you, wife.”
Mandy rested her forehead against James’ and sighed. “I love you.”
“Do you want to finish our night in the hot tub or just get naked here?” James flashed Mandy an incorrigible smile, causing her to giggle.
“Here.”
“Good answer, baby,” James said, pulling his boxer shorts down and revealing his ready erection as he stood. “I’ve got a present for you.”
This time Mandy’s laugh was deep and heartfelt. “That’s good. I’ve got a present for you, too.”
“You are the best gift I’ve ever gotten,” James said. “Now, I want my gift naked. I want to start naked Sunday early. We have to work up an appetite so I can stuff an omelet down you tomorrow morning.”
“Okay,” Mandy said, leaning back so she could unhook her garters. “I hope you’re up to the task.”
James grabbed Mandy’s hand. “Take off the underwear and bra but leave the garters and stockings as they are.”
Mandy rolled her eyes. The garters always got him going. “You know, when I quit my job I’m going to spend all day painting in nothing but my garters so you’ll be tempted to come home early every night.”
Mandy planned on leaving her job at the courthouse in September so she could pursue her dream of being an artist full time. It was still four months away, but it was a promise that loomed large.
“Oh, baby, when that happens I’m going to work from home three days a week.”
Mandy snickered. “How will you get work done?”
“Screw work, baby,” James said, grabbing her by the waist and tossing her toward the middle of the mattress. “We’ll live on love.”
“I think I can handle that.”
4
Four
Monday morning’s arrival meant Mandy and James had to return to work. After an entire day without clothing – coupled with endless urges – they were both satiated and happy. In fact, while Mandy wasn’t completely back to her normal self, she was so much better James spent half the previous evening tryin
g to figure out a way to get her to call in sick to work so they could repeat the experience Monday. He knew she wouldn’t, but it was a tantalizing thought.
“Hurry home from work tonight, baby,” James instructed, glancing over from his spot next to his Explorer so he could watch Mandy climb into her Focus. “I’ll pick up dinner so we can strip down the second we get inside.”
“I can barely walk as it is,” Mandy shot back, although the smile playing at the corner of her mouth was so cute James couldn’t stop himself from striding over and planting a huge kiss on her. Mandy returned it, and when they separated she was breathless. “What was that for?”
“I love you, wife,” James said, pressing a soft kiss to the corner of her mouth. “You have no idea how much I enjoyed yesterday.”
Mandy smirked. “We have a naked day every week.”
“Yesterday was perfect, though,” James said, brushing a strand of her flaxen hair away from her face. “I want tonight to be perfect, too, so don’t be late.”
“I won’t be late,” Mandy promised, giving his butt a firm squeeze before taking a step back. “Be good today.”
“I’m always good, baby,” James said, tipping an imaginary cowboy hat. “Since you’re not wearing underwear today, I’ll have a reason to get my work done early.”
James often convinced Mandy to go commando so he had something to fantasize about while doing computer work. She never put up a fight because his enjoyment was often contagious. Only the winter months proved difficult.
“I’ll send you a dirty photo in a text when I get back to my office after lunch,” Mandy offered, smiling.
James grabbed her face and studied her for a moment, love washing over him. “Thank you for being the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Mandy was taken aback by his fortitude. “Thank you for being the best husband in the world.”
“I’m going to get a cape that says that so when we play superheroes in our Underoos you’re going to have to bow down to my unbreakable power,” James said, gracing her with another sweet kiss before separating. “Now get to work … and don’t forget your McDonald’s breakfast sandwiches. I’m calling Heidi and she’ll tell me if you lie about eating them.”
Mandy made a face. “I’ll eat one sandwich.”
“You’ll eat one sandwich and a hash brown,” James said, enjoying the negotiation. “If I hear proof you’ve eaten both, I’ll … make it worth your while when you get home tonight.”
“A massage in the hot tub?”
James grinned. “While watching Jaws,” he added. “Go to work. I’ll be thinking about you all day.”
JAMES was in a good mood when he got to the security building twenty minutes later, whistling the theme from Jaws under his breath as he maneuvered through the lobby. He pulled up short when Grady stepped in his path, blocking his way to his office.
“If you’re about to tell me something awful, turn around,” James said, twirling his finger for emphasis. “I don’t want any bad news today.”
“I’m glad you have the spring in your step back, but you’re not going to like what I’m about to tell you and I have no other option but to tell you,” Grady said.
“Fine. Tell me.”
“Madeline Stokes is in your office.”
James frowned, his stomach twisting. “No.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“Saying ‘no’ doesn’t make it untrue,” Grady hissed. “She showed up an hour ago and wanted a meeting with you. She demanded that I call you, but I refused. She claims it’s business, but the only business she’s interested in is getting in your pants. That’s written all over your face.”
“Tell me how you really feel,” James deadpanned.
“What are you going to do?” Grady challenged. “I was considering pulling the fire alarm and then locking the door behind her when she got outside, but I don’t want Emma to panic.”
“We also don’t want to wake up the baby in case he’s sleeping,” James added, glancing at the ceiling. Emma and Finn took over his old apartment after he moved. It kept them safe – and offered Emma help with the baby should she need it.
“You don’t have to worry about the baby sleeping,” Finn replied, appearing at the bottom of the stairs with an alert Avery in his arms. “His mother is sleeping, however, and if you wake her I’m going to beat you both. I think it’s going to be easy because you won’t put up a fight when I’m holding a baby.”
Grady hunkered down so he was at eye-level with Avery. “Hey, little man. I like that Star Wars onesie you’ve got going on there.”
Avery blinked at Grady but otherwise remained unmoved by the statement.
“Mandy bought it for Emma,” Finn said. “She won’t dress him in anything Mandy bought because she’s taking the fact that Mandy won’t hold him personally – like Mandy thinks he’s ugly or something. He’s a poop factory, though, and I didn’t want to do laundry so I grabbed the first onesie I saw.”
“Emma needs to give Mandy a break,” James chided. “She’s working through things. It’s not personal.”
“It doesn’t help that you won’t hold him,” Finn pointed out.
“He freaks me out until he can hold his head up,” James replied. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to break him. He still has that new car smell about him. You should be glad I’m refraining in case I accidentally hurt him. I’m sure I’ll be able to hold him soon.”
Finn sighed. “You’re being dramatic,” he said. “I was afraid to hold him at first, too. He’s warm and snuggly, though.”
Grady made a face as Avery spit up, but Finn wordlessly cleaned up the mess and didn’t let it distract him from the conversation.
“Just … can’t you try holding him for Emma the next time we’re all together?” Finn pressed.
“No,” James said, shaking his head. “When I see the kid holding up his own head and acting a little more … durable … I’ll hold him. I’m never changing him, though, so erase that thought from your head right now. He’s not spending alone time with Uncle James until he craps in a toilet.”
“Nice,” Finn said, although he couldn’t stop himself from laughing. “I heard Madeline is here, by the way.”
“Crappy news travels fast,” James said, making a disgusted face. “Speaking of that … I’ll give you fifty bucks if you take that kid in the office and let him throw up on Madeline.”
“If I could get him to do it on command I would,” Finn said. “He has a mind of his own.”
“That’s because he’s a Hardy,” Grady said. “You know, James, if you hold the baby you could use that as an excuse to get out of meeting with Madeline. We could say you have a babysitting emergency. That’s why we have the kid.”
“I thought we had him because we love him,” Finn said, glancing down at his son and making an exaggerated face. “I’m trying to get him to smile, but he won’t do it.”
“Is he supposed to be smiling?”
“Soon, but not yet,” Finn said. “I just know he’s going to smile at Ally first.”
“That will make her happy,” James said, glancing at the office. “Don’t worry about Madeline. I’ll handle her. She’s not going to get what she wants, so I have no idea why she would show up here.”
“How was Mandy after the charity event?” Grady asked. “She seemed a little … put out.”
“She’s fine,” James said. “We fought about her eating habits and Madeline and then we made up – like ten times. We had naked Sunday and she was cuddly and giggly the entire day. I’m calling it a win.”
“I’m glad,” Grady said earnestly. “I’ve been worried about her. Has she gone in the guesthouse yet?”
“Not yet,” James conceded. “When she’s ready she’ll do it. I refuse to push her.”
“Yes, but I want to see her face when she sees what we did with the saloon,” Grady said. “It’s not really a saloon anymore, is it? What should we call it?”
“I’ve ord
ered a sign,” James replied. “I’ll tell you what to call it when I hang it and Mandy finally sees it. Thanks for doing that, by the way. It looks nothing like it did before and that wall you left is a nice touch. She’s going to love painting a mural on that … eventually.”
“You seem like you’re more relaxed,” Finn said.
“That’s because they had sex like rabbits all day yesterday,” Grady supplied. “He was humming the theme song to Jaws this morning.”
Mandy’s love of all things sharks – especially the classic Steven Spielberg movie – was well known in the Hardy family. James wasn’t ashamed in the least. “She also ate a full takeout meal yesterday and is picking up McDonald’s for breakfast this morning. By the way, I need to be out of here at four. I promised I would pick up dinner and then we’re turning the rest of our night into naked Monday.”
Grady rolled his eyes. “I’m glad you’re back to being sick.”
“Me, too,” James said, shaking his head as he studied his office. “I need to get this out of the way. I’m probably going to end up being rude, so you might want to take Avery into the storeroom or back upstairs if you don’t want him to pick up his first swear word.”
“He doesn’t know what his nose is yet,” Finn said. “I think he’ll survive.”
“Let’s hope I survive,” James grumbled, squaring his shoulders. “If I’m not out of there in ten minutes, I need one of you to interrupt with a fake emergency.”
Grady snickered. “Do I get to make up the emergency?”
“Knock yourself out,” James answered. “Just make sure it’s bad enough to get her out of my office.”
“Consider it done.”
MADELINE glanced up when James pushed his office door open and stepped into the enclosed space. He kept his face neutral as he shuffled toward his desk, sitting in the chair before fixing his expressive eyes on his former flame.
“What do you want?”
Madeline scowled. “Is that any way to treat a potential customer?”
James arched a dubious eyebrow. “Is that what you are? I’m sorry. I thought you were a jilted girlfriend. I’m sure you can understand my confusion since my ex-girlfriends don’t often hire me.”
Deadly Rivalry (Hardy Brothers Security Book 17) Page 3