Then Kezia spoke, her voice slightly accented and with a natural soft rasp that would drive men wild. “If you need an accomplice to kick someone’s boy-bits, I’m your girl.”
Not so sweet. So maybe she could forgive her for being small, and curvy, and with a voice of a phone sex worker. “Got anyone in mind?”
“Whoever made you look like you wanted to spit nails when you walked in, cara.”
“That would be Shaye’s boss. So I’ll have to take a rain check.”
“Ah, well. It’d be a shame to damage someone so pretty.” Kezia pursed her lips thoughtfully. “We could hold him down while you muss up his hair.”
“That’d teach him,” said Shaye.
Piper laughed, but before she could speak a little voice interrupted. “I’m Zoe and I’m eight-and-a-half. Are you really a policeman?”
Kezia’s daughter stood holding loosely on to her mother’s arm.
“Hi, Zoe. I’m Piper, and I’m twenty-seven-and-a-third and yes I am a policeman—well, woman really.”
“Cool.” Zoe cocked her head, and chocolate brown curls bounced. Piper bit her lip to prevent a gooey “aww” from slipping out. “Do you have a gun?”
“Zoe!”
“Mamma—I’m just asking.” She rolled her eyes in a theatrical fashion and turned back to Piper.
Piper patted her hip pockets and frowned. “Darn, I must’ve left my gun in my other shorts.”
Zoe giggled, covering her cherubic lips with a small hand. Then her eyes widened and shifted to a serious confidentiality. “Did you know in America last year over thirty-one thousand people died from guns? Thirty-one thousand!”
Oh my God. She loved this kid already. “Really? That many?”
Piper tuned out the huff of laughter from Shaye and Kezia’s muttered, “Sweet mother of God,” followed the soft slap of palm meeting forehead.
Zoe nodded. “I read it on the internet.”
The weight of the morning’s tension oozed out of Piper’s muscles. This was shaping up to be a fun lunch.
Conversation flowed under the blue-tinted shade of the sun umbrella while they enjoyed their lunch. West arrived at their table with a charming smile for Kezia, Zoe and Shaye, but his gaze switched to hooded and cool when it landed on Piper.
Kezia excused herself to go to the restroom while West and Shaye continued to talk shop. Zoe played on her mother’s phone, and West turned away from Piper, excluding her from their conversation. Not that she gave a hoot about orders, or stock, or whatever else they continued to yatter on about. She had nothing to offer their discussion other than a barely masked yawn, because yeah, she was only the lowly kitchen-hand—and no offence to young Fraser whose job she’d taken over; he was a sweetie. Unlike his boss.
Piper bent over Zoe’s shoulder and whispered, “I’m going to the bathroom too—you okay here with Mr. and Mrs. Boring?”
The girl giggled, but didn’t look up from the screen. “Uh-huh.”
Piper wound her way through the restaurant and went through the doorway leading to the public restrooms in the main hallway.
A concrete slab of a man had Kezia backed up against the hallway wall. He towered over her, meaty hands wedged on either side of her arms, preventing her escape. “How long are you going to use your dead husband and cancer kid as an excuse?”
Kezia’s fingers curled claws in the crook of the guy’s elbows, trying to force him away. Neither noticed her frozen in the doorway.
“Leave my husband and daughter out of it. They’re not why I won’t party with you, Gavin.” Kezia’s voice could’ve crushed ice. “Now, back off.”
Gavin. Gav. Piper’s mind made a quick foray back to age sixteen when Gav cornered her in Ford and Harley’s bathroom at the twins’ eighteenth birthday party. He’d followed her in, locked the door and tried to kiss her, ramming his slimy tongue into her mouth, grabbing one of her breasts. He missed having the tip of his tongue bitten off by millimeters. Then she kneed him in the nuts and went at him with the closest weapon at hand, which happened to be a toilet brush—but hey, those bristles could hurt if shoved somewhere with enough force. She only had time to smack him across his stricken face a few times before West and Ben, hearing the commotion, busted inside. Her heroes pissed themselves laughing at her makeshift club, but dragged Gavin outside and taught him a lesson about respect.
A combination of temper and training hustled Piper down the hall. She wanted to wrench Gav’s arm up behind his back and bend his wrist at an angle cops affectionately dubbed the “chicken hold” until he screamed like a girl. Then maybe she could beat him senseless with the rolling pin Bill kept in his kitchen. Unfortunately, as an off-duty officer, the paperwork for manhandling Gav meant it wasn’t worth the hassle. Pity. She’d really, really enjoy watching him scream.
“Cornering women in bathrooms still, Gavin? You’re pathetic, you know that, right?”
Gavin started at the sound of her voice, but didn’t move his arms. Joints in his beefy neck crackled as swung his head to the side. “Piss off, Piper. This doesn’t concern you.”
“You’re annoying my friend. That makes it my concern.”
His lips pulled back in a sneer. “You don’t have any friends. And I’m in the middle of inviting Kezia out for a drink.”
Oban’s newest primary school teacher may’ve look sweeter than a sprinkle-covered cupcake, but Gav risked his family jewels if the daggers shooting from Kezia’s gaze were an indication. But Piper wouldn’t risk his temper turning physical on the smaller woman.
“Sounds like she’s not interested in what you’ve got to offer.” Piper affected a bored note to her voice and dropped her gaze down to the crotch of Gav’s jeans. A big guy like him wouldn’t like the size of his tackle called into disrepute.
Gavin’s chest expanded like a puffer fish and he finally removed his hands from the wall and turned to face her. “She’s interested all right. She’s just playing hard to get.”
Kezia ducked around him and stood at Piper’s side. “She isn’t playing hard to get and she thinks you’re a complete butthead.”
“I’ll second that assessment.” Piper eased herself in front of Kezia, who’d be out of the line of fire should Gav do anything foolish. “Now, are you leaving, or do I need to go get a toilet brush?”
His thick neck flushed a coronary-inducing shade of lobster.
Maybe she’d pushed him too far. Then she remembered the sour stench of his breath and the stubby fingers squeezing her breast. Piper braced her feet and bared her teeth.
Bring it, butthead.
But like the blustery drunks she came in contact with on a daily basis, Gavin backed down once his bullying tactics failed to get him his desired result. “Stuck up bitches, the both of you.” He stormed past and slammed the door open to the pub.
Kezia sagged against her, shaking. Piper slipped an arm around the smaller woman’s shoulder and gave her a one-armed hug. “You okay? Tell me he hasn’t tried something like this before.”
She shook her head. “He’s asked me out a few times and I’ve turned him down. He was more persistent today.”
“Maybe you need to get Glenn involved.”
“Glenn left years ago, so they tell me. Noah Daniels is the island’s cop now and I don’t think it’s serious enough to call him.” Kezia smiled, but her lips gave a telltale tremble.
“You should give West a heads-up—”
“Oh no—no!” Her curls danced wildly across her shoulders. “West has already told Gav to quit pestering me. If he finds out he’s done it again he’ll ban him from the pub—then Gav’ll stir up more bad blood in the community. I’m pretty sure he’ll leave me alone now.”
Piper didn’t believe it, but arguing seemed pointless. She studied Kezia’s prettily flushed face and her chest that still heaved from delayed shock. Ms. Teacher had quite a pair of boobs on her and she didn’t doubt West had noticed. No wonder he’d been keen to jump to her defense. “Up to you.”
; They looked at each other until Piper swallowed back a sigh, Gav’s accusations and thinking of little Zoe with cancer tightening a compressing band around her chest. “I’ve heard you’re a widow, but Zoe’s got cancer?”
“Not anymore. She’s in remission. I try to remind her that not everybody needs to know her medical history, but you’ve probably noticed that my girl loves to talk.”
“Yeah, and I could tell right away Zoe’s a tough cookie, too.”
“She’s had to be—dealing with leukemia and missing the love of her grandparents because they thought me a gold-digging bitch—” Kezia broke off, shoving shaky fingers under her armpits and hugging herself. “Sorry, I’m ranting. I don’t usually dump my life story on people within minutes of meeting them. Gav’s rattled me a little more than I thought.”
“It’s okay. I’m very dumpable.”
“Thanks.”
“My only regret is I should’ve rattled the prick for you—then afterwards you could’ve kicked him in his boy-bits.”
“Next time?”
Piper pointed a finger at her. “If there is a next time you’ll be talking with Noah Daniels.”
Kezia pulled her shoulders back and smoothed down her dress. “Gotta get my mojo back before we go out again. What’s with the toilet brush comment, anyway?”
“Invite me around for a beer sometime and I’ll tell you.”
“You’re on.” Kezia returned her smile, a genuine one this time, and casually slipped her arm through Piper’s, like they really were friends or something.
Heck. How had that happened?
Piper spent the rest of the afternoon and evening elbow-deep in lemon and grease scented dishwater.
She’d pretty much decided her sister’s career choice in the culinary industry sucked when Bill told her, “Go back to West’s. You look like something Donny puked up on the rug.”
After drying her prune-wrinkled hands, she snagged her lightweight hoodie off the hook by the back door. Forcing a friendly note into her voice she called out, “See you tomorrow, Bill.”
She received a surly grunt in reply.
The temperature had dropped like the night before, but it wasn’t raining. Piper tugged on the hoodie, glancing down at the soft whine from at her feet. Curled in his bed by the kitchen’s back door, Donny looked up at her with a woe-is-me sheen in his eyes. When she held the dog’s gaze, he began to shake.
“Poor baby.” She squatted and scratched behind his remaining ear. “Did your mean old master leave you out here in the cold?”
“He’s got fur so he’s totally faking it.” West’s voice came from behind her in the open doorway.
“Jeez, will you stop sneaking up on me?” She sprung up and spun around. “It’s not closing time—haven’t you got your little empire to oversee?”
Donny clambered out of his basket and sidled over to West, his tail thwacking against her legs.
“I’ll walk back with you. Dad’s closing up tonight.”
“For once,” came Bill’s disembodied shout from somewhere within the bowels of his kitchen. “You’re a bleedin’ workaholic. Always first in, last to leave. Ya must be coming down with something.”
“Yeah, yeah, old man. Just lock up and keep out of trouble.”
A muffled but audible, “I’m not the one headed for trouble, sonny-boy.”
West shut the door on his father’s continued grumbles. “Ready?”
Once again his proximity sent shivers rippling through her system. He had no idea about personal space, or maybe her awareness of him caused her to squirm like a gawky teenager again.
Should she insist she’d rather walk alone? She couldn’t very well confess her plan to sneak back to his spare room to avoid another confrontation. Better to play it cool. But the woodsy-scented body heat rising from his long sleeve tee shirt, the way his jeans clung to every clingable bit of his lower body, and just the sheer, sexy bulk of him was almost enough to make her risk being rude. She spotted the gleam of his teeth in the semi-darkness. Almost, but not quite.
“Yep.” She crossed her arms over her breasts, as her nipples pebbled under her hoodie. A natural consequence of the cool night air. Uh-huh.
“Let’s go.” He gestured for her to take the lead.
They rounded the side of Due South and headed along the empty road. Donny trotted ahead and paused frequently to sniff along the ground. Maybe they wouldn’t end up snapping each other’s head off again. Maybe they could remain civil. And since they were being civil, she’d ask him a civil question.
“How long has Gavin been after Kezia?”
Their footsteps echoed in sync on the asphalt, the hiss of small waves foaming along the beach to their right a watery complement. Finding their natural rhythm together had never been the problem.
West shoved his hands into his jean pockets and slowed his steps. “Why? Jealous he’s not panting after you any more?”
“Right.” She snorted a laugh. “Like you’re not a little bit green.”
“Nah. Gav’s not my type.”
“But Kezia is.” The words popped out of her in an explosive bubble. Damn.
“She’s stunning, that’s for sure.”
Her pace sped up, cold slicking through her blood.
What had she expected? Someone as pretty and feminine as Kezia wouldn’t catch his eye? That he’d been celibate for the past nine years? She sensed his gaze skim down her hoodie and the cargo pants, which scored an A for comfort and an easy D-minus for sex appeal. She’d never done pretty dresses or dainty heels, and up until West broke her heart it hadn’t dawned on her that girly stuff may top his list of turn-ons. Piper’s backbone straightened, each muscle contracting around her vertebrae a reminder of her resolve. Shaye and Kezia loved their girly stuff, but she would never be a girly-girl.
“You practicing speed walking here?” He lengthened his stride to keep up. “Or maybe a spot of jealousy yourself.”
“You always did have a big ego to compensate for your small dick,” she sniped, not letting up her pace.
“I don’t recall you complaining about the size of my dick. You seemed pretty happy to get your hands on it.”
Heat flashed through her. What their lovemaking lacked in sophistication was compensated for with passion and a deep connection. Well. She had experienced passion and a deep connection.
“Back then I had nothing to compare it to. I’m older and wiser now.” And not dumb enough to get entangled with him a second time.
“And maybe we’ve both grown since then. I’ll show you mine if you show me yours.”
The grin in his tone said the bastard was laughing at her again. They both knew he only slept with her for convenience and curiosity—he’d clarified that nine years ago. So why tease her in a sexual way? To highlight the humiliation that she’d always been more into him than vice-versa? “I’m sure you’d rather show your dick to women who’ll give it the adoration you so erroneously believe it deserves.”
“My dick is quite adorable. Sure you don’t want a peek?”
A clear picture popped into her mind. West in board shorts earlier in the day, the wind blowing the thin fabric against him, outlining his large—hello, not going there. “Can we not continue this asinine conversation? I’m surrounded at work by men who love talking about this sort of crap.”
“We men do find it an endlessly fascinating topic.”
“So I’ve discovered.”
Past the last of the streetlamps, West produced a flashlight and switched it on. Donny, spotting the thin beam of light, loped back and trotted at West’s heels. “Gav is interested in any female who hasn’t twigged he’s an asshole. There’s not many left on the island.”
“Puts me off his radar then—and Kezia thinks he’s a butthead.”
“Did something happen at your girls’ lunch today?”
“Nothing we girls couldn’t cope with. Kezia turned Gav down on a date and he didn’t handle the rejection with diplomacy. It’s no big deal.�
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“No big deal—just like you panicking in the cage was no big deal?”
“Are you always so contentious?” She slid him a sidelong glare, which probably got lost in the gathering dark. “I told you, I didn’t panic.”
“Because you’ve done three-and-a-half weeks training with the Navy.”
Crap! He had listened to her tirade on The Mollymawk. Piper kept her jaw clamped shut and walked.
“Cat got your tongue, hmm?”
She hoped, even when hope was useless, that West would drop the subject. Like that’d happen.
“So why all this dive training? I thought you were just a cop?”
A beat passed while her brain sifted through frantic excuses. Nothing helpful caught and she sighed. “I am a cop.”
“And?”
“And I’m a damn good cop.”
He stopped. Right in the center of the road. Tipped his head to the side and folded his arms, the fingers on his right hand drumming a tattoo on his left bicep. Donny dropped his butt to the ground beside him and blinked accusingly at her too.
“I’ve read something before about the navy diving course. You’re not an ordinary cop, you’re a police diver.”
Busted. And pointless denying it. But she fisted her hands on her hips and stared him down. She’d worked hard to earn her place on the squad. “Yeah, I am. The only female on the squad at the moment.”
“Your family doesn’t know about this, do they?”
“They don’t need to know.” She hesitated, thinking of her mother. “It would only hurt and worry them—you can’t tell.”
“Dammit, Pipe, it’s not right.” Her heart gave a pathetic hop at the sound of her old nickname on his tongue. “This kind of…work. It can’t be good for you.”
Murray O’Neill. The name of the seventeen-year-old she’d recovered at Lake Tikitapu. Her work. Murray’s mother had wrapped her arms around Piper, thanking her for bringing her boy home. The woman’s tears left damp patches on the stiff collar of her uniform shirt. Murray O’Neill built another brick in the wall of redemption she started constructing nine years ago. Not just work.
Second Chances Boxed Set: 7 Sweet & Sexy Romances in 1 Book Page 7