“Why does that matter?” Mandy asked.
“It’s part of the investigation, Mrs. Hardy.”
“Mrs. Avery-Hardy,” Mandy corrected.
James made a face, shifting his attention from the police officer to his wife. “What?”
Mandy stilled. “I … I’ve decided to hyphenate my name.”
“Since when?”
“Since … since now.”
“Why?”
“I … .”
James waited.
“Since I’m an only child and I don’t want to let my dad’s name die,” Mandy admitted.
James’ gaze softened. “That sounds like a good idea.”
Mandy’s eyes were hopeful when they met his. “Really?”
“Really.” James pressed a quick kiss to her forehead before turning back to Samson. “What else do you need to know?”
“Mr. Hardy, I have to admit, this doesn’t look good for you,” he said.
“Well, I didn’t kill him, so I’m not sure how it looks bad.”
“A dead body was found on the property where you and your new bride are residing.”
“I noticed,” James deadpanned.
“The man in question accosted your wife.”
“Yup.”
“He’s dead.”
“Yup.”
“You’re a suspect.”
“I didn’t do it,” James said. “It’s not my style.”
“They’ve been cleared,” another police officer said, climbing the steps to the terrace. “Sorry to interrupt, but I’m Detective St. James.”
James shook his proffered hand, not bothering to get up from the lounger.
“What do you mean they’ve been cleared?” Samson asked.
“We’ve contacted the owners at the tour,” St. James said. “They said Mr. and Mrs. Hardy were there for the whole afternoon.”
“And?”
“And, the coroner has ascertained that the body has been there since yesterday afternoon,” St. James said. “Trust me, they’re cleared.”
Samson didn’t look pleased with the new information. “But … .”
St. James rolled his eyes, focusing on James and Mandy. “I’m sorry this ruined your vacation.”
“Honeymoon,” James corrected.
“I’m really sorry it ruined your honeymoon.”
James glanced at Mandy. “Nothing was ruined,” he said. “I think you’ve just ensured that we’re ready to go home.”
“I’m glad I could help.”
Five
“We’re here,” Mandy said, breathing out a relieved sigh as James killed the engine of his Explorer in front of their new house.
“We’re home.”
They both sat in the vehicle, unmoving.
“We should get out.”
“We should,” James agreed.
“Is it pathetic that I’m holding off on getting out of your truck because I’m scared to return to the real world?”
James snickered. “If that’s the case, then we’re both pathetic.”
“Seriously?”
“Seriously.”
“This is our house,” Mandy said.
“I’ve seen the mortgage,” James said. “This is definitely our house.”
“No, I mean, it’s our house,” Mandy said, turning to him with sparkling eyes. “We live here now. We live here together.”
James was confused. “We’ve been living together for a long time,” he said. “I don’t care what you think. As far as I’m concerned, we’ve been living together for more than a year. That whole meltdown from a few months ago is not a consideration.”
Mandy made a face. “That’s not what I meant.”
“What did you mean?”
“I … .”
“Tell me,” James prodded.
“I loved the apartment,” Mandy said. “I did. I don’t want you to think that I didn’t love the apartment.”
James waited.
“I just … you had that as your home before I came along.”
Understanding dawned on James. “You never felt like that was your home, did you?”
“That’s not true.”
“Yes, it is.” James felt guilty. He’d unilaterally decided that his apartment was where they would settle. He’d never considered trying to find another place for them to share together right away. He’d never taken her feelings into consideration.
“Oh, don’t do that,” Mandy chided. “That was our home. I loved our time there. I loved being there with you.”
“But?”
“But we didn’t get to pick it out together,” Mandy said. “We didn’t get to decorate it together. We joined together there, but it wasn’t ours. You kind of made room for me in your home.”
“It was ours,” James countered. “I wanted it to be ours.”
Mandy sighed. “James, you’re overreacting.”
“I just found out that my wife never felt like she was comfortable in our home,” James replied. “Why would I overreact?”
Mandy was at her wit’s end. “Don’t you know that my home is you?”
“I know that your home is with me.”
“Not with you,” Mandy clarified. “You are my home. You. Right now? This truck is my home because you’re here. The apartment was my home because you were there.”
“If that’s true, then what are you saying?”
“This is our home,” Mandy said. “We picked this house out together. We’re moving in here together. We’ll spend every night here together. This is … special.”
James smiled. “This is the house we built together.”
“Yes.”
“Let’s go home, baby,” he said. “Let’s go home.”
“I CAN’T believe you’re back!”
Ally attacked Mandy with a fervent hug the minute she walked through the front door of the house. James shook his head, watching as the brunette whirlwind tackled an equally excited blonde, the two of them collapsing on the floor.
Ally’s boyfriend, Jake, greeted James with an amiable nod as he wandered into the foyer. “Hey.”
“Hey.”
“Good honeymoon?”
“Pretty good,” James said. “The last day left a little to be desired, but the rest of it was pretty great.”
“What happened the last day?” Ally asked, brushing Mandy’s hair out of her face so she could look her friend up and down. “Your tan is amazing. Do you have tan lines, or did you just lay out naked?”
“Some guy was found dead on the property at the house,” James said. “Mandy stumbled across him while we were searching for seashells.”
Jake smirked. “Seashells?”
“Don’t,” James warned. “A man will do almost anything to have sex in the ocean.”
“I would’ve thought that was a daily occurrence,” Jake said.
“Not when your wife thinks sharks are lurking in the shallows to eat her.”
Ally giggled. “How did the shark tour go? I want to hear everything.”
“I want to know more about the body,” Jake said. “Who was it?”
James shrugged. “I have no idea. The problem is, we’d seen the guy a couple nights before. He was drunk and throwing himself on Mandy.”
“And James punched him in the face,” Mandy finished.
Ally’s eyebrows shot up. “You hit him?”
James shrugged, clearly not sorry for his actions. “He was pawing my wife and then he said she was dressed like a slut.”
“Oh, so he had it coming,” Jake said.
“He definitely had it coming.”
Ally wrinkled her nose. “I don’t want to hear any more about the dead guy. Tell me about the honeymoon. Did you have a lot of sex?”
“Ally,” Jake warned.
Ally patted Mandy’s knee. “We’ll talk later.”
Mandy exchanged an amused look with James. “Not that I’m not happy to see you, but what are you doing here?”
“I wante
d to make sure you had stuff in the refrigerator in case you didn’t want to leave tonight or tomorrow,” Ally said. “The real world will be there Monday, but this is still your honeymoon.”
“That’s nice of you,” Mandy said. “So, um, how long are you staying?”
“How long do you want me to stay?”
“She’s asking when you’re leaving,” James supplied. “We have one more day before we have to return to work, and we want to spend it alone.”
“You’ve spent the past two weeks alone,” Ally said, pouting.
“And we’re not done,” James said.
“But … .”
“Ally,” Jake said. “I thought you wanted me to take you out to dinner and a movie tonight?”
“But … .”
“Ally, this is their first night in the house,” Jake said. “As much as they love you, I think they want to enjoy the house.”
“Oh,” Ally said, realization washing over her face. “Okay, fine. Next weekend, though, we’re having a spa day, and no men are allowed.”
“That sounds good,” James said.
“And you’re paying,” Ally added.
“I can’t wait.”
“And I’m going nuts with a pedicure and a massage.”
James sighed. “Ally?”
“What?”
“Get out.”
Ally tapped the end of her brother’s nose with her finger and smiled. “You look really happy.”
“I’m going to be even happier when you leave.”
“Fine,” Ally said, swiveling toward the door. “I’ll be back on Monday for my gift.”
“How do you know we bought you a gift?” James asked, narrowing his eyes.
“Because I am gift worthy.”
“Get out, Ally.”
“HOW is it?”
James lifted his head, the warm water from the hot tub bubbling around him. Mandy was standing at the edge of the Jacuzzi, a robe cinched around her waist as she regarded him hopefully.
“It’s almost perfect,” James said.
“What’s wrong with it?”
“You’re not in here,” James said, extending his index finger and gesturing for her to join him.
Mandy peered into the water, biting her lip. “Are you naked?”
“Why?”
“I … .”
“Are you naked under that robe?”
“Maybe.”
“So, what’s the problem?”
“I’m suddenly embarrassed,” Mandy admitted.
“Of being naked in front of your husband?”
“What if the neighbors see?”
“That’s why we had a six-foot security fence put up.”
“What if someone snuck onto the property and drilled a hole in it so they could spy on us?”
“Then they’re going to love your body as much as I do.”
“What if … ?”
“Get your ass in the hot tub!”
Mandy furtively glanced around, finally untying the fluffy robe and letting it drop from her naked body. James appreciated the view as she descended into the hot tub quickly, laughing as she groaned with delight when the warm water washed over her. “Oh, wow.”
“Nice, huh?”
“It’s amazing.” Mandy swam to the middle of the hot tub, ducking her head underneath the water and then resurfacing. “Oh, now this is living.”
The delight Mandy showed in the simplest things often had the ability to stir James’ soul – and this was one of those times. “Come here, wife.”
Mandy rested her chin on her shoulder coyly. “Why?”
“Because, it occurs to me that I never got sex in the ocean thanks to that whole body thing,” James said.
“This isn’t the ocean.”
“No,” James agreed. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t compromise.”
“What did you have in mind?”
James lowered himself to his knees, nudging closer to his wife and snaking his arm around her waist. “Well, I was thinking that we could start with a little of this.”
James pressed his lips to hers, pushing Mandy’s wet away from her face. Their tongues danced together as Mandy ran her hands over James’ strong shoulders.
“That’s a nice start,” she said when they came up for oxygen.
“Uh-huh,” James said, tilting her head to the side so he could lick the expanse between her shoulder and ear, causing her body to shiver.
“What else are you going to do?”
James ran his hands down her arms, bring them back around to cup her breasts. The night was dark, but the bright moon above gave him more than enough light to work with. His thumbs ran lazy circles over her nipples before slipping lower.
Mandy gasped when she felt him teasing her center, her eyes widening as the warm water caused a strange sensation to wrack her body. “That’s new.”
“What does it feel like?”
“I … oh, keep doing that.”
James grinned, kissing her deeply.
Mandy’s fingertips trailed down his solid chest, causing his skin to break out in gooseflesh in anticipation before she wrapped her small hand around his hard length. She alternated between a soft grip and brief tightening as she pumped her hand up and down.
The teasing was too much for James, and he circled her wrist with his fingers as he dragged her hand away.
“Hey!”
“If you keep doing that, I’m not going to last,” James said.
“So? We have all night … and all day tomorrow … and forever.”
“I know.” James’ voice was husky, his eyes filled with emotion. “This is our first time here, though. I want it to last.”
“You’re very sweet,” Mandy teased, sucking his bottom lip into her mouth. “But this isn’t the first time we’ve done it here. I seem to remember christening my studio right before our wedding, and then the saloon about an hour after that.”
“Yes, but you weren’t my wife then.”
“But you still loved me, right?”
“I’ve loved you since the moment I saw you again,” James said, kneading her back as he pulled her chest flush with his.
“I don’t think it was quite that soon.”
“It was,” James said. “The second I saw you, something was different, something fit. I don’t know that I’ve ever believed in destiny … or fate … but you’re it for me. You’re my forever.”
Mandy’s eyes filled with tears.
“Oh, don’t do that,” James said. “I’m going to stop saying romantic things to you if you keep doing that.”
“I love you.”
James moved his hands around her rear, easily lifting her body and crushing her to him. “Show me.”
Mandy’s hands tangled in his hair as she kissed him, love pouring from one body to the other. James shifted her thighs so they spread around his hips. He rubbed himself between her nether lips, stimulating them both for a few minutes before letting himself slide inside. They groaned in unison, their mouths fused together.
The water was warm, but the emotional heat between the two of them was scorching. Mandy lifted her hips in a slow, tantalizing motion, raising her head to the sky as her orgasm built. James sucked on her neck lightly, grazing his teeth against her throat.
Words were no longer necessary, and they both increased the speed of their coupling as the excitement began to climb. Mandy tumbled first, gripping James’ back as she cried out. James followed mere seconds later, murmuring her name as he exploded.
James’ legs were shaky due to the power of their passion, but he managed to hold on to his still trembling wife and stagger to the bench. He held Mandy there, running his hand up and down her slim back as their hearts slowed and sank into the same rhythm.
“Welcome home, baby,” he whispered. “Welcome home.”
Six
“Oh, you look so great,” Heidi squealed, stepping into Mandy’s office and fixing her friend with a delighted smile.
&n
bsp; Mandy lifted her head from the papers she was perusing, returning the smile with a welcoming one of her own. “You, too.”
Heidi waved off Mandy’s compliment as she flounced into the office. “I look exactly the same. You have a glow.”
“I think it’s just a tan,” Mandy said, laughing.
“No, it’s happiness,” Heidi said. “You’re happy.”
“I am happy.”
“It must be such a bummer to come back to work,” Heidi said after a minute. “You spent two weeks in Bermuda, and then you have to come back to … rapists and bank robbers and murderers.”
“I don’t know,” Mandy said. “The honeymoon was great, but there was a murder there, too.”
Heidi’s eyes widened. “There was?”
Mandy told her the story.
“Oh, that’s horrible,” Heidi said when she was done.
“It was a downer,” Mandy admitted. “It was the last day, though. It just made us excited to come home.”
“Wait, don’t get too far ahead,” Heidi said. “Tell me about the good stuff.”
“What good stuff?”
“The good honeymoon stuff,” Heidi said. “How was the wedding night?”
Mandy smirked. “It was good.”
“Oh, you have to give me more than that,” Heidi whined.
“No, I don’t.”
“I’m dying here.”
A knock at the open office door drew both Heidi and Mandy’s attention to the man standing in the hallway. “Judge MacIntosh,” Mandy said, getting to her feet and rushing to give her boss a hug. “I’m so glad to see you.”
“And I’m glad to see you,” MacIntosh replied. “You look incredibly tan.”
“She has a glow,” Heidi agreed.
Mandy moved back behind her desk. “That’s what happens when you go to a tropical island.”
“No, it’s love,” Heidi teased.
Mandy rolled her eyes.
“I think Heidi might be right,” the judge said, settling in the open chair next to his court stenographer. “So, tell me, how was the honeymoon?”
“Oh, don’t bother, she won’t share any of the sex details,” Heidi grumbled.
MacIntosh’s face colored. “I’m fairly certain I didn’t want any of those.”
Mandy swallowed her upper lip with her bottom to keep from laughing. “Well, James rented a beautiful house,” she said. “It was two stories, and it was built into a bluff, so the bottom floor opened up right on the beach. We had a terrace off the main bedroom, and we could leave the door open so we could hear the ocean at night.”
Deadly Honeymoon (Hardy Brothers Security Book 7) Page 4