Deadly Conflicts (Hardy Brothers Security Book 21) Read Free Page A

why are you telling people and upsetting them?”
    “No. This person overheard us talking,” Mandy explained. “He was eavesdropping.”
    “Oh, let me guess,” Ally said, rolling her eyes. “It was that security guard who is in love with you, right?”
    Mandy frowned. “He’s not in love with me.”
    “Yes, he is.”
    “No, he’s dating Heidi,” Mandy said, her temper getting the better of her. “Don’t say things like that. I want Heidi to be happy.”
    “I’m sorry,” Ally said, holding her hands up. “I didn’t mean to upset you. I know you like Heidi. I like her, too. I just think that dude she’s dating is weird.”
    Mandy made a face. “Have you even met him?”
    “What does that have to do with anything? James met him and doesn’t like him. That’s good enough for me.”
    Mandy planted her hands on her hips. “You can’t dislike someone just to dislike them. That’s not fair. Heidi loves Clint. They’re living together.”
    “I think he still has a thing for you.”
    “Ugh. You’re such a pain,” Mandy muttered, shaking her head as she headed into the lingerie shop. “Now I wish I would’ve left you to paint with your brother and Jake. If this is what I get for rescuing you, I’m not doing it again.”
    Now it was Ally’s turn to make a face. “There’s no reason to be snippy,” she said. “Now that we’ve argued I can legitimately explain to Jake that you were having emotional upheaval and today wasn’t really just about skipping out of work to go shopping.”
    “You’re incorrigible.”
    “I do my best,” Ally said. “Come on. Let’s shop for naughty stuff. I promised Jake a genie costume, and if I’m going to get my wish tonight, he has to get his first.”
    “And people say James and I are sick,” Mandy muttered, shaking her head. “You put me to shame.”
    “You say that like it’s a bad thing,” Ally argued. “Come on. The day is wasting away. It’s time to shop.”

    “ W HAT ARE you doing ?” James found Jake staring at a magazine in the kitchen about an hour after they started painting. The man disappeared upstairs to gather a few rags from the garage but didn’t return. “Are you taking work ethic cues from my sister or something?”
    Jake’s grin was rueful as he hurriedly closed the magazine. “Sorry. I got distracted.”
    James couldn’t be sure, but he was almost positive Jake was trying to hide something from him. The man seemed nervous about his unexpected appearance and he was trying to shove the magazine out of the way so James couldn’t see it. He was being subtle, but James was a professional.
    “What’s this?” James swiftly grabbed the magazine and jerked it away from Jake. “Are you looking at porn? I’m going to be grossed out if you are. You’re dating my sister, after all. I have to stand up for her honor. Wait, this isn’t porn.”
    “Porn?” Jake made a disgusted face as he snatched the magazine from his boss’s clutches. He liked and admired James a great deal. The man still knew how to get under his skin when he felt like it, though. “Why would I need porn when I have your sister?”
    “There are two ways I could go with that statement and I don’t like either one,” James replied. “I saw you were trying to hide that from me and naturally assumed you were doing something you didn’t want me to see.”
    Jake’s eyes flashed. “I was.”
    “I see that.” James shifted from one foot to the other, uncomfortable. “Do you want to talk about what I saw there?”
    “Not really,” Jake replied. “Do you want to talk about it?”
    “Not really.”
    “Good.”
    The two men eyed each other for a moment. James was the first to break the uncomfortable silence.
    “Are you going to propose to Ally?”
    Jake blew out a frustrated sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. He knew getting the ring catalog out was a bad idea. He had to be careful when Ally was around, though. He didn’t want to ruin the eventual