The rest of the day passed in a surreal haze of aching flashes of lust mixed with paranoia. Every time a man entered the booth she’d tense and shoot a questioning look toward Aiden and Jace. The pounding of her heart wouldn’t subside until one of the brothers would inevitably shake their head. She almost wished Morgan would just show up and put her out of her misery.
Relieved when the PA system announced the fair’s closing, she rushed to the outer display racks and started gathering the prints she didn’t want exposed to the elements overnight. With Aiden and Jace’s help, she got everything stored in record time. As she trudged toward the parking lot flanked on either side by her fierce protectors she suddenly remembered Emmaline’s potluck.
Would this day from hell never end?
“Crap. Guys, we’re going to have to stop and pick up a relish tray on the way to my aunt’s.”
“No problem.” Aiden tossed her a look as she climbed into the passenger seat. “Do you want to stop by your house to change?”
“No time. Besides, I’m starting to get used to my boobs falling out of this damn dress anyway.”
As he’d promised, Aiden stopped at a grocery store down the street from Emmaline’s house and she hurried inside with Jace to grab the tray of assorted cheese and crackers. Less than five minutes later, they pulled behind the long line of vehicles blocking Emmaline’s driveway. Dana climbed from the Navigator and waved to Raul as he lifted a large stockpot from the floor of his Mustang. Her salivary glands started kicking in. “Is that your duck gumbo?”
“None other.”
She turned to Aiden and Jace. “Ooh, guys, you are in for a treat. Raul’s gumbo is like a religious experience.”
Neither brother said anything. They were too busy staring at Raul’s funky ensemble. Finally Jace shook his head. “His oven mitts match his dress.”
Placing a hand in the center of their backs, she urged Aiden and Jace toward her aunt’s spacious Victorian. Leo was staked out on the covered porch, a cigarette dangling from his mouth. She gave him a stern look. “I thought you were quitting.”
His expression turned sheepish. “I am. After all this craziness with you and your aunt dies down.”
Dana’s guilt crept to the forefront when she remembered the sleepless nights Leo had been spending at the restaurant lately—because of her. Before she could say anything, Leo’s scrutiny shifted to Aiden and Jace. He made no effort to conceal the fact he was sizing the brothers up. “These must be the new friends your aunt has been gushing over.”
She detected the note of suspicion in Leo’s voice and hurried to set his mind at rest. More than likely her shacking up with two strange men was testing his protective instincts. She quickly made the introductions and the trio exchanged wary handshakes. Leo’s distrust was to be expected, but Aiden and Jace’s leery behavior threw her for a loop.
Emmaline popped her head through the doorway, breaking the odd tension that’d fallen over the men. “There you are. And you brought food.” She gave the tray a critical inspection. “My niece didn’t make that, did she?”
Dana rolled her eyes. “It’s sliced cheese. How can I mess that up?”
“Hon, you’d find a way.” Emmaline plucked the tray from Jace’s grasp and led everyone inside her house.
The living room was crowded with people snacking on hors d’oeuvres and swilling beers and the occasional glass of wine. Everyone went out of their way to make Aiden and Jace feel welcome. Slowly, the brothers began to let their guard down, and when Jamie the dishwasher engaged them in a heated debate about football she took advantage and snuck off to the kitchen. She found Emmaline sampling some of Raul’s gumbo.
“Aha, caught ya.” Snickering, Dana grabbed a spoon and dunked it inside the bowl clutched against Emmaline’s chest. She inhaled the aroma of thyme and roasted garlic with an appreciative sniff. “Man, I could make a meal just from this stuff.”
“Why do you think I keep that pain-in-the-ass cook around?”
Dana licked the spoon clean and grinned. “Admit it. You’re secretly in love with Raul. Why don’t you just ask him out and be done with it?”
Emmaline made a snorting noise. “Good Lord, it’d be like dating one of my girlfriends.”
“Look at it this way. You could share clothes. You’d be getting a boyfriend and a new wardrobe.”
“Speaking of boyfriends.” Emmaline craned her neck to see around Dana. “Where are the twins?”
“Out in the living room, talking to Jamie.”
“You left them with Wheezer?” Emmaline lowered the bowl of gumbo, her expression aghast. “You know how annoying that kid can be.”
Dana felt a twinge of guilt. True, Jamie the “Wheezer” Douglas tended to be more irritating than a sandpaper thong. Not that she’d ever worn a sandpaper thong. Or wanted to. But she’d desperately needed a break from the constant arousal Aiden and Jace’s presence brought. “I’ll go save them in a couple of minutes.”
Apparently satisfied with the compromise, Emmaline placed her bowl in the sink and bustled to the kitchen table where the buffet had been set up. Leo ambled into the kitchen, the cigarette noticeably absent and a glum expression shadowing his features. Emmaline stopped her fussing with the dishes and patted his arm. “How are you holding up?”
Leo gave a listless shrug and sadness flashed across Emmaline’s countenance. Dana frowned. “What’s going on?”
Emmaline shot her a warning stare, but Leo merely stuffed his big hands in the pockets of his jeans and hung his head, looking like a little boy who’d gotten his butt swatted for misbehaving. “Jane left me.”
“Oh, Leo, I’m so sorry.” Dana hurried across the tiled floor and hugged the burly bartender.
“Yeager is plenty happy she took off, but I… Shit.” A faint sniffle trickled from Leo. Giving her a brief squeeze, he pushed away and put on his manly front. “What am I saying? Hell, I’m happy about it too. Now I don’t have to listen to her bitching about the one time I left the toilet seat up. Or hearing what an insensitive bastard I am because I didn’t remember the anniversary of our first-ever date. Who remembers that shit anyway?”
He turned and glared at the food lined up on the table. “And I can eat whatever I damn well please without her telling me it’s bad for me. I can eat a whole stick of butter if I want to.”
“Uh, you might want to skip doing that,” Dana suggested.
“You know what else?” Leo demanded, apparently on a roll and unconcerned with the dangers of saturated fats. “Now I don’t have to put up with her crabbing about my yearly hunting trip.”
“I didn’t know you hunted.” Dana snatched a piece of cheese from the tray she’d brought and popped the cube into her mouth.
Leo’s dark eyebrows knitted. “Yeah. Your old man was the one who taught me. I thought Emmaline told you.”
They both turned to stare at her aunt. Emmaline’s cheeks had taken on an ashen pallor. “W-why don’t we call everyone in before the grub gets cold?” Not waiting for their response, she bulldozed past them and leaned through the doorway. “Dinner’s on, everyone.”
Dana stared at the colorful pom-poms stitched all over her aunt’s sweater. An uneasy sensation slithered beneath her skin. Emmaline was keeping something from her. Her aunt had always been open with her about everything, so what the hell was going on?
The next two hours dragged by, giving Dana no opportunity to confront her aunt about her suspicions. She tried to relax and enjoy the party but with each passing minute her nerves stretched tighter and tighter. Finally Emmaline escorted the last two stragglers out the door and waved them off.