Page 45 of No Ordinary Hate

Harper finally looks back at me, her eyes wide, her face beet-red. Guilt slams into me. I should have called ahead to make sure Brett wasn’t around. Actually, what I really should have done is tell her that Brett was in Alaska. I should have never let her get ambushed like this.

“Uncle Digger! Come on! You gotta meet Helioman!” Ash yells at me, snapping me out of my thoughts.

Forcing a tight smile, I walk up to him and extend my right hand. He does the same and when we shake, we both lock ourselves in a game of who can grip harder while maintaining a phony smile. I win.

“So, you’re the man who stole my family away.” He narrows his eyes while keeping his tone light.

“Digger’s our good friend,” Lily says. “He’s a pilot and a cook, he knows how to fish, and fight bears. He's the coolest, Daddy.”

Brett’s jaw tightens, before smiling down at his little girl. “He sounds almost too good to be true. Maybe I should be worried that he’s going to steal my kids away from me …”

“That would never happen. Digger’s our friend, but you’re our dad.” Liam’s face looks far too serious for a kid his age.

“You can’t steal people, silly Daddy,” Lily says, completely oblivious to the undertones of what’s going on here.

Harper seems to have finally recovered from the shock of seeing her husband. She gives him a hard look. “Come on, kids, let’s go see if breakfast is ready.” She starts walking again, pushing everyone forward, while making a wide berth around Brett.

“What? Not even a hello for your husband?” he murmurs as she walks by.

She pauses, then keeps going. “Hello, Brett,” she grinds out.

Attagirl.

He follows behind. “So, you’ve come up to the end of the world for an adventure, have you?”

“More like to escape the mess you left behind,” she quietly hisses as the kids disappear up the path. I stay far enough behind them that it doesn’t seem like I’m intruding, but I’m close enough to do something if Harper needs me to. You know, like beating the crap out of her loser husband.

“Imagine my surprise when I got back home, only to discover you’d taken off with my children,” he snaps at her.

“You left them first. I brought them up here to protect them from finding out the truth of what was going on with you in Hawaii.”

His shoulders drop. When he speaks again, he seems like a totally different person. One with a conscience. “You did the right thing.”

“Damn straight, I did.” She picks up her pace.

“Harper, wait,” he says.

Keep going, Harper. Just keep on walking.

But she doesn’t. She stops. “What?”

“When I found out you left, it really shook me.”

She stares at him, seemingly in disbelief.

He turns to me and glares. “Do you mind? This is a private conversation.”

“Then maybe you shouldn’t have started it while I was here,” I tell him while straightening my back. I must be six inches taller than this guy. I could squash him like a bug.

Tempting …

“Seriously, whoisthis guy?” Brett asks Harper.

“He’s our guide,” she says, adding, “He’s gone above and beyond to sneak us out of town when the paparazzi nearly found us.”

“I’ll just bet he did,” Brett sneers.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Harper demands.