Page 49 of Silent Heart

A bite gnawed at my chest. I knew I should let her go, but every fiber of my being wanted to inch closer to this woman.

“You don’t want me to?” I asked past the lump beating in my throat.

Harley shook her head. “It’s not that. I was actually going to invite you for a horseback ride this afternoon. I don’t work at the clinic on Sundays.”

Confusion flickered through me. Hot and cold. It was hard to push away from her when I didn’t understand her in the first place. “I don’t understand.”

Harley let out a long breath. “You saw them. They’re…. They’re….” She tightened the towel around her chest. “My cousins are difficult to explain.”

“Try.” I took a step forward. “I have unexplainable cousins. Maybe it’s not as hard as you think.”

Harley’s gaze snapped to meet mine. I hadn’t realized giving her that piece of myself would make her eyes shimmer with such a strange, beautiful light. “Your cousins?”

Not wanting the look she was giving me to fade, I nodded. “I have two first cousins, a second cousin—who’s away right now. And some close friends who grew up with us that might as well be cousins. And you met my brother.”

“Yeah, I remember Lucas,” Harley repeated, laughter fluttering behind her words. “Are they all like him?”

“Oh, saints no!” I shook my head. “No one is like my younger brother.”

Harley grinned.

Warmth spread through me, making me feel light. It was as if I could jump in the air and fly about. Saints, what would it be like to have this woman look at me like this every day?

Of course, if she knew the truth, she’d run screaming in horror.

Nice, normal girls like her didn’t know the darker side of life like growing up in the criminal underworld. And I was one of the scarier beings there, prowling about and finding joy in hunting the truly vile beings.

“So you think you can survive a meal with my family?” Hope filled her question.

I should tell her no. That this was our last swimming lesson, because I was leaving this afternoon. Instead, I stepped into her, traced the tip of my finger down her shoulder, and watched the gooseflesh shiver over her skin at the contact.

“I’ll survive anything your country boys throw at me,” I promised.

Her answering smile lit the area under the domed sky.

Chapter 20 – Harley

“Pass the potatoes,” Rosa instructed.

Kenny was about to flick a spoonful at her, when a sharp look from our grandmother stopped him. It had been a long time since so many of us gathered for a family meal that wasn’t a holiday get-together. Fifteen of my twenty-seven first cousins piled around the extended dining room table. Gran had brought home an extra ham hock and sides from the Piggly Wiggly when she found out at church that a chunk of the clan was dropping by for a visit.

They’d come to snoop on my guest.

The fluttering in my stomach made me think I wouldn’t be able to eat a bite. But when the warm rolls were passed around, I grabbed two and slapped a healthy dab of the freshly churned butter Grandma made yesterday between them. Things like bread and butter were never storebought around here. And even the most anxious stomach couldn’t resist the succulent goodness.

Still, they were about the only thing I managed to eat.

Nothing terrible had happened…yet. Unless I counted the time Dallas grabbed my hand to show Ottis there still wasn’t a ring. Thankfully Kole had been talking to my grandma in the kitchen and hadn’t seen the incident. Now Dallas had a sore jaw as thanks for his stupidity, and my knuckles would be tender for the next few days. But it was worth it to silence him.

“I hear you have a big old boat,” my grandpa tutted, coming up behind Kole and me.

“Yes, sir.”

My grandfather grunted. “Do any fishing on it?”

Grandpa set a glass of milk beside my plate, chucking my chin as he passed.

He’s in a good mood.And he was making an effort with Kole, which was huge. I thanked him and began to sip the milk. It was raw and frothy, chilled and no doubt fresh from the teat as of this morning.

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