Page 3 of Silent Heart

And why did I like the way it sounded on his lips?

Before I could summon a coherent thought to my rescue, the stranger released me and moved back into his seat. Time resumed. The noises around me came into focus. Stammering an excuse, I darted away, not completely aware of my surroundings but trusting my body to operate on muscle memory. It continued that way the rest of the night until the two-top left. Only then did I draw a proper breath and wait for sanity to return.

Chapter 2 – Harley

Alazy afternoon floating on the lakes with good sunshine was exactly what my soul needed. While we lived on the upper lake, we’d already been down to the lower one, cutting through the channels that connected the three. Laney kept the pontoon at a steady crawl, puttering back from the middle lake. I still had my change of clothes in a waterproof bag in the back in case it was too late, and I needed the cousins to drop me off at the Landing for my closing shift. But for right now, it was just me and the girls.

There wouldn’t be many afternoons to sun and float this summer. So far, they hadn’t spoilt the excursion with any passive aggressive comments at my expense.

“You’re going to fry out here,” Kayla chided.

Tipping my head back and closing my eyes to the sun, I hummed under my breath. “I’d rather burn than rub that toxic crap over my skin.”

That was a sure way to set her off. I was the oldest granddaughter and second oldest grandchild. But Kayla—who married last autumn and was expecting her first baby thisautumn—thought she knew better than the rest of us. She’d been that way since we were young, but it didn’t help she was a licensed nurse practitioner and therefore God’s gift to humanity.

The others whispered, and I felt their looks shift between us. Before Kayla could go off about skin cancer, Grace jumped upright on the bench seat, knocking into my bent knees.

“Someone bought the McTavish place!” she gasped.

I cracked my eyelids to see her pointing wildly at one of the biggest houses on the lakes. A chorus of excitement rushed through the girls, but I pulled my lip between my teeth. I already knew about the sale, having met two of the new owners when they brought the injured, malnourished hound Old Dick Ford was abusing to the animal clinic the other weekend.

A shiver rattled down my spine. The fact that Old Dick was found dead shortly after the incident, having choked on his own vomit, seemed like justice to me. I couldn’t shake the feeling that the timing was too perfect for that animal abuser to finally keel over. I was just glad the new neighbors took the mutt with them. The wife had been sweet, and I could overlook the tattooed brute of a husband, if it hadn’t been the cold look in his eye when I explained how the old farmer notoriously abused his animals. He scared me just a little; he wasn’t the kind of man I wanted to be on the bad side of.

“Her name is Elle, and his is Kash,” I offered, instantly sparking the curiosity in my cousins.

“How do you know?” Sarah asked.

“When did you meet them?” Susanna poked me.

“You were holding out on us!” Laney protested. “Grandma never said you’d met them!”

I chuckled. “They brought in a stray,” I lied. “Dr. Hoffner couldn’t come into the office, so I helped them. I cleaned the poor mutt’s cuts, got it some liquids, and they took it home.”

My cousins peppered me with questions, but I waved them off. “I don’t know much about the new owners except their names and that they’re from Chicago.”

Kayla huffed. “Big city people coming to play on the lake. They’re just like all the others, going to be too loud, pollute the natural resources, and speed on the roads.”

And bring money to the local businesses that thrive off tourism.I kept my mouth shut, gazing instead at the sprawling mansion. There were so many windows, the sunrises had to be absolutely stunning. For a moment, I tried to picture what it would be like, padding around in designer PJs and cooking food for my family in there.

They probably brought a chef.

Laney let out a hushed whisper. “Look, they’re down at the dock!”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re staring. Quit that.”

But I was too. Because those two men, one in a white tee and the other in black, were awfully familiar. Last night, they hadn’t been displaying as much skin, which meant I hadn’t had the chance to drool over their ink. I had a few tattoos—much to my straight-laced granny’s dismay. The thigh piece I was most proud of. But I wasn’t covered like them.

“They’re having trouble with their speedboat,” Sarah observed, stating the obvious.

Grace snorted. “City people.”

Kayla had the damn pontoon puttering right next to the no wake zone, which meant our voices probably carried to their dock.

Debating whether to force my cousin from the wheel so we didn’t embarrass ourselves or let her creep on by so I could gaze my fill, the decision was made when the two men looked up.

I was instantly held captive by a pair of stormy blue eyes. The ferocity in Kole’s unguarded gaze had my stomach doing a littleflip. Remnants of the electricity from last night blazed through my veins.

A slow breath filled my lungs.

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