Accidentally Family (Pecan Valley 1)

“Night, Felicity,” he murmured.

He set his phone on the dresser and headed to Diana’s room.

Last night, when she’d been in the shower, he’d done a quick check. No drugs, no razors, no alcohol. But he knew just how resourceful she could be. When she was fired up, like now, she was twice as capable of mayhem. It was going to be a long night. He knocked, hard, so she could hear him over her music. Nothing.

Her door was locked.

It took him a few minutes to find an Allen wrench that would fit the door lock, but once he did, the door was open in a matter of seconds.

Her window was open, too, and her room was empty.

Chapter Ten

“You’re here.” Honor hovered in the doorway. Finding Owen on her doorstep, holding flowers for crying out loud, made her flushed and awkward. What was he doing here? And why? And what was up with the flowers?

He smiled down at her. “Your mom said I was welcome anytime.”

The smile caught her off guard. That smile always caught her off guard. She’d need to work on that. Smiles, flowers, and overall gorgeousness aside, she needed to put Mr. Charming in his place. “She also said to let her know.” She waited.

He laughed. “Not so welcome, then.” He paused. “Here I thought we were making progress.”

She didn’t know what to say to that. Yes, they’d texted and talked on the phone a few times, but she was prepared to come up with an excuse. Like, she felt obligated to him, the stress of the situation, or something. She’d say whatever was necessary to send him on his way—far, far away. Admitting she’d been ready to accept any kiss he’d been planning prior to her mother’s arrival would be the worst possible idea.

Owen’s eyes narrowed a little, like he was trying to figure her out. “And I thought I’d check on Nick, since his job has kept him from working out. He was in bad shape the other morning.” One eyebrow cocked. “The morning I basically carried him here—to safety.”

Honor couldn’t stop herself from laughing. He was persistent, and here, and she was too scattered to think of a witty or scathing comeback.

“Fine.” She stepped back and held the door wide. He could see Nick. That was fine. That made sense. “He’s plugged into his gaming console.”

“Doing better?” he asked, following her.

She nodded. “I guess. He’s been pretty quiet.” Partly because he felt terrible for what he’d done, or so she liked to believe, and partly because he wasn’t okay with their mother going on a date. But it was Dr. Murphy, not some random sleazy dude. That, to Honor, made all the difference. Nick didn’t see it that way.

“Nickie.” Honor waved her hand in front of his face.

Nick held his headset away. “Yeah?”

“Owen’s here.” She pointed. “He brought you flowers.” She ignored Owen’s chuckle and the miles of goose bumps it caused.

“The flowers are for you.” He deposited the massive arrangement in her arms.

Nick was up. “Hey, man.”

“Black Ops?” Owen asked, eyeing the television screen. “You any good?”

“Hell, yeah.” Nick grinned.

Considering how much time he spent on the thing, he should be. But Honor kept her opinion to herself. With any luck, she could leave Owen with Nick and retreat to her room. Alone. Far away from Owen.

“I owe you, man.” Nick’s gaze shifted between them. “I mean, if you hadn’t brought me home, I don’t know if I’d have made it.”

Owen looked at her. “You were in pretty rough shape.”

She got it, already. He was the hero. And she should be nice to him. It was hard not to smile at his ego—but she did her best.

“And covering with my mom like that? You and Honor? I can’t believe she bought that.” Nick grinned at her. “And the other night, at the festival, too.”

“It was her idea,” Owen said, nudging her. “I just went along with it.”