It didn’t bother her. She was so at ease with Harry, she could enjoy his company while being herself.
To her surprise, Harry didn’t try to push her away. He sighed, then looped his arms around her waist. In her ear, he whispered, “There’s always retribution to be paid, Charlie. Don’t forget that.”
She ignored this threat, just as she ignored all his others. Harry wouldn’t hurt her and she knew it. She turned to Dalton, to judge his reaction to the scene, and saw him staring toward the doorway. With an inkling of dread, she whipped about and there stood Jillian. She had a shopping bag clutched in her hands and a frozen expression on her face.
“Oh hell.” Charlie started to scramble off Harry’s lap, but he tightened his hold.
“Ah, ah. Don’t turn cowardly on me now.”
“Harry, I don’t want Jill—”
“To meet her father?” He gave her a gentle hug. “Honey, relax. It’ll be okay.”
“Not with me on your lap! What will she think?”
“That you’re up to mischief again, no doubt.”
Dalton came to his feet like a sleepwalker. “Jillian?”
Jillian’s smile trembled the tiniest bit, and then she walked forward cautiously. She glanced at Charlie, and her eyes widened when she saw how her sister was seated. Charlie groaned. “It’s not what you—”
Laughing, Harry interjected, “I’d stand, but you can see I have a vexatious burden in my lap.”
Jill nodded politely. “Is there, ah, any reason why?”
With a smile that was pure wickedness, Harry said, “We’re passionately involved, don’t you know.”
Charlie’s elbow came back hard enough to make him grunt, then she smiled at Jill. “I was going to tell you later, after…well, I wanted to make sure everything would be okay…”
Jill glanced at Dalton, then back to her sister. “I understand. Would you like to introduce me now?”
“I suppose I don’t really have a choice, do I? Jill, this is our father, Dalton Jones.”
Jill caught her breath and dropped her bag. She blinked hard, trying to fend off tears. “I thought… I mean, you look exactly as I imagined, but I just wasn’t sure…”
Dalton, his own eyes wet, reached out to her. “I never gave up hope of finding you.”
Jill took his hands. “I have so many questions.”
“Me, too.”
They seemed to be in their own little world and Charlie, disgusted and a tad jealous, shook her head. Her sister was so much more accepting than she could ever be. She leaned back against Harry and whispered, “Don’t start looking smug. If he does one thing to insult her or upset her, I’ll toss him—and you—out.”
Frowning, Harry appeared to consider that. “I don’t think you can just toss a lover out. No, a lover gets to stick around through thick and thin.”
“You’re enjoying yourself, aren’t you?”
“I’m beginning to.”
Charlie looked at his totally shameful grin and had to smile herself. He did enjoy matching wits with her, that had been apparent from the first. She enjoyed it too, along with a great many other things.
She forgot about provoking Dalton and leaned forward to kiss him. Jill cleared her throat.
“Oh.” Charlie straightened, flustered, while Harry looked sublimely unaffected.
“Don’t mind us,” he said, “she just can’t keep her hands off me.”
With a smothered laugh, Jill said, “I’m going to run upstairs and put my stuff away, then I’ll be right back down.”
Dalton stepped forward. “You live upstairs, is that correct?”
“Yes. Would you like me to show you around?”
Charlie stiffened, ready to refuse despite Harry’s gentle stroking on her back, when Jill added, a touch of warning in her tone, “Charlie won’t mind. She never lets men upstairs—well, except for Harry, but he’s different.”
“So I understand.”
Jill laughed. “Charlie is rigidly uncompromising about how she handles having our home above the bar. She’s never wanted any of the men here to get the wrong idea. She won’t admit it, but she’s something of a mother hen most of the time.”
Dalton glanced at Charlie with a smile. “I realize that. And it soothes me to know what a wonderful job she’s done handling everything.”
Charlie’s mouth fell open in surprise at the praise, and Harry started to laugh, tempting Charlie’s elbow again. She gave in to temptation, and at the same time prompted her sister with, “I thought you were going to put your things away.”
Jill rolled one shoulder. “I don’t know why you’re so shy about being a good sister. It’s not like it’s a bad thing.”
Dalton took Jill’s arm to start them on their way. “Maybe you can tell me more about… Charlie, during our tour?”
“I’d love to!”
As they disappeared through the doorway, Charlie dropped back against Harry with a groan. “Jill and her big mouth.”
Harry smiled against her temple. “If I laugh, will you poke me with that sharp elbow of yours again?”
“Absolutely.”
“Then I’ll content myself with telling you how childish you’re acting.” She started to pull away, but he locked his arms around her, just below her breasts, and held her secure. “Allow your lover just a little leeway, please. It’s my right as such to point these things out.”
“Okay, so pretending we’re involved was a bad idea on my part. You can quit punishing me for it.”
“Is that what I was doing?”
“Yes. You’ve made your point. I’ve acted like a total idiot.”
“I never said any such thing and I’ll thank you not to put words in my mouth.”
She twisted to face him, bracing her hands on his shoulders. “All right, so what would you say?”
He smoothed her hair away from her face and his expression grew serious, his golden brown eyes intent. “That you’re fighting yourself more than anyone else. Dalton’s reaction wasn’t one of disapproval, but guilt. He doesn’t know you well enough yet to know you wouldn’t be taken advantage of. He doesn’t know how strong and capable you are.”
“But you do?”
His hand cupped her neck, caressing. “You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met.”
“Too strong?”
His brows lifted in admission. “Sometimes. You plow your way through life assuming sheer determination will get you what you want.”
She wondered if he was talking about himself. True, she’d been coming on strong, but that was the only way she knew. Sheer determination had gotten her everything she wanted—with the exception of a responsible mother or an available father.
She looked down at his chest and toyed with a button on his shirt. “Today…well, this was just for show.”
“I wasn’t talking about us, Charlie. I was talking about this unreasonable assumption you have that you can handle men like Carlyle, or even Floyd and Ralph.”
“Oh.” She waved that away. “I’m not worried about them, even though you’re keeping secrets from me.” She slanted him a look. “I know something’s going on, and I’ll figure it out sooner or later. Now, don’t look like that, Harry. You know I will! I’m not dumb, and despite all your warnings, they don’t scare me.”