Page 37 of Tamed to Be Messy

“No, thank you. I have plenty.” I gesture to the generous portion I’ve yet to consume.

She lifts her brows with the subtle expression typical of a mother, unconvinced one of her fledglings is getting enough. Luckily, I’m not one of hers, although the idea of being a permanent part of this family fills a place I try to ignore.

After breakfast, I join the McCarthy siblings on clean-up duty. That’s the agreement for family breakfast. Mom cooks. Kids clean. And James returns to tinkering in the garage on his latest project, which happens to be Hannah’s office chair. Seems The General did some damage to it during his last session. I’m guessing that was the day he trampled me.

A typical family on an ordinary Saturday—more proof that my parents are far from stereotypical. The last time I spent more than an hour with my parents was Christmas. And that was more out of duty than desire for me. And more about entertaining their clients than spending time with their son.

Once the table’s cleared and the dishes are done, I find Anna sitting on the back patio, intending to say thank you before I hit the beach for that jog. “Thanks again for breakfast, Anna.”

“I’m so glad you joined us, Nick. We’ve missed you.” She pats the chair next to her.

Anna McCarthy must be a mind reader, too, because she shoots me a challenging look I’d be a fool to refuse—the same one Hannah gave me that first day in her office when I balkedat her doing my physical therapy. Now I know where she gets it from.

My one choice—sit down like an obedient son. My mother would be shocked if she were here. Part of the reason they thought I’d make a successful lawyer was because I questioned and argued with them all the time.

She pats my forearm. “Thank you for helping Hannah yesterday. I’m so glad she had someone there to support her.”

“I really didn’t do that much. The sheriff stepped in.”

“Yes, but I’m sure you would have had he not been there.”

I nod but say nothing.

“You know, Hannah’s been a wild child from the day she was born. Always very independent and determined to do things on her own. She’s a lot like her mother.” She punctuates her words with a self-deprecating laugh. “That’s how she got her name, by the way. James wanted to name her after me because he said I deserved it after handling two boys. I wanted her to be her own person, so I added an ‘h’ to the beginning and the end.”

Can I say I admire this woman even more? “That’s pretty special.”

Her gaze tracks with something in the distance. “Yes, she is.” Anna shifts her focus to me again. “You two really fit together, you know?

I lift my hands, palms out. “We’re just friends.”

“James and I started out that way, too. He knew what he wanted long before I did. And he was patient enough to wait for me to come to my senses.” She pauses. “Hannah will, too.”

Anna smiles at me as if she knows how I feel about her daughter. I wonder what Graham would say if he heard what his mother said. Somehow, I don’t think he’d agree with her.

And his timing is impeccable. Graham steps onto the porch with his hands tucked deep into his shorts pockets so his armsare straight and his shoulders relaxed. He’s the only guy I know who wears board shorts year-round.

He smiles at Anna. “What are you two talking about?”

Anna tilts her head up. “I was telling Nick how he and Hannah are a good fit.”

She did not just say what I think she said, did she?

I’m clutching the arms of my chair, ready to launch into a full-scale run if need be. I may get those pancakes worked off faster than planned.

Graham grunts as he studies me. “That’s funny, Mother.” Then he strolls off into the yard and joins Liam by the backyard badminton net. That’s something the McCarthy family does that resembles my own dysfunctional family—play badminton. Although, these two brothers take the competition up a level.

Anna pats my arm. “Don’t worry about Graham. He’ll come around. He’s more bark than bite. Now, Liam, he’s the one you have to be concerned about when it comes to Hannah.”

Not that I have any plans, but I am curious. “I thought he was the calm one.”

She scrunches her face like Hannah does. “You know that expression about still waters running deep? Liam’s like an iceberg. The real threat is beneath the surface.” She sighs. “The way he keeps things bottled up worries me sometimes.”

Great, just what I need. Two overprotective brothers who will either bite my head off or freeze me to death if I ever make a move on their sister.

Like I keep saying…Hands-off-Hannah.

CHAPTER 14

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