Page 20 of Queen of Diamonds
“Any minute now. Would you like something to drink? A glass of wine?”
“Water would be nice.” She’d love to see his wine collection, and maybe she’d get a chance to some other time. Or not. But she wanted to be at her most alert when she met her brothers.
She spied a shelf with photos in silver frames and walked over to it. There was a picture of him with a beautiful little girl who had his blond hair and blue eyes. There was another one of him with his daughter at a younger age. He held Zoe in one arm and his other one was wrapped around the shoulders of a stunning woman who also had blonde hair and blue eyes. Jeez, talk about a beautiful family.
If that was the kind of woman he preferred, what did he see in her? Her mother had been half Seminole, and Kinsey had her features. She’d always been comfortable with her looks, but she couldn’t hold a candle to Rand’s ex-wife.
“Here you go.”
Kinsey glanced at Rand. “Your daughter was beautiful.”
He smiled as he looked at the picture she held. “Yes, she was.”
“I’m glad you can smile now when talking about her.” She set the photo back on the shelf and took the glass of water he held. “Your wife is gorgeous. Do you miss her?”
“No. Not anymore.” He put his finger under her chin, lifting her face. “You’re the only woman on my mind these days. And Kinsey, in my eyes you’re more beautiful than she ever was.”
“Thank you.” It was hard to stay mad at him when he said things like that. “I’ve been thinking about you a lot, too.”
“Thank God. I was afraid—”
The doorbell rang, sending her heart to skittering. They were here.
“Everything’s going to be okay,” Rand said, giving her arm a squeeze. He headed for the door.
Nerves were making her palms sweat, and she set the glass on the coffee table before it slipped out of her hand. She started to sit, then thought she should stay standing. Taking a deep breath, her heart beating as if it were a deranged hummingbird flitting around, she waited to see her brothers for the first time.
And good Lord, they were big. They came to a stop a few feet from her. In all her life, Kinsey had never seen such formidable men. The three men standing shoulder to shoulder formed an impenetrable wall, made up of muscle and danger. And they were looking at her.
She’d expected to see them wearing scruffy jeans and biker club vests loaded down with patches, chains hanging from their belt loops. Instead they could have walked off the cover of a men’s magazine in their dress pants and button-down shirts. That these three incredibly handsome men were her brothers was surreal.
“It’s her,” the one in the middle said.
Rand moved next to her, and she slipped her hand into his, needing his touch to ground her. He squeezed her hand, tightening his fingers around hers.
“She’s a lot prettier than us,” the youngest-looking one said.
The middle one snorted. “You have a gift for understatement, baby brother.”
The oldest was eyeing her and Rand’s joined hands, and by his expression he wasn’t pleased. Too bad because she wasn’t letting go. If she did, she’d probably fall down. Were they as nervous as her? Their faces were unreadable, so she didn’t know.
“We’ve been looking for you,” he said. “I’m Nate.” He put his hand on the shoulder of the one next to him. “This is Court, and the other one is Alex.”
“Rand said you knew about me.” Why hadn’t they come for her?
Nate nodded. “But only recently, and we have been trying to find you.”
“To hell with this,” Alex said. He closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around her. “Hello, little sister,” he said. “You have no idea how happy I am that I’m no longer the baby of the family.”
Rand let go of her hand when Alex pulled her into a hug. Her first reaction was to grab it back. His hand was her lifeline, the only thing that had been keeping her on her feet. But her brother’s arms were strong and welcoming. A brother’s embrace was a thing she’d never expected to feel, and she burst into tears.
“Oh hell, she’s crying,” Nate muttered.
Kinsey laughed against Alex’s chest. Her oldest brother had sounded so grumpy, and although she’d only just met them, she sensed that Alex was the easygoing one of the family and Nate the most reserved. If her guess was right—and she couldn’t wait to find out, to learn all about them—then that probably put Court somewhere in the middle of the two.
“My turn,” Court said, pulling her away from Alex and giving her a hug.
His embrace wasn’t as tight as Alex’s, nor did it last as long, but his arms still felt good wrapped around her. When Court let go of her, she met Nate’s gaze, not sure if she should hug him or what. He was intimidating, and she couldn’t begin to read him. Then he smiled and it changed his whole face. Suddenly he wasn’t scary anymore. She went to him when he opened his arms.
