“Family?” Maggie echoed dumbly, shifting her eyes to an amused-looking Slade and frowning before settling her attention on a markedly unconcerned Ice. “Are we talkin’ blood relations or is he more of a step-cousin you’d barely miss?”
“Well, it’s more of a family by association kind of thing. Like you are, honey.” Honor smiled weakly, her aching head once again making her wince. “Zachariah, or Ice as everybody calls him, is Zeke’s brother. And we need his help.”
“Zeke’s brother,” she repeated, her eyes drifting to the man that had ruined some of her favorite clothing. “Wait. He’s the sniper, isn’t he? The retired Green Beret?”
Honor nodded. “That’s right.”
Pressing her lips together, Maggie slowly, but reluctantly, nodded. “Fine, I’ll let him live. For now. But after this is over, I am reserving my right to collect my pound of flesh from him. I loved those shoes.” Smoothing her dress over her hips, she turned her attention back to Abel. “You can sit down. You won’t have to defend me in a court of law… at least not yet. Evidently, you need the Neanderthal.”
“Let’s move on,” Abel suggested, relief evident in his voice. “Did you bring Harmony’s file, Maggie?” he asked calmly, moving back to his chair as Cain did the same.
“Of course I brought the file, Abel,” Maggie snapped waspishly. “I’m excellent at my job, and the stupid paperwork is the reason you dragged me here.”
“And here I thought you’d be more of a pretty ornament to decorate his office. Wonders never cease,” Ice drawled, his eyes lingering on Maggie’s face as he moved toward the table. “Looks are deceiving, aren’t they?”
“If the mountain man continues to speak, I cannot guarantee his continued safety or my reactions to his very special brand of asshole speak,” she warned Zeke, pinning him with her narrowed eyes.
“Ice, shut it,” Zeke ordered his brother with a hard look.
“Yes, please do,” Honor added, shaking her head at Ice. “Let’s get on with this.”
“Are family meetings always like this?” Jake murmured against Harmony’s hair as his hand slipped around the nape of her neck. “Because, seriously, if it is, we need to get this shit on video. We could make a fortune.”
“Shhh, be quiet. The key to surviving these meets is to not draw attention to yourself,” Harmony replied under her breath as Maggie leaned across the table for the folder and flipped it open. Pulling out the documents inside, she pushed them toward Abel.
“Abel, you can look, but everything is in order. All the documents are there,” Maggie noted as Abel bent his head to examine the paperwork. Looking at Harmony, she continued, “Legally, you and Heaven are covered where Tanner is concerned, Harmony. Abel said that the jerk threatened you this afternoon with taking Heaven from you. Based on the documents that Zeke and Abel encouraged him to sign years ago, he has zero rights. He signed not only divorce papers, but a waiver of paternity as well. So, in a court of law, he would have no standing. He might claim coercion, but it’s not likely.”
“It’s also not likely that this fight is gonna happen in a court of law,” Ice muttered, casting Margaret a baleful look.
“Hey, Redneck, I offered to have this problem erased in a permanent way four years ago when the bastard hurt Harmony the first time,” Maggie retorted, narrowing her green eyes on Ice. “They,” she continued, jerking her head toward Zeke and Abel, “wanted to handle it a different way. In that vein, however, I will say that I’m more than happy to kick in a couple of million if we want to pursue that direction now,” she offered Harmony with an eager smile. “I’m sure I can find a hitman or commando somewhere with nothing but time on his hands. The Internet is a wonderful thing; you can find almost anything there. Hell, for that matter, you’ve got cousins that would do the job for a six pack and a smile.”
“This is very true.” Slade’s deep voice resounded in the room, his grey eyes moving to Harmony. “Just say the word.”
“No one is engaging the services of either a hitman or commando,” Honor decreed, tilting her face toward the ceiling and shaking her head.
Harmony smiled weakly as she felt Jake’s hand tighten against her shoulder. “As much as I appreciate the offer, Honor is right. Besides, there’s a lot more going on than just what he did to me, Mags. Things are complicated.”
“Aren’t they always,” Maggie muttered with a sigh.