Harkham's Case (Harkam's #1) (13 page)

No! No numbers. I’m with Mari!

His jaw clenched. Mari stroked the taut muscles back there.

How did she always know exactly where to touch him?

Because she was his girlfriend. She just didn’t know it yet.

He sighed.

“You don’t have to touch her. In fact, you don’t have to stand close enough for her to breathe on you,” Mari told him.

He stood as still as he could.

“Breathe, hon. It’ll be all right.”

He exhaled, but only because she told him he should. “What if she doesn’t like me?”

“She will. She likes everybody, and you’re the most likable person I know, aside from your brother,” she said with a teasing tone.

What did this mean? She’d never met him. How could she like him more?

His chest heated and was making these shooting aches almost cripple him.

How could he talk to her mom when right now all he wanted to do was hunt down his brother and demand he be less likable? Mari had to like Adam better than Zach. Or else . . .

He shifted around, and a pained look crossed his face.

Was she fighting off a smile?

“You’re adorable,” she said.

“Am not. I’m Adam. And I’m the man in this house right now. That makes me anything but adorable. I can be handsome, but that’s it.” He went all stiff, even his legs.

“Okay, sure. You’re handsome. You always are.”

He blinked hard.

“Will you hold my hand while she talks to me?” he asked.

This would mean she’d have to explain to her mom why he wasn’t her boyfriend but their hands were interlaced. But he was fine with that.
Very
fine with it.

“I’ll do anything you ever need to make you comfortable.” She moved her face right in front of his and gazed up in his eyes. “I’ll always keep you safe.”

There was some apprehension there from her, but he smiled and agreed.

They walked hand-in-hand into the kitchen. Her mom was unloading a bag of groceries.

“Mom, I have a friend here I want you to meet,” Mari said.

Her mother turned around and scowled. “Who’s he?”

It took him a moment to look her over. She was a good-looking older woman. Average height and build. She wore tight jeans and a white tee shirt with her hair back in a ponytail, just like Mari did.

She wore trendy-looking sneakers, and her nails were short and neat.

Oh good. That would make it easier for him to want to shake her hand.

Her eyes were blue, not gray like Mari’s, and her hair was a lighter shade of brown, thinner and with a slight wave at the tips.

“He’s Adam—my
friend
,” Mari answered.

“
Friend
? Then why’s he—”

“I want to be her boyfriend,” Adam answered. “Someday I will. I’m working on it, but for now, Mari’s only helping me with usual daily stuff.”

“Helping you with
what
? What constitutes usual, daily stuff?” Her mother’s voice tightened. “What she could help anybody with besides gaining an ulcer is beyond me.” She went back to putting away the food she’d brought home.

“If you know what I can do so I can date her, ma’am, I’d be only too happy to listen,” Adam said, taking tiny steps closer to her mom. “I’ll even listen while I help you put away your groceries. I’m good at helping with stuff like that. It won’t make me go into a fit or anything. I swear.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about. So, all I can say is, good luck with that. My daughter doesn’t date—and it’s probably a good thing.” Her mom finished the last of what she was doing without his help.

She moved around like an angry, buzzing bee.

It was kind of alarming actually, so he pressed himself up against the counter to get out of her way.

She was making herself something to eat, ignoring him completely now.

A pit settled in his stomach. If her mom hated him, then Mari might not ever want to be with him, even if she knew they belonged together.

“I want you to know . . . Mari’s the best girl I’ve ever known. I haven’t known a lot, but some of them are mean-spirited and hurt me. She does the opposite. It’s nice to know I can go to school and have her protect me from the numbers in my head and the mean, owie girls that try to touch me in places I cannot allow.” He nodded and stepped back away from her.

“Good to know, Dr. Phil. Now, can you leave so I can eat without the lecture?” Her mom grabbed a drink of water from the fridge.

“But, Mom, can you just stop for a minute and lis—”

Her mom turned toward her and glared at her like she was about to charge. “No. I’ve heard enough of this nonsense. Take this boy home this instant. I don’t have enough food to feed a ravenous teenage guy, or a strong enough stomach to hear any more of this.”

“I’m not a teenager. I’m twenty-one,” he corrected her.

“Oh, good. That’s way better. In fact—it’s perfect. Solves all my problems, past, present and future.” Her mother turned to the door and pointed at it. “What are you
thinking
? Take him home,
now
.” Her eyes went back on her daughter. “And no more smoking in the Jeep.”

“I’m thinking we both needed a friend, and it works. Why the hell do you care?” Mari’s voice rose.

“I don’t. Get this man out of my house. We need to talk about all this in private.” Her mom gripped her drink and plopped down into a chair at the kitchen table.

“Goodbye, Mari’s mom. I think it’s great you speak your mind. Someday you’ll speak different things to me. Nicer things. Just like Mari will kiss me again someday, and that will be perfect, too.” He grinned and left the room.

What else was there to say?

Chapter 7

Adam stepped back with an uncomfortable slant to his body like he was trying to get away. He mouthed a few numbers.

Mari took his hand, and when she got him to the car, he started hyperventilating.

“She hates me.” His voice was shaky. “I thought it would be okay, but now I know . . . It’s not all right for her to think I’m bad for you, because I’m not.” He took a deep breath and repeated, “She hates me. Too much.” His voice cracked hard.

Kind of like her insides right about now. They were breaking into bits. “She’s pissed at me. It has nothing to do with you.”

He took a short burst of a breath. “No—she really,
really
hates me. Like—an intense dislike.”

“She
does
not. She probably likes you more than me since you were so honest. She’s sick of having a lying sack for a daughter. You’re reading her wrong.” She patted his back as he hunched over. “I should have warned you that she and I don’t always get along. And I’m such a snot, I talk back all the time.”

“I was kind of afraid of what you might do.” He took in a few gasping breaths.

“What did I promise you? I’ll keep you safe,” she reminded him.

He stood tall and mumbled an acceptance of her statement. “I think I’m ready to leave now.” His face was grim.

“Smart man.” She’d be ready too if she were him. She wenched open the sticky passenger’s door. “I’m gonna drive this time, okay?”

“I think that’s best. I need time to think about some things.” He got inside the car and kept his gaze off her.

Guilt swept through her. This was good, though. He really did need to stay away from her, and she obviously had no self-control with him. Something about him was irresistible. It was infuriating how insatiable she was when it came to his innocence and unassuming charm.

The worst part was she barely knew the guy.

He was quiet the entire drive home. It was very unlike him. She grew more tense with each passing, silent moment.

He was pulling away. That was good. Real good.

Good.

Good.

Good.

So why the hell did this hurt so bad?

They arrived at his home, and before he got out, she said, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Promise?”

He turned to look her in the eye. Her throat constricted, and her stomach was churning bile like crazy because of the sad, almost defeated look in his eyes she had put there.

“I do.” She smiled, but it was forced. It had to be when he was in pain like this.

“All right.” He slipped out the door, closed it much easier than she could’ve, and he disappeared into his house.

She sighed, pulled out and headed to her favorite place in the whole world.

In ten minutes she was in the parking lot, texted her mom real quick and grabbed her gym bag she always had stuffed under her seat.

She went inside, checked in at the Y and had her iPhone blasting in her ears as she worked out harder than ever.

With each stretch of her legs as she ran on the treadmill, she chanted in her head, “Fat ass, fat ass, move that fat ass!” It helped her get past that wall she hit. Normally she ran for thirty minutes straight, but this time she pulled out forty-five.

When she was sweating profusely and her legs were like limp noodles, she got on the elliptical and put in another thirty minutes. She was barely able to get through it.

Her thoughts burned with Adam and what tomorrow might be like.

Legs flexed, arms strained, she poured her heart into each moment.

If nothing else, she could at least try to look less ridiculous as a cow holding this gorgeous man’s hand. If she could lose those twenty-five pounds, she’d stand out less. Really, she’d like to lose thirty-five to get back to where she’d once been before her whole life was ruined, but that seemed unattainable and completely unrealistic when she struggled with each and every pound she shed.

After her cardio, she put in thirty minutes of weights and ab work, continuing to strain the whole time.

In the end, she could barely feel her body. It was all numb, and she was so relaxed she’d probably go home, shower and then crash in bed. Forget her mom and dinner.

When Mari got home, her mom was on her the second she was out of the Jeep. “Smoking in the Jeep? Lying to me again by pretending you were at the gym?”

Mari moved past her and snickered. For once, she didn’t lie to her mom about where she was going, and this time her mother didn’t believe her. It was too funny. Her mom followed her inside into the kitchen.

Mari grabbed a cold water bottle out of the fridge and took a few gulps.

As usual, her mom continued to glare and wait for an explanation.

“I know you were with him!”

“Yeah, Mom, I wore this outfit to entice him as I made out with him and smoked some more in your Jeep. Hell, when I was done being manhandled by him, I went out and bought some weed, just for the hell of it.” Mari leaned back against the fridge and looked far off out the kitchen window. What would it be like to be away from here? To do what she wanted without somebody constantly on her back about it?

She looked back at her mother.

“Shut up.” Her mom rolled her eyes. “You think you’re some kind of badass, but you’re not. You’re just some messed up, idiot kid.” She slammed her drink down on the counter. “And I’m sick of it. Do you hear me? No more excuses! What do you honestly think you’re going to do to help that guy? I can tell he’s not all there. You can’t help somebody when you have nothing to give. You need more help than he does.”

“He chose
me
!” Mari said, jaw snapping shut as soon as the words were out.

“Probably because you’re such a wide expanse of train wreckage, he couldn’t help himself. Stay away from him, or I’ll send you to go live with your dad. I’m not gonna have this guy on my conscience. It’s bad enough what happened to you before. I can’t take any more of your drama.” Her mom huffed, nostrils flaring and eyes blazing at her.

Her mother put away her cup and in the next moment, rubbed her hands on her eyes like she was dead tired, then braced her hands on the edge of the kitchen sink as she leaned forward with her shoulders hunched and her elbows straight. “You know, I really do try with you. But there’s only so much I can do as your mom. You never listen, and I’m just running out of options of how to handle all this shit.”

Yeah, I can say the same about you . . .
Mari stood in place and shifted her weight into her right leg. Her left was feeling particularly weak after all that running. She needed to stretch tonight real good.

“So, here’s how it’s gonna go . . . If you smoke in the Jeep again, you’ll be back to riding your bike to school. The Jeep’s a privilege I allow you because you’ve continued to be clean, but I’m not gonna allow you to make my car smell like a disgusting ashtray.”

“Fine.”

“No making out with that boy. No sex. No blow jobs. Knowing you—you’ll get knocked up, and I won’t have a baby in this house, not when I’m already dealing with a toddler in a teenager’s body.”

“Yeah, fine. I wasn’t planning on it. I won’t be dating him at all.” Mari’s heart sunk, even though she was only speaking out loud what she’d been thinking for the last hour and a half straight. If it was the truth, then why did it make her legs feel even less sturdy?