Hard Break (Deadlines & Diamonds, #5) by Morgan Kearns Read Free Book Online

department advocate having learned an arrest had been made and…
    A knock on the front door caused her to pause. She didn’t want to talk to anyone. But it’d been a knock, not the doorbell, which meant odds were Ian McCallister stood on the porch. She may not want company, but she wanted someone to help decipher the latest barrage in this shit-storm she called her life.
    Opening the door, she smiled at the fast food bag he held at eye level. He muscled his way inside. “I thought you might be hungry.”
    “I hungy.” Penelope raced down the stairs.
    He handed her a cardboard box containing a kid’s meal. “You have to eat all your apples.”
    “I will.” And she scampered into the kitchen.
    “ You all right?”
    Kayla blew at her bangs. “Yeah.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “No.”
    “What’s up?” He studied her face. “Kay?”
    “I’d really like to k now who I screwed over to make karma hate me so badly.”
    Ian chuckled softly. “I’m sure you didn’t screw anybody over.”
    “Then I must be a horrible person.”
    “You’re not a horrible person. You’re an amazing person.”
    Yeah, yeah, Ian always said things like that. “Then why does karma hate me?”
    He rolled his eyes. “Karma doesn’t hate you.”
    “Tell me you brought chocolate.” She eyed the bag he held.
    He grinned. “Of course. That chocolate pie you like.”
    “My hero.”
    He laughed, shook his head. “Let’s eat before it gets cold.”
    When they were sitting at the table, Ian unloaded the bags. He slid the salad she liked across the table toward her. “Sorry, I didn’t get drinks.”
    “ I got some.” She grabbed a couple of Coke Zeros out of the fridge.
    This had become their routine. About this time every day, Ian left his job at the station and showed up bearing food. The first week she hadn’t opened the door. The second week she hadn’t wanted to, but did. Now, the third week since burying Leon, she looked forward to having someone to talk to, someone who didn’t pity her, someone who didn’t want anything from her, someone willing to help her expecting nothing in return.
    H e didn’t want anything, because she’d asked. He’d simply laughed, crossed his arms over his chest and snorted.
    “Is it so hard to believe I care about what happens to you guys?”
    “Yeah, it kinda is.”
    His mouth had tightened then. “Kayla, are you really going to push away the one person willing to help you?”
    “I have nothing to give you, Ian.”
    He smiled, genuine platonic affection shining in his eyes. “You got nothin’ I want, Kay.”
    And that had been that.
    At some point he’d get tired of waiting on her and doting on the kids and move on, but until then she’d accept his help, his friendship.
    He popped a fry into his mouth, took a swig of soda and swallowed. “So you wanna tell me why karma hates you?”
    She wiped her mouth with a napkin. “You’d think that after Leon losing his life, we’d get enough to live ours.”
    He frowned. “I was afraid of that.”
    “You were?” She hadn’t been. Silly her, she’d thought she and the kids would be set. Not that she expected to live like royalty or anything, but she did kind of think they’d be able to continue living the way they had been.
    “Yeah, we’ve covered stories about fallen heroes and the piece s their families have to pick up. I guess I hoped your case would be different.”
    “Well, it’s not.” She wanted to curse, would have if Penelope hadn’t been playing with her new toy at the other end of the table.
    “We’ll work it out.” Ian shrugged and took a bite of his burger.
    “Not we , Ian.”
    “Oh good grief!” he barked around his food. He chewed, swallowed. “Stop being so damn touchy.”
    “I’m not being touchy.” She dropped her fork, which perklunked on the table. “This isn’t your problem, Ian. We are not your problem.”
    One shoulder rose, fell. “I can’t argue with that.”
    He stood, gathered his