Read Online Deadly Memories (Hardy Brothers Security Book 18) by Lily Harper Hart - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Lily Harper Hart
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mean some stuff happened, but I just like hugging you. Can’t I just want to hug you?”
“I encourage you to hug me whenever the mood strikes,” Grady replied, shifting so he could slip his arms around Sophie. Her smile was open and earnest, but he couldn’t shake the niggling trepidation at the back of his brain. He’d been worried about her emotional state all day, hurrying to pack her childhood boxes away in the linen closet so she wouldn’t have to see them when she got home. He hoped she would bounce back quickly – and it looked as if she was trying – but she also looked tired. “You look exhausted again, by the way. You need more sleep.”
“Then you should stop molesting me when the lights go off in the bedroom,” Sophie teased.
“Hey! I don’t reserve that behavior for when it’s dark. I’m an equal lighting situation offender.”
Sophie giggled, the sound warming Grady’s heart. “I love you, Grady.”
Grady pushed Sophie’s long hair away from her face and locked gazes with the most important person in his life. “I love you.”
Sophie tilted her chin up and exchanged a soft kiss with him before turning her attention to the stove. “What’s all this? I can’t believe you cooked again.”
“Well, I didn’t really cook,” Grady clarified. “I tossed pasta in a pot and bought some Ragu. I also bought a rotisserie chicken because I felt too lazy to do a lot of work.”
“That sounds like my kind of cooking,” Sophie said, shrugging out of her blazer jacket and resting it on the back of one of the counter stools. “So … I had an interesting day.”
“I’ll bet,” Grady said, pouring a glass of wine and handing it to her. “Drink that and relax while I finish dinner. Tell me about your interesting day. I saw that news on Nate Foley broke all over the place this afternoon, by the way. Did you get flak for getting the story before everyone else?”
“There were a few digs at the press conference, but it wasn’t too bad,” Sophie said. “I kind of went out of my way to force Morgan and Humphrey to publicly commit to a plan of action in case they were considering backdoor deals when they thought no one was looking.”
“I never really considered it before because you’re such a joy as a girlfriend, but you’re a pain in the ass when it comes to work, aren’t you?”
Sophie chuckled. “You managed to suck up wonderfully with that statement.”
“I’m not an idiot,” Grady said, moving the pot of pasta to the sink so he could drain it. “Do you really think they were planning on brokering a deal with Chuck Foley so he could get his son out of this? That would be incredibly stupid on their part if they did anything of the sort.”
“I think they’ve met with Chuck Foley,” Sophie confirmed. “I don’t think it matters what they talked about, because now they have no choice but to move forward with full prosecution. If they don’t, every television station will show the footage from today on an endless loop while calling them liars. Their political careers would be over.”
“That can’t make them happy,” Grady said. “Were they angry with you?”
“They weren’t happy with me, but they never really are,” Sophie replied. “Morgan and I have a chilly relationship because of the John Madison thing. Once your top aide tries to kill someone, there really is no going back.
“As for Humphrey, I’ve heard rumors about him being a snake in the grass and he pretty much confirmed that today,” she continued. “He wanted dirt on Mandy and said he heard gossip about her. I told him I heard gossip about him and the secretarial pool at the courthouse. He stormed off pretty quickly after that.”
“Yup, you’re definitely a tiger in the bedroom and at work,” Grady said, grinning as he doled the pasta out. “How much garlic do you want?”
“A lot.”
“That’s going to put a damper on my plans, sugar,” Grady whined.
“Not if you put a lot of
“I encourage you to hug me whenever the mood strikes,” Grady replied, shifting so he could slip his arms around Sophie. Her smile was open and earnest, but he couldn’t shake the niggling trepidation at the back of his brain. He’d been worried about her emotional state all day, hurrying to pack her childhood boxes away in the linen closet so she wouldn’t have to see them when she got home. He hoped she would bounce back quickly – and it looked as if she was trying – but she also looked tired. “You look exhausted again, by the way. You need more sleep.”
“Then you should stop molesting me when the lights go off in the bedroom,” Sophie teased.
“Hey! I don’t reserve that behavior for when it’s dark. I’m an equal lighting situation offender.”
Sophie giggled, the sound warming Grady’s heart. “I love you, Grady.”
Grady pushed Sophie’s long hair away from her face and locked gazes with the most important person in his life. “I love you.”
Sophie tilted her chin up and exchanged a soft kiss with him before turning her attention to the stove. “What’s all this? I can’t believe you cooked again.”
“Well, I didn’t really cook,” Grady clarified. “I tossed pasta in a pot and bought some Ragu. I also bought a rotisserie chicken because I felt too lazy to do a lot of work.”
“That sounds like my kind of cooking,” Sophie said, shrugging out of her blazer jacket and resting it on the back of one of the counter stools. “So … I had an interesting day.”
“I’ll bet,” Grady said, pouring a glass of wine and handing it to her. “Drink that and relax while I finish dinner. Tell me about your interesting day. I saw that news on Nate Foley broke all over the place this afternoon, by the way. Did you get flak for getting the story before everyone else?”
“There were a few digs at the press conference, but it wasn’t too bad,” Sophie said. “I kind of went out of my way to force Morgan and Humphrey to publicly commit to a plan of action in case they were considering backdoor deals when they thought no one was looking.”
“I never really considered it before because you’re such a joy as a girlfriend, but you’re a pain in the ass when it comes to work, aren’t you?”
Sophie chuckled. “You managed to suck up wonderfully with that statement.”
“I’m not an idiot,” Grady said, moving the pot of pasta to the sink so he could drain it. “Do you really think they were planning on brokering a deal with Chuck Foley so he could get his son out of this? That would be incredibly stupid on their part if they did anything of the sort.”
“I think they’ve met with Chuck Foley,” Sophie confirmed. “I don’t think it matters what they talked about, because now they have no choice but to move forward with full prosecution. If they don’t, every television station will show the footage from today on an endless loop while calling them liars. Their political careers would be over.”
“That can’t make them happy,” Grady said. “Were they angry with you?”
“They weren’t happy with me, but they never really are,” Sophie replied. “Morgan and I have a chilly relationship because of the John Madison thing. Once your top aide tries to kill someone, there really is no going back.
“As for Humphrey, I’ve heard rumors about him being a snake in the grass and he pretty much confirmed that today,” she continued. “He wanted dirt on Mandy and said he heard gossip about her. I told him I heard gossip about him and the secretarial pool at the courthouse. He stormed off pretty quickly after that.”
“Yup, you’re definitely a tiger in the bedroom and at work,” Grady said, grinning as he doled the pasta out. “How much garlic do you want?”
“A lot.”
“That’s going to put a damper on my plans, sugar,” Grady whined.
“Not if you put a lot of
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