She glanced at Quinn. They had to look like their mother. If that was the kind of woman he was attracted to, her sisters-in-law’s matchmaking plot had never stood a chance.
She was about as opposite as a woman could get. Towering over the girls, she wiped her hands on her filled-out jeans before offering one to them. “Hi. Meg and Hannah, right?” She had met them briefly before the meeting started. “I’m so glad you could make it. Sorry about not getting to work with the horses tonight. Next time, okay?”
They nodded, their movements synchronized.
Jazz introduced Xavier to Quinn.
“Mom.” Cassie took Belle’s hand and smiled the smile that meant she wanted something. “Since we didn’t get to go to the horse club, can they come home with us and spend the night?”
The twins’ eyes filled with joy. They turned to their dad, hope in full force. “Could we?”
“Please?” all three girls said as one.
He started shaking his head no, and the girls’ faces instantly fell.
It had to be hard to be the new girls in a small town, with all the friendships long ago established in preschool. Her heart went out to them. She knew too well the feeling of wanting to belong. “Hey, how about if they go with me? You could follow to make sure we all get there safe and sound. You can check out the house and come back in the morning. I make a pretty mean breakfast.”
“That she does.” Xavier rubbed the head of her youngest daughter, Lucy. “Her cinnamon rolls alone are worth the trip.”
Belle hit him in the arm.
“What did I do?”
Ignoring him, she turned to Quinn. His girls hadn’t said another word, but...those eyes. How did he ever tell them no?
Then again, she imagined he didn’t hear no very often, either. Which reinforced the reason she needed to stay clear of him. Not the kind of man she wanted to be interested in. Not that she wanted to be interested in any man.
He hugged his daughters close and smiled at her again.
Quinn relaxed his gritted teeth. His first instinct was to tell them no. He never let them spend the night away. Then again, they were nine; the age other girls had sleepovers and made friends.
Plus, there was the matter of Belle De La Rosa. He knew there was matchmaking on the brains of some of the women in the playgroup. It happened every time he moved to a new town.
Married folks didn’t like seeing single people run around unattached, even if said single people insisted that they were perfectly happy with the situation. He didn’t want to get involved, to start over and drag his kids through the uncertainty of a new relationship.
Belle De La Rosa stood her ground with confidence and assurance. He’d never met a woman like her. She was almost as tall as him, her features strong, but in a stunning way he would never have expected he would be drawn to.
But it didn’t matter. He was not on the market, and she’d made it clear she had no interest in him. Maybe it was her lack of interest that intrigued him.
Women weren’t usually so fast at shooting him down. It was always the other way around.
He grinned and blamed his fascination on a wounded ego.
“Daddy.” Meg’s big eyes were pleading. She stepped away from him so that she could meet him eye to eye.
He sighed. “Okay. I’ll—” They cheered before he could finish his sentence.
Xavier patted him on the shoulder. “Good. I’ll make sure Jazz gets home safe, and I’ll leave Belle to you.” He grinned.
Belle slammed her fists on her hips. “Not you, too. This is ridiculous.” She turned to Quinn. “I’m sorry about my family. Just ignore them. For the most part, they’re harmless.”
Her cousin didn’t look harmless. He stood well over six feet, and his arms alone could do damage. It was clear that no one with a brain would mess with him or his loved ones. “Let me call my mother-in-law and tell her I’ll be a little late.”
He stepped away from the small group. The girls were chatting excitedly about sharing clothes. Oh, they’d need a change of clothes. The call went to voice mail.
He frowned and looked at the screen. She always answered. He tried again.
His heart raced. Gina was alone with Jonah. Thoughts swirled of all the possibilities. His son was only four; if something happened to his grandmother, he wouldn’t know what to do.
Another call came in. It was a local area code. No one around here had a reason to call him this late.
Controlling his breath, he answered. “Quinn here.”
“Oh, Quinn. I was having a hard time remembering your number.” He relaxed a little at the sound of his mother-in-law’s voice. “We’re fine, but there’s been a little accident.”
The calm was short-lived. “Where’s Jonah? What kind of accident? Why are you calling on someone else’s phone?” A million worst-case scenarios ran through his brain. He knew how life could change in one blinding second.
The rain slammed against the roof as the wind picked up. He couldn’t hear what she said. “Where are you?” His instinct to get in the Land Rover and go to them needed to be controlled. He needed facts. Then he would know what to do next.
“The sheriff has us in his car. He’s very nice.” Her accent started slipping through. She’d been eight when her grandparents had brought her to the States from Japan. Her accent surfaced only when she was tired or anxious.
He wanted to yell at her, but she was talking, so it couldn’t be that bad. “What happened?”
“Well, I’m not sure. Lightning maybe? But there’s a little fire at the back of the house. I dropped my phone when I grabbed Jonah. You aren’t breathing, are you? Son, the important part is that we are okay. So, breathe.”
No, he wasn’t breathing. His son had been in danger, and he hadn’t been there to keep him safe. For a moment, fear of what could have happened gripped him. He had promised his wife that he’d always protect their children. She had died holding their newborn son in her arms.
Now he had two jobs: take care of their family and grow the Yamazaki Marine Foundation, his wife’s legacy. His mother-in-law trusted him with the foundation her husband had started, which had then been expanded under Quinn’s wife’s leadership.
“Quinn. We’re safe and waiting for you here with the nice sheriff. Bye.” She hung up.
He stared at his phone. Gina Yamazaki, his mother-in-law, was counting on him for so much, maybe more than he could accomplish. His wife and her father had been geniuses, way above anything he could do. But with them gone, it was up to him to continue the work they’d begun.
Protecting the oceans around the world hadn’t just been a job for them; it had been their life’s passion. His father-in-law had sold the family business and put all his wealth into the Foundation.
Quinn glanced at the woman who had stirred unexpected thoughts and gritted his teeth. He needed to stay focused on the job. Distractions were dangerous all the way around.
A gentle touch brought Quinn back to the arena. Thunder rumbled, sounding farther away than earlier.
Concern had Belle’s forehead creased. “Is everything okay?”
He lowered