Most Eligible Baby Daddy by Chance Carter Page A

Kelly shake her head at him.
    “We’re fine,” she mouthed to Harry.
    Harry nodded, and Elle noticed a look of relief in his face.
    Phil strutted across the bar over to the booth with his friends and Harry followed him. Elle watched as Harry took their order for two pitchers of beer and four burgers.
    “What was that about?” Elle said under her breath to Kelly, referring to the interaction with Harry.
    Kelly sighed. “He would have stepped in to stick up for us,” she said. “I know he would have. He’s done it before. But it’s not good.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “It’s best to let those boys do what they want. Last time Harry stepped in, the mayor closed down the bar for a month. Harry couldn’t pay his bills. He almost lost the place. Those boys, I know them all too well. You already know Phil. That one sitting next to him is Patrick. The other two, sitting across are Randy and Hal. Their dads are the mayor, the sheriff, the district attorney and the county judge. Imagine trying to run a business in this town once you get in trouble with people like that.”
    “I see,” Elle said.
    “That’s why I thought it was better just to let Phil have his fun and wait for him to get bored on his own. I’d never be able to forgive myself if Harry lost his livelihood over something that could be avoided. It’s all he’s got. It’s been in his family for generations.”
    Elle nodded. She understood the situation. Just when she’d been starting to think Stone Peak was too good to be true, she found out that she’d have to contend with these four. She looked over at the boys. She knew their type. They would have gotten on well with her ex, Gris. They liked to have fun, and at no time were they having so much fun as when they were causing trouble for someone else.
    She looked across the bar at Forrester. He was looking down at his drink, pretending he hadn’t noticed any of what had just happened. Elle felt her heart sink a little. She understood why a guy like him wouldn’t want to get into trouble, she could respect a man trying to avoid a fight, but there was a tiny part of her that would have hoped that Forrester was the kind of man who’d step in when he saw an injustice. She had to admit, she was disappointed. Maybe he wasn’t the man she’d built him up to be in her mind. Maybe being abused by his father as a child had taken the courage out of his heart.
    Harry had served the boys their drinks and came back over to the girls.
    “I’m really sorry about that, girls.”
    “It’s all right, Harry,” Kelly said. “It’s not your fault.”
    “It’s not right of me to stand by while a boy speaks to ladies like that in my establishment.”
    “You know what happened last time, Harry. It’s not worth the trouble.”
    Harry nodded, but Elle could tell he wasn’t in full agreement. The situation was eating at him and he didn’t like it.
    Elle and Kelly sipped their drinks in silence. The boys at their booth were laughing and joking about something. Harry went about his work as conscientiously as before, but there was a cloud over him now. Elle kept stealing glances at Forrester but he only looked down at his drink. Eventually she’d had enough and hopped down from her seat.
    “What are you doing?” Kelly said.
    “I’m going to talk to that guy.”
    Kelly’s eyebrow rose. “Be careful,” she said. “It’s the quiet ones that are the most dangerous.”
    “We’ll see about that,” Elle said, and rounded the bar, her beer in hand.
    As she approached Forrester, his presence seemed to grow, to expand and take up the space around him. She could tell he held power. He was the kind of guy who could change things. He was the kind of guy who could make a difference.
    So why had he just sat there while Phil pestered her and Kelly?
    “Hey, did you find the funeral home?” she said to him as she approached.
    He looked up at her from his whiskey and caught her in his gaze. Elle had to take a deep