Free Tangled Hearts (Passion in Paradise) by Sarah O'Rourke

I’ve made some inappropriate
choices, but that doesn’t change the fact that I am still very much in love
with you.  It’s always going to be you for me and me for you, darling.”
    “Do you smell that?” Patience
snorted, offering Melody a sidelong glance as she clenched her fists at her
side.
    “Smell what?” Melody
asked tiredly, looking at her old friend with unhappy eyes as she fought the
urge to howl at the unfairness of it all.  Really, just when she was moving on
with her life, Brad the Cad had to waltz back into her life and mess everything
up for her. 
    “The tsunami of horseshit
this asshole is blowing all over you.  I say you go ahead and shoot the mother
ducker,” she announced with a decisive nod at the gun in Melody’s hand.  “I can
almost guarantee you that Abel will find a way to get you off.”
    “Yeah,” a deep voice
grumbled from behind the women, “But it’ll create a mountain of paperwork for
me, Patience.  I thought you liked me better than that.”
    Turning, Melody’s eyes
widened on the newcomer.  Dressed in a pair of well worn jeans and a dark blue
dress shirt, the tall, good-looking man had a telltale gold star clipped to his
belt.  “The sheriff?” she asked in a whisper to each of the women standing on
either side of her.
    “The Sheriff,” Maggie
confirmed with a grim nod.  “Hello, Zeke.  Fancy seeing you here.”
    “Maggie.” He nodded to
the redheaded woman.  “Troublemaker,” he greeted Patience with a kiss on the
forehead and a gentle arm squeeze before turning and focusing his attention to
Melody.  “Ma’am, I’m Sheriff Ezekiel Monroe, but folks ‘round here just call me
Zeke.  I’m not sure we’ve had the pleasure of meeting before now,” he
introduced himself, offering her one hand as he took his Stetson off his head
with the other. 
    Melody shook the
Sheriff’s hand.  “No, sir, we’ve never met, but my grandmother spoke fondly of
you before she passed, though.”
    “Yes, ma’am, your
granny was a force to be reckoned with,” Zeke chuckled, his keen eyes moving
from the gun in Melody’s hand to the infuriated man behind her.  “Got a call
that there might be a spot of trouble over here in your neck of the woods.  You
alright?” he asked steadily, keeping his intelligent gaze trained on Melody’s
ex-fiancé. 
    “My fiancée is
quite well,” Bradley interrupted the sheriff,  not bothering to even try and
conceal his irritation.  “If you and these ladies would please remove
yourselves, I’m sure Melody and I can resolve our issues together .”
    “Damn, but you’re
really frickin’ thick, aren’t you?” Patience snapped, staring angrily at
Bradley.  “There is no you and Melody.  Haven’t you been listening to a word
the woman said to you, asshole?”
    “And you are my EX-fiancé,
Brad!” Melody shouted at the hard-headed moron currently ruining her
afternoon.  “How the hell do you expect for us resolve our issues, Brad?  Can
you un-screw a woman?  Do you have some kind of magical powers that I’m not
aware of?  Can you time travel?  Is that it?  Can you go back in time and make
a different choice?” she railed, her temper growing hotter with every word she
uttered.  “No!  You can’t.  For God’s sake, you’ve been between the legs of
more women than my gynecologist has, Brad, and he’s been practicing for twenty
years!”  Blowing a strand of hair out of her face as she continued her tirade,
Melody’s hand tightened on her gun.  “This is done, Brad.  D-O-N-E!!!  Do you
hear me now?  Done!”
    “Melody, honey, you and
I will never be done,” Brad contradicted her in a too-calm voice that
only served to heighten Melody’s fury.
    “Now, see, that sounded
like a threat to me,” Melody heard a new, but reassuringly familiar voice
remark from behind her.  Turning, she watched the coffee nut from this morning
wading into the fray.
    “And as Melody’s new
man, I gotta say…that