Free Desert Angel (Family Justice Book 2) by Suzanne Halliday

snicker. “I take it that was a yes?”
    Angie was exploding with happiness. Her parents would be so touched to hear this bit of news. They were already charmed and impressed by how magnificently Alex’s choice of a bride was handling herself. Having Meghan ask Angie to stand by their side as she wed Alex was an honor she did not take lightly.
    Wiping away an emotional tear, Meghan hugged her one last time before running into Alex’s waiting arms. “You two have made us so happy,” she gushed.
    You two? Huh? Angie felt confused.
    Looking sideways at Parker, she immediately noted the way he’d paled and how his mouth seemed stuck in an open position.
    When Meghan all but purred with satisfaction and burrowed into Alex’s chest with her arms around his waist and a contented grin, Angie felt the floor drop out from under her.
    “Looks like we have our maid of honor and best man!” Alex drawled.
    Angie’s jaw joined Parker’s in a freefall. She had not seen that coming.

C OMPLETELY IN AWE OF WHAT he was seeing, Alex excitedly proclaimed, “This is incredible, Drae,” when the whole thing came into focus. “What the hell was this room before?”
    “Fuck if I know. One day all the girls descended out of nowhere and dragged me here . . . said, will this work?” Looking around at the space, his friend shrugged. “I said yep, and next thing anyone knew, a project had been born!”
    Alex laughed at the apt description of what dealing with the women of Family Justice was like. Meghan was the battering ram. She simply ripped down walls to get what she wanted. And Tori? Shit. She might be little, but she was the scariest one of the bunch. That woman could talk circles around anyone. Fuck, man. Sometimes she won because her ridiculous grasp of arcane facts pretty much beat every argument into the ground.
    And then, of course, there was Lacey. She was sweet, young, bright-eyed, and completely authentic in every way. The first of the Justice wives, she couldn’t fathom the glass half empty notion because, after all, to her, the glass was half full. Period. Her simple belief in all that was good, right, and true was what changed everything. For all of them.
    “Crazy women! They caused all kinds of hell in the construction office the other day. Something about solar lights.” Alex shook his head remembering the dust-up their interference had instigated.
    Draegyn snorted a laugh, which got Alex laughing along. They went back a long way, he and Drae. Theirs was a unique friendship, born before the firestorm of an ugly war and made closer through long years spent building a business together. They were more than friends. Draegyn St. John was hardwired into Alex’s conscience—his own personal Jiminy Cricket. The wise partner along on the adventure.
    “Well, bro, the good news is that it doesn’t take much to soundproof a room so here ya go, Thunder Foot. One music studio as requested. Plenty of room for a stadium-size drum kit, a grand piano—whatever you need.”
    Alex was suitably stunned. A studio. And shit but it was impressive. The walls and ceiling were covered by unusual carved foam that created different hued waves making the room look like it was alive. Huge framed landscapes were hung here and there—all photographs of the surrounding countryside. There was a comfy seating area and even a small wet bar. And it was soundproof, huh? Suddenly, he could think of some additional uses for the room. Lately he’d gotten insatiably greedy for the screams that he got out of Meghan when their playtimes were especially intense. He wondered if the door locked.
    “Dammit, man,” Drae groaned, his hands on his hips and head bowed. “I fucking hate you for putting that picture in my head.”
    What the hell was he bitching about?
    Drae’s hand came out with a key dangling from his forefinger. “Of course, the goddamn door locks, you old pervert.”
    Alex took the key and snickered. “Was I that obvious?”
    “Yes,”