Read Hawk's Haven for Free Online

resemblance between them was striking. The older girl cowered, but the younger one regained her composure and bravely marched closer.
    "You don't look like one," the child announced.
    Gillian gave her an encouraging smile. "Look like what?"
    "A princess. Uncle Thomas said you're a princess. I heard him tell Mama."
    She suppressed an angry retort. She would not stoop to the same level of name-calling in front of children. If Hawk Carter had nothing better to do with his time off than to spend an afternoon talking about her, then she should pity his life. "No. I'm not a princess. I'm Gillian Hughes."
    "Told you, Amanda,” the younger sister said. "She doesn't even have nice clothes."
    "Maya, that's not nice," Amanda scolded.
    "Don't worry about it," Gillian said. She knew her old football jersey wasn't haute couture. "Let me get changed and I'll be right with you."
    "We have to leave,” Amanda said. "Mama will have a fit if she finds us here."
    "Not yet, scaredy-cat. We just got here.” Maya, the instigator, sat down and made herself at home. Amanda, looking as skittish as a kitten, perched herself on the edge of the sofa as if ready to make a hasty retreat.
    Gillian darted into the bedroom and slipped into a white cotton sun dress. The unexpected visit of the children eased the hollow ache inside her and she was reluctant to let them escape too quickly. She rooted through her suitcase, looking for white sandals, but gave up when the search took more than three seconds. Barefoot, she returned to the living room.
    "Does it work?" Maya asked, curiously eyeing her lap-top PC on the table. "Can it play games?"
    "I suppose. But the picture isn't as good as my other computer. That's at the longhouse. Maybe one day you could come by and I'll show you how that one works."
    Maya nodded. "Sure, but can I play this one now?"
    "Maya," Amanda chided. "You're being rude."
    "You both are,” a deep voice grumbled from the open door.  The two girls scrambled to their uncle. Hawk glared down at his nieces, but with a trace of humor that brought guilty grins to their small faces. "I'm sorry if the girls disturbed you."
    "Not at all, Hawk," she said with enough saccharine sweetness to cause a toothache. "You can hardly blame them for wanting to see a real live princess."
     
    * * * *
     
    Hawk's smile froze on his face. The two pixies gazing up innocently at him had landed him in the dog house again.
    "And she's not even a real princess," Maya complained.
    "Your mother is looking for you two," Hawk warned and gave them a push outside. They waved to Gillian and ran off in the direction of home. "May I come in?"
    "It's your house.” She yanked the pillow off the recliner and tossed it back on the sofa.
    Although her welcome was less than enthusiastic, he stepped inside and closed the door. Many of her belongings were scattered around the room. She’d been in his house less than two hours, yet she seemed more at home than he’d ever felt.
    A framed picture on the mantel above the fireplace stood out because he displayed none of his own. He lifted the photograph of Gillian and another young woman for closer inspection. "A friend?"
    Her eyes narrowed angrily. "It's hard to imagine that anyone might actually like a spoiled princess like me.” She pulled the picture from his hand and returned it to the mantel.
    "You know, calling someone Princess isn't necessarily an insult. My father used to call my sister that all the time."
    She crossed her arms over her chest and let out a dramatic sigh. "I didn't realize you held paternalistic feelings for me. I'm sure Aaron will reward you for overseeing my welfare and best interests as lovingly and selflessly as he himself has done."
    Behind the contempt, he heard a quiet anguish. Whatever her problems with her father were , they went way beyond the incident in court. "You accused me of having a mean streak? Well, you're lethal with that tongue of yours. Do you think we could call a truce?"
    She arched one