Stone Romance (Stone Passion #2) by A.C. Warneke Page A

laundry loads and then get back before Lenni ever woke. Carefully sliding off the bed so as to not jostle Lenni, she looked up and saw that Ferris was quietly standing just outside the room, trying to peak into the room without being seen. Her blue-green eyes were wide with concern and Jenna knew the little girl would worry until she knew her aunt was going to be all right.
    Kissing Melanie gently on the cheek, she walked over to Ferris and held out her hand, “Come on, sweetie; let’s let Lenni rest.”
    Not taking her eyes from the huddled form on the bed, Ferris whispered, “Why is Aunt Mellie crying? Is she okay?”
    “She will be okay.” Jenna took Ferris’s hand in her own but her daughter didn’t budge.
    “Can I go in and see her?”
    Jenna shook her head no, “I don’t think that is such a good idea.”
    “Please let her come in,” Melanie’s broken voice cracked from the bed, startling Jenna with the fact that she was awake. She had been as still as the tomb, and just as cold. “Please.”
    Heaving a sigh, she released Ferris’s hand and the little girl fled to Melanie’s side, climbing up onto the bed where she was engulfed in a desperate hug. Jenna stood in the doorway for a few more minutes, touched by Ferris’s efforts to comfort Melanie and once again awed by their special bond. The familiar ache pulsed in her chest and she rubbed the tender spot; she knew Ferris loved her ; it was just that sometimes it seemed that her child loved Melanie more.
    It was ridiculous to be jealous over a child’s affection for Melanie, especially when her sister’s heart was shattered. If only she could take some of Melanie’s pain away; if only she knew what to say to make everything better.
    Quietly leaving the room and closing the door behind her, tears clogged her throat; maybe she and her sister weren’t meant to have love and romance. Or maybe Melanie was making a mountain out of nothing and it wasn’t really the end of the world. She was just going to have to find out what the heck happened between Melanie and Vaughn and fix it because her sister did deserve happiness and after everything Lenni had done for her, it was time Jenna paid her back, at least in part. There was nothing insurmountable, except for death.
    She was just going to have to figure out how to kidnap Vaughn and then lock the two of them together until they worked out their differences. She was fairly certain Rhys would be willing to help her out, since Vaughn was his brother and they seemed close. Surely he would want Vaughn to be happy?
    And she had to admit to a little bit of selfishness on her part; she really, really liked Rhys and was looking forward to getting to know him better. It wouldn’t be right for her to date the brother of the man who broke Melanie’s heart.
    Her face heated with a hint of shame and a dose of remembered pleasure; she still couldn’t believe the things she had done with Rhys’s seductive voice whispering in her ear. Surely a guy who had no qualms about bringing a woman to orgasm over the phone would enjoy a scheme which involved potentially illegal activities and possibly duct tape, but only if Vaughn and Melanie were incredibly stubborn.
    Stealing away into her old bedroom, she sat down on the bed and grabbed her notebook and pen and started plotting. And after several hours, which included time spent eating dinner , then getting Ferris off to bed, and finally locking herself in her room above the garage, she developed an intricate plan involving marzipan, a blindfold, the production of a musical number – if Rhys could pull it off – and three or four ferrets. She even illustrated some of the more complicated steps and she did one brief sketch of Rhys in a superhero costume that consisted of a pair of boots and a cape and nothing else.
    Of course, the more elaborate her plan became, the more ridiculous it was and near the end she was giggling uncontrollably, wiping tears of desperation and sadness