“Nice to meet you,” Joan said with a welcoming smile—which instantly reminded Caitlyn of Owen’s—and Caitlyn was surprised that she felt no animosity from the woman, especially if she was pulling for Lindsey.
“I think the gray,” Lindsey said a bit loudly. “What do you think, Owen?”
“Um . . .” Owen turned to a large cardboard sheet with squares of tile affixed to it. He shrugged. “Sure.”
“Or maybe the beige,” Lindsey said, drawing her fingers over a sample. “This is pretty close to the tile you laid in your powder room.”
Owen laid tile? Caitlyn thought he played bass.
“So how did you and Owen meet?” Joan asked Caitlyn.
Caitlyn’s face burned with embarrassment. It was one thing to blatantly tell her ex-husband how they’d met, quite another to tell Owen’s mother.
“At a club,” Owen said. Not a lie, just an understatement of the truth. Caitlyn could handle that.
“Oh, oh,” Lindsey said, covering her belly with one hand. “The baby is kicking.”
Joan and Owen plopped down on either side of her, their hands searching Lindsey’s belly for signs of baby movement. Caitlyn tried not to feel stabby toward the pregnant woman, but it was quite obvious to her that Lindsey was doing everything she could to wedge herself squarely into Owen’s life. Rather Lindsey was pregnant or not, Caitlyn would not be putting up with her obvious ploys. Caitlyn couldn’t have a frank discussion with Lindsey while Joan was present, though. If Caitlyn went off on Lindsey now, she’d likely earn Joan as an enemy, and she didn’t want to start her relationship with Owen with that hanging over them.
“Do you want to feel him kick too?” Lindsey asked Caitlyn, throwing her so off guard that Caitlyn merely blinked at her.
“It’s really cool,” Owen said, his fingers and his mother’s overlapping as they found the right spot.
Joan laughed. “He’s got quite a kick! He’s either going to punt footballs or be a swimmer.”
“Football,” Owen said. “I definitely vote for football.”
Lindsey’s adoring gaze as she stared at Owen had Caitlyn’s hands balling into fists. Did he not see what kind of situation he’d gotten himself into here? Or maybe he wanted Lindsey. He definitely wanted the baby.
The amazed smile on Owen’s face faded, and he sank back into the sofa, removing his hand from Lindsey’s belly. “He stopped.”
“You always calm him down,” Lindsey said.
Owen lifted an eyebrow at her. “I do?”
Lindsey’s laugh rang false as she patted Owen on the leg. “You know that.”
Owen shook his head and then rose from the sofa to wrap an arm around Caitlyn’s lower back. “Are you hungry? We should probably think about dinner. Do you want to go out or—”
“I have chicken thawed,” Lindsey said. “I was going to fry it for dinner. There will be plenty.”
“Is that okay?” Owen asked.
Eating a dinner that Lindsey cooked in Owen’s kitchen? Yeah, no, that wasn’t even slightly okay, but Joan was staring directly at her, so she plastered a smile on her face and choked out a yes.
“You can help me cook,” Lindsey said, rocking forward to get her feet under her.
“Oh,” Caitlyn said. “I don’t cook.”
Lindsey cocked her head. “You don’t?”
“She’s too busy changing the world to cook,” Owen said. He kissed Caitlyn’s temple.
Caitlyn appreciated that he stood up for her, but his defense didn’t change the curious way Joan was suddenly looking at her.
“I can give you a hand,” Joan said, standing.
“That’s not necessary,” Lindsey said. “Are you staying for dinner?”
“No, I need to head home and get supper started for James.”
“That’s my dad,” Owen whispered next to Caitlyn’s ear. “I’ll take you over to meet him later.”
It occurred to Caitlyn that Lindsey and Joan had a lot more in common with each other than she had in common with either of them. And didn’t they say men always married women like their mothers? Panic clawed up Caitlyn’s throat. If she was going to have any sort of meaningful relationship with Owen, Lindsey had to go.
Joan pointed to her tile samples and asked Lindsey, “Beige, then?”
“Gray,” she said. “No, wait—beige. Or cream. Maybe cream.”
“I’ll leave this with you and you can decide,” Joan said. “I need to know by tomorrow so we can get the tile ordered, okay?”
“I’ll figure it out by then,” Lindsey promised. She hugged Joan before waddling off toward the kitchen.
“It was a pleasure to meet you, Caitlyn,” Joan said, taking her hand and clasping it. Her pretty blue eyes were both kind and welcoming, but Caitlyn still felt she was at a disadvantage when compared to Lindsey. “We need to get together while you’re in town and get to know each other better.”
“I’d like that,” Caitlyn said.
“Lindsey and I are doing lunch after her appointment tomorrow; maybe you could join us?”
She wouldn’t like that, but she said, “Okay.”
“Mom, don’t subject her to even more Lindsey,” Owen said in a harsh whisper. “You should hang out with Caitlyn without her.”
“Owen, you’re not asking me to exclude Lindsey, are you?”
“That’s exactly what I’m asking.”
Caitlyn squeezed his hand, grateful that he understood how being around Lindsey made her feel.
Joan smiled at her son and reached over to cup his cheek. “Walk me out?”
Owen apparently figured that meant his mother needed a private word with him. He picked up the television remote and handed it to Caitlyn.
“Find something to watch, a ball game or something. I’ll be back in a minute.”
“Okay,” Caitlyn said, watching him walk with his mother to the foyer. She wasn’t the type to eavesdrop, but after she turned on the television, she silently followed them. She couldn’t help herself. She needed to know if she’d be battling one woman or two for Owen’s affection.
“You really like her, don’t you?” Joan asked quietly.
“Madly in love with her,” Owen said, and Caitlyn’s heart skipped a beat.
“If you aren’t careful, Lindsey is going to scare her off.”
Not happening.
“You were the one who insisted she stay with me until the bathroom is finished,” Owen said.
“I didn’t realize you were so serious about Caitlyn. I was trying to help. I’m sure Ben will rush the bathroom repairs if I ask nicely.”
“That would be awesome.”
“That doesn’t help you now, though. I’ll call Lindsey after dinner and beg her to keep me company tonight. We’ll have a girls’ night in. That will give you and Caitlyn some alone time.”
Owen blew out an audible breath. “You’re the best, Mom.”
Caitlyn slunk back into the living room, a wide smile on her face, and settled on the sofa. She had absolutely nothing to worry about. Owen’s heart belonged to her. At least until that baby was born.
Chapter Eighteen
Owen closed his front door and leaned against its solid back. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Mom seemed to like Caitlyn, and maybe now that the two had met, Mom would stop pressuring him about Lindsey. His career was still in shambles and his bandmates were acting like a bunch of idiots, but Caitlyn had Mom’s approval, so he had one less worry.