Deanna snorted. With her soft skin, very few wrinkles and dark brown hair—that now came from a bottle—Audrey Harrison was still quite a catch. “You look great for your age and you know it, but why do you appear as if you’ve just run a marathon?”
Her mother’s eyes brightened. “It’s this new class I’m taking. One of the ladies down at the shelter recommended it. It’s tai chi. Great for flexibility.” She bit her lip and shook her head. “Or so they say. Today was my first class, and I feel about as flexible as a steel pipe.”
Deanna sipped her tea and tried not to laugh as an image of her mom doing the deep lung movement “snake creeps down” sprang to mind. “Sounds like a real blast.”
Her mom grinned. “You should’ve seen me trying to do some of those moves. I’m pretty sure the instructor thought I was going to pass out at any moment.”
They both laughed. “So, besides attempting to throw your back out, what else has been going on?”
“Things are going great down at the shelter. I’m still trying to get the hang of things, but I’m really enjoying talking to all the ladies. One woman is around my age. She’s been married to this guy, a real loser, for twenty-five years. He’s used her as a punching bag. Poor thing.” She finished off her tea, then sat back. “It’s nice to get out of the house. I didn’t know how much I needed it until now. I guess I was lonelier than I thought. I’m grateful to Gracie for suggesting it, honestly.”
Mention of the house gave Deanna the opening to try, again, to convince her mom to sell the family home. It’d become too big for her to live in alone. “Mom, you need to seriously consider selling the house and moving into an apartment. Dean called the other day and said he found a great place. And it’s right in town, so you wouldn’t have to drive as far to the shelter every day.”
“I don’t mind the drive, sweetie. It gives me time to think.”
Deanna couldn’t count the amount of times they’d had this conversation. “This isn’t really about the drive, Mom. You don’t want to sell because of Dad.” After Deanna’s dad had died from a brain aneurysm two years earlier, her mom had clung to the house. All their memories, the good and the bad, were tied to it. Deanna understood her mom too well. She wasn’t all that crazy about selling their family home either.
“We’ll talk about the house later. For now, let’s dig into those cookies I bought you.”
Well, I lost that round. “Fine, but someday soon we need to do something about the house. It’s too much for you to keep up, and it’s not safe for you to live alone and so far from Dean, Wade, and me.”
As Deanna stood to get the box of cookies out of the bag her mom had brought over, she heard an incoherent curse from behind. After setting the box onto the table, Deanna stopped short at the glare of disapproval on her mother’s face. “Er, what did I say?”
“I am perfectly safe in that house,” her mother said, all but daring her to disagree. “I don’t need my three children worrying over me, you hear?”
“Loud and clear.” Deanna opened the box of cookies—mmm, chocolate chunk, Deanna’s favorite—handed her mom one, then smiled in an attempt at a truce. To her relief, her mom smiled back and took the cookie.
“You always could get around me with that pretty smile of yours,” her mom said. “So, dear, what have you been up to these last few days?” She placed the cookie on a napkin, untouched.
An image of Jonas’s head buried between her legs sprang to mind. “Uh, nothing much. Working on some new things for a client. I went to the gym this morning.” She paused and realized she’d have to tell her mom about her upcoming trip. “By the way, I’m going out of town next weekend.”
Her mother stood and brought her cup to the sink. “Oh? Business or pleasure?” she asked over her shoulder.
And here we go, Deanna thought, wishing the floor would swallow her up. “Pleasure,” she blurted out.
Her mom rinsed the cup and began to w
ipe down the counter. “I see.” She turned around and gave her that I-can-see-right-through-you look that only a mother seemed to possess. “Is there a man involved?”
And now for the grand finale! “Yeah. Jonas.”
God, she so did not want to get on the subject of Jonas Phoenix. Her mom was much too astute; she’d notice right off if Deanna appeared overly interested in the man. Yet, she could never bring herself to hold out on her mom.
With dismay, Deanna noticed she now had her mother’s undivided attention. “Our Jonas?” her mom asked. “Wade’s army friend?”
“The one and only.”
After returning to her seat, her mom said, “Hmm, a weekend away with Jonas. I think I need to hear the rest of that story.” The mischievous smile playing at the corners of her lips didn’t bode well for Deanna.
“It’s no big deal, so don’t go reading too much into it. He asked me to go to that beach house he co-owns with Wade. I said yes. The end.”
“You must like him, though, or you wouldn’t have said yes,” she surmised as she continued to nibble on her cookie.
Deanna picked at her own chocolate chip treat, not really interested in eating it anymore. “He’s a nice guy, good-looking in a rugged sort of way. He’s been trying to get me to go out with him forever.” She shrugged as if it meant little to her. “I decided to put the guy out of his misery.” Does one go to hell for downplaying the truth? Deanna would definitely have to give that one some serious thought later.
Her mom reached across the table and covered her hand. “It’s more than that. You like him, don’t you?”
“I’m attracted to him, yes. Is there something besides physical attraction, though? I don’t know. I’m hoping to find out in Miami.”