Page 89 of Harmless Scandals

“She kicked my ass, as you knew she would.”

“And?”

She held her breath.

“She read me the riot act, then she said she wanted to meet Serenity.”

“Just like that?” she asked.

“Yeah. My parents have always been a little unorthodox, especially for being military. They always accepted my relationship with Adam, and she’s thrilled there’s a woman in the mix.”

“Why is that?”

“She wants grandchildren.”

She choked on her coffee.

“Woah,” he said, patting her on the back.

“Sorry.” When she had control of herself again, she looked at them. “Babies?”

Mick and Adam shared one of those looks—the kind that she knew was a kind of secret communication. They turned back to her.

“We weren’t going to broach the subject, but if we entered into a committed relationship, we wanted to build a life,” Adam said.

“And that means babies?” she asked, trying to hold onto her emotions. She had often thought of having children, but she didn’t know if it would ever happen.

Mick nodded. “It’s not a deal breaker, but we both wanted to build a family. I mean, not right now. We would rather just be us for a while.”

She thought about that. Just be us. That was a phrase she could get used to. She smiled and both men seemed to release a breath.

“I like the sound of that.”

“Yeah?” Mick asked.

She nodded. “I just want to be us for a while too.”

“So, this Nicola is going to fix everything?”

She nodded as her phone rang. Another California number.

“Hello.”

When she heard the voice, her heart dropped to her stomach. It was the woman she had spent a decade avoiding, and the one who could completely ruin her happy life.

“Kayleigh, I finally found you.”

“Hello, Mother.”

twenty-six

Serenity felt as if she were living in a nightmare. First, the call from the tabloids. Then, almost losing Mick because of it. Now this.

Both men were staring at her as if they wanted to yank her phone out of her hands.

“I have been so distraught.”

“Who’s there?”

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