Page 41 of Dark Love

“Huh?”

I hold out a ‘1 second’ finger as I answer the phone. “Hi, Mom.”

“Where are you Dahlia Prudence Fleur? I called your house a dozen times this morning and you didn’t answer. Did you forget we were going to have coffee together?”

Did I? Sort of, but not really. There’s no way I want to explain to her what happened. Vex doesn’t need the kind of drama in his life that my mother would bring if she found out something bad had happened to me. “I’m out watchinga baseball game.” That’s sure to distract her. If there’s one thing she hates more than sports, it’s me loving them.

“Of course, you’re at a game. How are you going to find a man spending all your free time at baseball games?”

“One game is hardly all my time.” Though to be fair, when baseball season starts it’s a bit more often.

“You need to be out with your friends meeting a man. What about that neighbor of yours?”

She can’t have heard about Massimo Vincenti. My life is over if she has. There will be no end to the meddling and torment. “What neighbor?”

“That Vincenti guy…”

They’re all named Vincenti. Literally the entire neighborhood.

“The one your father talked to when you were buying the townhouse.”

Ahh. She means Talon. “He’s happily married, Mom. And old enough to be my father.” Quite literally, since his son is older than I am.

“Well, he has to have a brother, cousin, or something.”

“Mom!” Is it possible to die of embarrassment sitting on a bed?

“Fine. Fine. And your boss is really out of the picture?”

What is with everyone and Adonis? “Yes.” Time to change the topic to something less humiliating. “Where are you and Dad going?”

“He wants to go to Florida. He said something about golfing while I’m at the beach.”

“That wasn’t a wise suggestion.” Dad never wins those kinds of arguments.

“Oh, I agreed with him totally.” There’s an evil glee in Mom’s voice.

“What did you do to him?”

“Nothing at all, dear.”

“That bad.”

“There’s something you need to learn about men. They have to make their own choices in life. You can’t tell them what to do or it just breeds anger and resentment.”

Uh oh. “Poor Daddy. What did you do?”

“I just went shopping to get a few things to wear to the beach while he golfs.” Her voice is so sweet and innocent it’s practically wicked.

“And what did you get?”

“Did you know they made things called cheeky bikinis? I never saw either of them before. So I bought ten.”

“Poor Dad’s heart.”

“Your father’s heart is just fine. He changed our hotel to a room with a private beach in the Caribbean. And it was all his idea.”

“Of course, it was. Do I even want to know what you would have done if that hadn’t worked?”

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