Page 75 of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

Dixie nodded in agreement, but she didn’t look any happier than I felt. “I guess that means we’re free for family dinner tonight.”

“Yeah,” I sighed, awash with mounting worries. It was going to be interesting to see how this went.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Summer

Luke and I pulled up to Meemaw’s house a few minutes before seven. Luke had showered and had changed into a short-sleeved button-down shirt and jeans, and I was wearing the same dress I had worn most of the day. Dixie and Bill were already there, based on the fact that Bill’s truck was parked in front of the house, but it was the second vehicle in the drive that had me worried.

“Holy shit,” Luke said. “Is that your mother’s car?”

“Oh my God,” I said, my blood pressure rising. “You back this truck up right now. We are not staying for dinner.”

“You’re really gonna tell your meemaw that you’re not stayin’ for dinner?” Luke said in disbelief.

“That’s right,” I said, motioning for him to back up. “Go on. Back this truck up right now. We’ll head back to town and we can eat dinner at Maybelline’s. Or I can cook something.”

“You’re going to cook something?” he said. “Now I know you’re desperate to get out of here.”

“Damn right. I have no desire to see my mother, and Meemaw can’t force the issue.” But I couldn’t help thinking back to my conversation with Meemaw yesterday, when we’d talked about how she and Pawpaw had considered adopting me andhow I’d accused her of leaving me in hell with my mother. Was that what instigated this impromptu family dinner? Was this her way of trying to make me reconcile my mother? Because that was not up to me. That was up to my mother. And Beatrice Baumgardner was too narcissistic to ever care what I thought. She never had before. Why would she start now?

“What are you waiting for?” I demanded. “I said go.”

Luke stared at the house for a few moments, then turned off the engine. “No way. If you want to leave, you’re gonna have to leave on your own. I am not gonna let Meemaw find out that I was your getaway driver. I’ll never get to eat her fried chicken again.”

“Fine,” I said in a huff as I opened the car door. “Traitor.”

“I’m not a traitor,” he said after he got out, following me as I stomped up the porch steps. “But I do value breathin’ the air around me. Your Meemaw will kill me dead if she finds out that I was the reason you left.”

“You realize that’s redundant?” I grumbled.

“Yeah,” he said, “well, if it was possible, Meemaw would find a way to kill me, then bring me back to life, then kill me again. No way are we leavin’. You’re just gonna have to deal with this head-on.”

“Fine,” I said again, turning back to look at him. I gave him a sultry gaze and let my fingertip press against his lips, “but there will be no sex for you today or even in the foreseeable future.”

As a scowl washed over his face, I spun around and went inside the house, leaving him to follow.

I hadn’t seen my mother since our last family dinner, which had been recorded forDarling Investigations, season 2, episode 4. It had been a big hit, because family dinners where my mother was involved meant there was a lot of drama, which of course made for great reality TV. But there were no cameras tonight, which is why I’d never once suspected that Meemaw was invitingmy mother to dinner. The two of them did not get along. So if my mother was here, whatever Meemaw had to say must be really important.

My mother was standing next to the table, fussing over the place settings as though the Queen of England were coming to dinner. She was wearing a light blue jacket and matching skirt with a white blouse. A shiny tiara sat on top of her head.

“You don’t have any dessert forks, Mama,” she called into the kitchen.

“What the hell do we need dessert forks for?” Meemaw called back. “This ain’t no fancy restaurant.”

“The cake I brought must be eaten with dessert forks,” my mother said as she spun on her heel. “I’ll just go grab them out of the silverware drawer in the buffet.”

“You keep your mitts out of the silverware drawer,” Meemaw shouted after her. “You’ve been eyeing my silverware for years, and you’re not about to get your hands on it now.”

“Still up to your same old tricks,” I said as I walked in.

My mother shifted her dark gaze from her mother to me. “Why, Summer. You’re here.” Then her eyes turned murderous as they landed on Luke. “Chief Montgomery.”

Luke released a small chuckle. “Hello, Beatrice. As always, it’s a pleasure to see you.”

“You’re a terrible liar,” she said to him slyly, then closed the distance to the buffet and opened the top drawer.

“You know,” Luke said, hooking his thumbs in his jeans’ waistband, “the fact that I heard your mother say to keep your hands off the silver, and you’re now openin’ the drawer, about to remove pieces…” He shifted his weight. “Well, let’s just say that it’s looking like I could be observin’ a crime in progress, and possibly have to arrest you and take you down to the police station for booking. Now, we all know that Meemaw’s silver is one of her most prized possessions and worth a lot of money, sowatch how much you take, as it wouldn’t take that many pieces to jack a misdemeanor charge up to the felony level.”

---