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mama went to work. Great first impression, he muttered, rubbing his palm over his
unshaven jaw.
The society matron, looking every inch the part in a trim black suit and heels, was
waiting for him in the kitchen, seated at the table with her legs crossed at the ankle and
a cup of coffee held in both hands. Lacey must have made extra and left it for him. He
weighed the ballsy appearance of getting a cup for himself, then did it. After all, she d
just found him naked in Lacey s bed. Getting a cup of coffee hardly compared and he
needed the caffeine.
Mrs. Meyers watched him the whole time and gave him a pleasant smile when he
sat down next to her. Even in Lacey s sizeable kitchen he felt big, awkward and back on
his heels.
I m sure this is a shock. My daughter didn t know I was coming over. I m
returning the necklace she loaned me last week, she said, nodding at a large dark blue
velvet box. I have my own key, you see.
Sure she did. Everyone in the entire city had a key to Lacey s house, including him.
Lacey probably hasn t talked about me, he began, trying to figure out the best way to
explain his presence in Lacey s bed when she wasn t at home. No mother wanted visual
evidence of her daughter s sexual activity, even if the daughter was in her thirties.
Oh no. She s mentioned you often. I believe you escorted her to the Entrepreneurs
Association cocktail hour at the Metropolitan Club.
So he wasn t Lacey s dirty little secret? That s right, he said, unsure whether he
was out in the open or just plain outed.
You ve been seeing Lacey for almost three months now?
He nodded.
And you re with the police department?
Yes, ma am.
Ah. She took a delicate sip of coffee, leaving a perfect pale pink lip-print on the
rim of the mug.
Silence descended again. Hunter searched for something to say, but casual
conversation wasn t his strong suit even when he hadn t been shocked out of his skin.
Mrs. Meyers leaped into the breach. Lacey s face surely brightens when she talks
about you.
Couldn t they talk about the weather, or something less of a minefield than how her
daughter felt about him? He made a noncommittal noise and sipped his coffee. Maybe
more caffeine would kick-start his brain.
She had a hard divorce. Very unexpected, but with both of them so focused on
their careers, well& Not that I blame Lacey for Davis leaving, she added hastily.
He left her? No, ma am, Hunter said, because he had to say something, right?
You know she s thirty-six.
116
Liberating Lacey
She told me first thing, ma am, he said, beginning to feel a little punch drunk.
My daughter s very brave, she said as she looked at him, humor in her eyes. In
her shoes, well, I might have told the teensiest little white lie.
Another sip of coffee hid his amusement.
You know she wants children, Mrs. Meyers said, following a feint with a hard
uppercut.
The amusement disappeared. No, he didn t know. We haven t discussed that,
ma am.
Mrs. Meyers seemed to remember her unorthodox introduction to Hunter because a
faint blush crept into the soft, rouged skin over her cheekbones. Well, perhaps not. But
she s not getting any younger and sometimes a woman can t&
Ah, yes, the one instance where women did come with expiration dates. But if
Lacey had a ringing biological clock she hadn t brought it up around him. Of course,
maybe she had no intention of having kids with him.
Hell, he wanted kids. Eventually. After he got married, but that wasn t happening
now and if she wanted the whole deal, the ring and the wedding and the babies now,
well, they could add to the list of things he couldn t give her.
So she ll get them from someone else&
You seem like a nice young man, she said decisively, as if she d just neatly
compartmentalized him in the Lacey s-Fling-Before-She-Settles-Down-Again box.
Thank you, ma am, he replied, keeping his voice calm as he desperately searched
for a way to get out of this situation. Next thing she d be asking him who his people
were and he couldn t go there.
Mrs. Meyers stood and poured the rest of her coffee down the sink. It s nice to
finally meet you, Officer Anderson, she said as she gathered her purse and keys from
the counter. I ll call Lacey later today and tell her I stopped by.
He didn t miss the fact that she wasn t using his first name, either. Okay, he said,
but she was closing the door behind her. When her Mercedes pulled out into the street
he shoved his feet into his boots, grabbed his jacket and headed for the Charger parked
on the street. He started the car and opened his cell phone to dial Lacey s BlackBerry
number from memory.
You said you d call, but I didn t expect anything this early, she said.
Your mother was just at the house, he said, automatically managing the wheel,
the manual gearshift and the cell phone as he reversed into the neighbor s driveway.
Oh, my. Were you& ?
Nope. He put it in first and turned down Lacey s street, flooring the accelerator to
make the light to cross Hanover and head into his neighborhood.
Did she& ?
Yup.
117
Anne Calhoun
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