Loretta looked down at the hand, but didn't take it. "Are you some kind of mechanic?"
"You could say that." With a shrug, I lowered my hand. "Just part-time though. You know how it is."
"No," she said with a sniff. "I'm afraid I don't." She glanced again toward the driveway. "I assume you're also providing our Chloe with a ride home?"
I grinned. "Definitely."
And in the meantime, I'd be staying for dinner, because there was no way in hell I was leaving Chloe to fend for herself. One way or another, I was getting inside that house. If possible, I'd do it the nice way. If that didn't pan out, well, I guess we'd see.
Loretta glanced at her watch. "Fine. But don't be later than two o'clock." She turned to Chloe and said, "Will you be waiting for him in the driveway? Or shall he knock on the door?"
"Actually," Chloe said, "he's my guest. You said I could bring one?"
Loretta opened her mouth, but before any words came out, a different female voice squealed out, "Oh my God!" A brunette, maybe around Chloe's age, appeared just past Loretta's shoulder. Based on the resemblance, this had to be Lauren Jane, Loretta's natural daughter, as Chloe had called her.
Lauren Jane was staring me. "Is that–? Are you?" She looked to Chloe and asked, "Is that Lawton Rastor?"
Loretta whirled around to face her daughter. In a hushed voice, she asked, "Who's Lawton Rastor?"
"Oh my God, Mom, he's only like a zillionaire," Lauren Jane said, not bothering to lower her voice. "I can't believe you didn't know that. I mean, jeez, have you been living under a rock or something?"
Loretta turned to give me a quick glance before turning back to Lauren Jane. "Him?" Loretta hissed. "You can't be serious."
Lauren Jane snorted. "I am, too. God, you aresoembarrassing." She looked over to me and said, "Sorry, she doesn't get out much." She turned back to her mom and said, "For God's sake, Mom, there's this thing called the internet. Use it sometimes, okay?"
Loretta's mouth tightened. "Lauren, I don't appreciate–-"
"Mom!" Lauren Jane rolled her eyes. "It's LaurenJanenow. Remember?"
"Of course I remember," Loretta said. "I was the one who named you."
"You were not," Lauren Jane said. "It was dad who named me. Remember him? The guy you left for some salesman?"
"He's not a salesman," Loretta said through gritted teeth. "He's a commercial real estate broker."
"Whatever," Lauren Jane said. She turned back to me and smiled. "Hey, I heard you just bought a killer mansion around here. Does it have a hot tub?" She elbowed her way forward, past Loretta. "Because I just bought a new bikini. You wanna see it?"
I shrugged. "Maybe after dinner."
It was a load of bull. I had no interest in Lauren Jane's bikini or anything else that she might wear. From what Chloe had told me in the car, combined with what I'd seen with my own eyes, this girl wasn't someone I wanted to see more of.
Besides, there was only one girl I wanted to see in a bikini, and she was standing next to me, holding a salad. I gave it a quick look. Correction, half a salad. The rest was still on the floor of the passenger's seat. It was too bad, in a way. I'd have liked to see Loretta eating the grubby lettuce off my dirty floor mat.
In fact, I'd like to see that woman eating a lot of things. The gravy story was still pissing me off. I glanced over at Josh. He seemed like a nice kid,toonice to live with a woman like that.
Loretta cleared her throat. "Chloe," she said, "Don't just stand there. Show our guest inside, will you?" Loretta gave me a thin smile. "You try to teach them manners, but…" She let out a long-suffering sigh. "What's a person to do?"
I knew what Loretta could do. But it would be a mistake to spell it out, so I let Chloe lead me inside. The way it looked, it was meet-the-parent time.
Chapter 56
Ten minutes later, we were seated around a long, oval table in their formal dining room. Chloe's dad was at one end, and Loretta was at the other. As for me, I was seated between Josh and Lauren Jane, who had dragged her chair so close that our elbows were touching.
I looked up, catching Chloe's eye across the table. She gave me a shaky smile that went straight to my heart. She looked nervous. I wasn't. Whatever might happen today, I knew I was in the right place, because it meant that Chloe wasn't here alone, and neither was her brother.
At the foot of the table, Loretta shook out a cloth napkin and settled it over her lap. She gave Chloe a stiff smile and said, "We're allsoglad you could make it, Chloe."
Right. Because nothing says "welcome," like locking someone out.
