Author: Jaci Burton

“Your mother is very proud of you.”

“She could be proud of me by putting my crap in a scrapbook.”

She laughed. “My parents have the trophy room in our house. Stuff from Mick and Gavin and my childhood, all the way through high school and college. Remind me to show it to you sometime.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes. A room dedicated just to us kids and our accomplishments. So believe me, it’s not just your mom. And it’s as embarrassing for us as it is for you. Some parents like to show off their kids. Your mother is not creepy.”

He shrugged. “Maybe not. But I’d be happier if this room had a futon and maybe an elliptical in it. Something for my mom. It’s like I died or something and she’s afraid to touch anything in here. She’s enshrined it.”

Jenna snorted. “It’s a parent thing. Get over it.”

They went back downstairs and through the dining room, which held a tableclothed rectangular cherry table with matching china cabinet and hutch. The furniture had to be antique. Ty led her through the doorway into the kitchen, which obviously had been remodeled. There were dark gray granite countertops, cherry cabinetry, and stainless-steel appliances as well as lots of open window space.

“Oh, I love your kitchen, Louise.”

She turned and smiled. “Thank you. When I’m not sewing I’m trying out a new recipe, so I spend a lot of time in here. I remodeled a couple years ago, got rid of the ancient appliances and tacky countertops. Out with the old, in with the new is what I say.”

“Except for my room,” Ty grumbled.

“Hey, I like your room,” Jenna said, taking the glass of wine Louise passed to her.

“So do I. Some of my best memories are of Tyler’s childhood. And I want him to feel at home when he visits, which isn’t often enough.”

“Because I’m too tall to sleep in that twin bed,” Tyler said, rolling his eyes at Jenna when his mother’s back was turned.

Jenna grinned at him.

Ty’s mother led them into the living room, where they sat and drank.

“You are not too tall for that bed. It’s extra long,” his mother said as she sipped her wine.

“My memories are fine without you leaving my room the same way it was when I was six years old.”

Louise turned to her. “It’s a constant point of contention between us. He doesn’t like that I won’t pack up his things and shove them in the attic. But I love those memories of his boyhood.” She took a sip of wine. “Life was simpler back then.”

Jenna slid Ty a look. He shrugged.

“I saw your sewing room, Louise. And your bedroom is amazing. Did you make the spread and window coverings yourself?”

She beamed a smile. “I did. My mother taught me to sew. It’s not something I had time to do until I retired a few years ago.”

“Oh, how nice for you. What did you do before you retired?”

“I was executive assistant to the president of one of the banks. Years ago I started out in clerical work, then as a secretary. Worked my way up over the years into executive work. It was nonstop busy, and I’m glad to be out of it.”

“It sounds very exciting.”

“Oh, it was,” she said, inhaling and letting out a sigh. “But my real joy has always come from sewing. Now that I have the time to do it, I love to make things for the house. I even have friends asking me to redo some of their rooms.”

Jenna saw the excitement on Louise’s face as she talked about designing for her friends.

“Do you have your own business?”

She laughed. “No. It’s just something I do for fun.”

“You’re very good at it. You could go into the design business.”

She seemed to ponder the idea. “I could, couldn’t I? I hadn’t thought about it. It was just a hobby.” Then she waved her hand in the air. “But it’s too late for me to do something like that.”

“No, it’s not. It’s never too late to start your own business. You’re still young and you obviously have the talent and the ambition.”

“You think so?” Her eyes lit up. “I don’t know anything about starting my own business.”

“My family owns their own business. I could give you some pointers on what you’d need to do.”

Jenna and his mother spent the next couple hours—including through dinner—discussing small business ownership. Ty had expected the worst. His mom had never liked any girl he’d ever brought home. She’d been rude and unpleasant and had found something about the girl to pick apart. Then again, the last girl he’d brought home had been when he was in his early twenties and still in college. She’d wanted him to focus on school, not on women. And she’d still been bitter over the divorce.

He’d just assumed his mother would always be bitter.

She was different now. More mellow. Or maybe it was Jenna who brought out a different side to her. Jenna didn’t hang on him or put a possessive stamp on her relationship with him. She seemed genuinely interested in getting to know his mother, not trying to make his mother like her, or trying to make his mother see that she and Ty were a couple.

But that was who Jenna was. She was good with people, knew what it took to make them at ease. That’s what made Riley’s so successful. She made her customers happy, and it wasn’t just serving them drinks.

After dinner they had dessert, and Jenna told his mom all about her family.

“So you have brothers who play sports, too?”

“Yes. Mick plays football and Gavin plays baseball.”

“Did you ever play sports?”

“I played basketball and volleyball in high school. These days I only play when the family forces me into a basketball game at the house.”

His mother laughed. “I can imagine it was difficult growing up with those boys.”

“It was a challenge. But I held my own.”

“I’m sure you did. I’ll bet you can handle my son, too.”

Jenna looked at Ty and smiled. “Nothing to handle. You raised a fine son, Louise.”

His mom blinked rapidly a few times. “Thank you. I’m very proud of him.”

Uh-oh. He needed to get them out of there before the waterworks started. “Well, we need to go.”

“So soon?”

“Sorry, yeah.”

They stood and Tyler went to get their coats.

Jenna hugged his mother. “It was such a pleasure to meet you, Louise. I hope I get the opportunity to again. But you have my number. If you’re serious about getting that business started, call me.”

His mother hugged Jenna tight. “I will definitely be calling you.” She held on to Jenna’s arms. “I don’t often say this, in fact, I don’t recall ever saying this about any woman my son dated, but I’m very glad to have met you, Jenna Riley. And I hope I get to see you again.”

“Likewise.” Jenna grinned and headed out the door.

His mom pulled him into a tight hug. He bent down so she could kiss his cheek.

“I don’t know where you found this girl, son, but don’t let her go.”

TWENTY

ONE DOWN, ONE TO GO. THEY HEADED DOWNTOWN where his dad and stepmother had a condo.

“I have no idea why you were so afraid for me to meet your mother.”

He glanced over at Jenna. “I never said I was afraid.”

“You intimated that she was some maternal version of Medusa.”

“I did not.”

“It was close.”

He shrugged. “She’s changed. She used to be more uptight.”

“She’s a wonderful, warm, and friendly woman. I had a great time with her.”

“Obviously she’s gotten over her bitterness about the divorce, because believe me, I expected something completely different.”

Jenna laughed and patted his hand. “You worry too much.”

“Probably.”

“Okay, now tell me about your dad.”

“He’s a big, friendly bear of a man, who uses his—I don’t even know how to explain this—overly sociable nature to mask any sense of unease or diffuse an uncomfortable situation. That’s how it had always been. If there was stress, Sean Anderson would crack a joke to allay it. Always laugh your way out of a problem. He’ll also insult you with a smile and an easy laugh. His way of thinking is, if he’s smiling while he’s calling you a bitch or a useless asshole, then it’s okay.

“Of course it hadn’t worked so well when my mom and dad had been fighting. My mother hadn’t found Dad’s sweep-it-under-the-rug-and-laugh-it-off way of dealing with their problems a good solution.”

“Hmmm, I imagine not,” Jenna said.

“But I think he’s learned a thing or two over the years, because my stepmother, Gloria, is great. They’ve been married for ten years now.”

“Do you like her?”

“Yeah, I do. A lot. She never tried to be my mother, only my friend. She knew what the boundaries were, but she had always been there for me if I needed her. And she doesn’t put up with my father’s bullshit, which I admire.”

“Sounds like they make a good match.”

“They do. But I have to warn you, you just can’t prepare yourself for my dad because you have no idea what’s going to fly out of his mouth.”

“Uh, okay.” She had no idea what that meant.

They took the elevator up to the sixteenth floor of the condominium complex. Tyler laid his hand on the small of Jenna’s back as he rang the bell.

Jenna’s jaw dropped as the door was opened by an older version of Ty. While his mother was petite, this man was tall, with wavy dark hair that held a peppering of white throughout and at the sideburns.

“Hey, boy, come on in.”

He pulled Tyler into a hug, and Jenna noted they were about the same size, though Tyler was maybe an inch or so taller than his dad. Sean was broader, not as lean and muscled as Ty. As she walked in, she couldn’t get over how similar they looked. Sean Anderson was strikingly good looking, still in great shape, and his wife, Gloria, was a knockout of a redhead with a curvaceous figure and bubbly smile.

Gloria hurried over to give Tyler a kiss and a hug and enthusiastically shake Jenna’s hand.

“We’re so excited to meet you, Jenna,” Gloria said. “Please come on in.”

The condo was modern, with white-and-black furniture and a piano that sat above the sunken living room. The floor-to-ceiling windows offered a breathtaking view of the city and the lake.

They took a seat at a table near the windows.

“I thought since you’re not a native to our city, you might enjoy the night view,” Gloria said. “Especially since we’re lucky enough to have a clear night tonight.”

“It’s beautiful,” Jenna said. “You must love it here.”

“We do. We take walks by the lake in the summer. There’s a gym downstairs that we use in the winter. Have to stay active, don’t we, boy?” his dad said.

“You bet,” Ty said.

His dad patted him on the back. “Of course this one stays active on the ice. Couldn’t be prouder of you, even though you beat my team the other night.”

“Sean,” Gloria said, shaking her head before turning to Jenna. “I don’t know how he can root for the other team when his own son plays for the Ice.”

“Hey, I’ve always rooted for the local boys. Besides, Tyler gets traded a lot. How the hell am I supposed to keep up with what team he’s playing for this year? I have my loyalties. Tyler understands that, don’t you?”

“Sure I do, Dad. But I wouldn’t bet against me.”

Jenna laughed.

“That’s what I keep telling him,” Gloria said. “My money’s on you, honey.”