Page 137 of Dangerous Encore

"Only five minutes?"Iask.

"You think I want to let you eat all those meatballs?" Dadteases.

He has no idea I'm wracked withanxiety.

He's still wearing those rose-tinted glasses. No matter what, he sees the world as a beautiful, happyplace.

No matter what Mom does, he sees her as his beautiful, perfect wife. It's almostsweet.

No,itis.

Just not when I need someone to listen. Not when I need someone on my side. Not when I need him tounderstand.

I squeeze Mal's hand. I'm here for a reason. Maybe that reason is fuzzy, but I know it's not dwelling in all the things Mom did toupsetme.

Mal squeezes back. He keeps his body close to mine as he follows meinside.

The house is the same cozy two bedroom. The TV is pressed up against the wall. The couch is covered in floralpillows.

There's Mom, at the table, in a bright blue and teal fit and flare dress. It hugs her ample chest (I did not inherit her curvy figure) and falls just below her knees. It's pretty, fancy, expensive. As are her designer black heels. And her carefully coiffed, immaculately coloredchestnuthair.

She turns to us with a wide smile. It's the same as the last time I saw her. Her lips are a bright red. The same red asalways.

But hersmile…

There's something about it, something I can'texplain.

Or maybe I'm imaginingthings.

If I'm here to give her another chance, I have to do that. I have to wipe the slate clean.Cleanish.

But that's it. One chance. If she pulls any more bullshit,I'mdone.

"Lacey, sweetie. You look so pretty." She moves in for a tight hug. "I missed you so much. It's beentoolong."

I say nothing. I've missed her, but it's been… mostly, it'sbeengood.

She pulls back to hug Mal hello. "It's nice to finally meet you, Malcolm. I guess Lacey doesn't realize that mothers need to meet their daughters' boyfriends. We need to be sure our girls are withgoodmen."

Mal turns to me and cocks a brow. He turns back to Mom. "It's nice to meetyou,too."

She looks to my ring then she smiles at him. "Look how gorgeous that ring is. And you surprised herwithit?"

Henods.

"That takes a smart man. Did you figure it out yourself or ask for help?"Momasks.

"I've learned it's a good idea to ask for help when you need it." Mal's eyes meet mine. They screamlike right now. You can tell me if youneedout.

Not yet. It's strange being home. There are a million memories here. Some good. Some bad. Some that invite extreme self-loathing. I put up with a lot of shit from Mom for alongtime.

"Lacey, sweetie. Help me with drinks." Mom looks to Mal. "You can help me set thetable."

Mal nods and moves into thekitchen.

Ifollow.

She's trying to charm him. Or maybe he's charming her. I'm not sure. It's not like Mal has to try to impress. He has that demanding, stoic presence. It'sirresistible.