Page 48 of Good Girls Don't Kiss and Tell (Rock Canyon, Idaho 7)

She saw her dad first, pulling a wheelie suitcase and carrying a small duffel bag. He was barely five eight, but compared to her and her mom, that was tall. He had a mustard-colored jacket thrown over one arm, and perched on his balding head was a camo hat. Gracie noted his goatee was peppered with more gray than it had been over the summer.

Her mom came into view, wearing jeans and a bright green sweater. Her blonde hair had faded or maybe she’d lightened it. Seeing her though was like a magnetic pull, and Gracie started walking quickly. No matter how many times they fought or annoyed each other, she loved her mom.

“Mom! Dad!” She wrapped her arms around her mom first, noting that she seemed a little shorter, and kissed her cheek. “I missed you.”

Her mom hugged her hard. “Oh, my baby. Let me see you.”

She pulled away and cupped Gracie’s cheeks, turning her face from side to side as if she was five.

“Still the prettiest girl in the world.”

“I get it from my mama,” Gracie teased.

“Hear! Hear!” her dad said, stealing her for a hug. She inhaled, smiling as she laid her cheek against her dad’s chest. The smell of cedar and spice surrounded her, reminding her of her childhood. When she’d been upset, or needed a little advice, she’d come to this man, and he’d never steered her wrong.

“Hey, Daddy.”

“Missed you, pumpkin.”

They pulled apart, and she took the suitcase from him, slipping her arm through her mom’s. “How was the flight?”

“Bumpy. Your mother gripped my arm so tight, I don’t think I’ll ever get the feeling back.”

Her mother glared at him. “Oh, shut up. You know I hate turbulence.”

“No one likes turbulence, honey,” he said.

“Well, I thought we’d grab your bags, maybe some lunch, and get on the road. There’s a storm rolling in from the south, and I want to get home before it gets windy.”

“I can drive,” her dad said.

Gracie almost sighed aloud. “Dad, I didn’t say I couldn’t drive. I just don’t want to do it in a storm.”

“I won’t be able to relax with you behind the wheel, anyway.”

She should have known it was going to happen. She wouldn’t exactly call her dad sexist, but in all her life, she couldn’t remember one trip where he’d let her or her mother drive while he sat shotgun.

“Sure, that’s fine. It will give me and Mom a chance to catch up.”

“You two talk all the time. What more could you possibly have to say to each other?”

They stepped off the escalator and headed down toward the baggage claim.

“Well, for one thing, she could tell us about this boyfriend she’s been so secretive about.”

And her it was. “I haven’t been secretive. I just didn’t want to jinx it, but it turns out, I was right. That guy wasn’t right for me.”

Her mom actually patted her hand. “It’s okay, sweetheart. I had a feeling this was going to happen.”

Gracie resisted the irritation bubbling up her throat, threatening to say something sarcastic.

“That’s why we’re going to have dinner this weekend with the son of your father’s old partner. He’s an accountant at a successful firm, handsome—”

“I appreciate the set-up, but I’m still seeing someone, just not the same one I was dating in November.”

Her mother grew quiet, and Gracie could feel the disappointment radiating from her. “I see. Well, are you going to at least tell me this one’s name?”

The baggage claim came to life, and Gracie bit the bullet. “Eric Henderson.”