Page 27 of Inferno

“Well, I don’t know about you, but I love looking out the window every morning and seeing those beautiful mountains.Makes me feel like I’m in God’s country.And the parks and lakes are amazing—”

“You sound like a tour guide,” Manning mocked.

Stan laughed. “The point is,Coronado’s not as bad as you think. Even your brothers are starting to enjoy living here, andtheyhated leaving Atlanta as much as you did. Not only that, but your mother loves her job, and she’s doing good things for your school district and the community. So as much as you want us to go back to Atlanta,it’snot gonna happen. The sooner you accept that and move on, the better off you’ll be.”

Manning was silent, staring broodingly at the floor.

After several moments, Stan decided to change the subject before Manning turned the tables on him and asked about the phone conversation he’d overheard that morning.

“So,” Stan ventured, “is she pretty?”

His son gave him a blank look.“Who?”

Stan smirked. “The girl you chivalrously defended and got suspended for. Is she pretty?”

Manning shrugged. “I dunno.”

“What do you mean?”

“I can’t really tell if she’s pretty. I guess she could be, but she wears these big ugly glasses that practically cover her whole face. And the way she dresses…” Manning shook his head with a pained grimace.

Stan chuckled wryly. “So I take it she’s no Caitlyn.”

“No way,” Manning agreed with a rueful laugh. “Not even close.”

“But you came to her rescue anyway.”

“Of course.Taylor’s a nice girl, really smart and funny. She doesn’t deserve to get picked on by assho— jerks like Rory.”

“So if it happens again—if you see Rory or another bully picking on Taylor—what’re you gonna do?”

Manning eyed him darkly. “Please don’t ask me that question, Dad.”

Stan chuckled, reluctantly impressed by Manning’s overprotectiveness toward Taylor. Could he really fault the boy? Wasn’t he raising his sons to be gentlemen who cherished and protected women and looked out for underdogs? Under the circumstances, could he punish Manning for defending Taylor whenhewould have done the exact same thing?

Stan scratched his ear, unnerved by the realization that he bore partial responsibility for his son’s behavior. Damn, he hated it when that happened.

“Speaking of Caitlyn,” he said gruffly, “you need to watch out for that one.”

Manning shot him a puzzled look. “Why?”

“The girl may be beautiful, but she’s trouble with a capitalT.”

“How do you know?”

Stan smiled wryly. “I’ve been around long enough to know a troublemaker when I see one, son. Take my word for it.”

Manning sniffed. “I’m not worried about Caitlyn,” he declared with a dismissive flap of his hand. “I can handle her.”

“Oh, really?”Stan challenged.“Because you’ve got all this experience with women, right?”

Manning grinned weakly.“Of course.”

Stan let out a bark of laughter.“Boy, who you trying to fool?You’re still wet behind the ears!”

“No, I’m not,” Manning protested.

“Yes, you are. I knowgoodand damn well you’re still a virgin. And when that’s no longer the case, I’ll know just like your uncle knew when Michael lost his virginity last summer. Sooner or later, you boys will learn that you can’t get anything past us.”