Covet - Eve Vaughn Page 0,19

guys have to go?” Kenny piped in before she could answer.

“Are you two leaving?” I hadn’t heard my mother joining us, but there she was next to me with her arms, folded and lips pursed. “I suppose you want to leave?” She leveled what sounded like an accusation at Frankie.

For reasons I didn’t understand, my mother didn’t seem to take to Frankie as I thought she would although she’d never been outright nasty. But my mother’s opinion of Frankie didn’t matter to me because I knew she was just being her overbearing self. I figured she’d come around eventually.

“Actually, it was my idea. It’s getting late, and I have an early meeting. Frankie has to work as well.”

My mom’s lips momentarily thinned before they curled into a tight smile. “Well, in that case, I’m sure glad the two of you were able to make time for us. I know how new romance can be. You tend to forget about everything and everyone, even your dear old mom.” She then turned to my brother. “At least I’ll always have you, Kenny.”

I was used to her subtle barbs when she compared me to my brother. She’d made no secret of the fact of how much she hated that I had gone away for school and made my career far away from home until a few years ago when I started a firm of my own. I noticed how Kenny’s face tightened this time at my mother’s words, and it was clear he wasn’t too fond of them either. The earlier wave of jealousy I’d felt for him was replaced by pity. I turned my head away so he wouldn’t see it.

“Yes, well, I’ll be in touch.” I leaned over and gave my mother a perfunctory kiss on the cheek.

“Hmm. You say that, but then I won’t hear from you for days.” My mother then turned her a slightly narrowed-eyed stare in Frankie’s direction. “I trust the meal was to your liking?”

“Everything was delicious. Thank you for having me.”

“Well, Nicholas insisted he bring you, so…. Anyway, thanks for coming.”

I had to give Frankie credit for not flinching at my mother’s backhanded attempt at hospitality.

I was damned proud of her when she smiled. “Thank you for having me. It was a pleasure.” It was spoken without an ounce of irony. It pleased me because God knows if there was anyone who knew how to get under someone’s skin it was my mother.

That tight smile remained on my mother’s face until we were out the door, and I finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Once in the car we rode in silence for a while, my eyes on the road, and all I could think about was getting the woman next to me back to her place to do what I’d been dying to all night. When she placed her hand on my knee, I briefly glanced in her direction before returning my attention to the highway. “You know, I wouldn’t have minded sticking around a little longer. We didn’t have leave.”

“I didn’t want to subject you to my mother any longer. Besides, I wanted to get you alone.” I took her hand and brought it to my lips to give it a quick kiss.

“Your mom isn’t so bad. A lot of mothers are protective of their sons.”

“One of the things I love about you is that you always seem to find the positive side to everything and everyone, but my mother takes it to another level.”

“She’s fine. Besides, I was having an interesting conversation with Kenny.”

It was then I remembered how intimate their conversation had seemed. “Oh, and what exactly were the two of you talking about?”

“Oh, nothing, maybe I…Maybe I shouldn’t say anything.”

“Or maybe you should. We’re not keeping secrets from each other, are we?”

“It’s not that. It’s just that I have some concerns.”

“Oh?”

“Kenny’s condition lately. It seems to be getting worse, and the new meds he’s on aren’t helping. He told your mother about it, but she says it for the best. She refuses to take him to another doctor. I mean if the meds he’s taking are making him feel bad, I don’t think it would hurt to try something else. Maybe you could talk to you mother about it.”

“What exactly are you implying?”

“I’m not implying anything. I’m just making a suggestion that Kenny might need to try new meds. He says the ones he’s taking is making him feel awful. He tried to tell your mother, but she says to stick