She laughed, and the sound filled me with happiness. “No, not that, but since you mentioned it…”
I smiled. “No.”
Finishing off the cream puff, she said, “I’ve been thinking about that young man.”
“Which one?”
“The one who was here the other day.” She waved her hands—she was a hand talker. “You know, the one whose mother lost her job…”
“Jarvis.”
“Right. Jarvis.”
“What about him?” I asked.
“If it’s not too meddlesome, I’d like to help his mother find a job. I have friends who are always hiring. Surely, we can find something to help them out.”
“I don’t think it’s meddlesome at all, but she already found a job.”
“Wonderful! Where?”
“At the CFC office.”
Mum tipped her head. “Oh?”
I confessed to asking Elliman to pull some strings now that he was back on the job. Sue me.
“You get your meddling skills from me,” she said. “You big softie.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
“Now, about this solarium,” she said. “We could easily add it to the east side of the—”
“No.”
Laughing, she walked off, accepting Dad’s invitation for another dance.
I was about to join Sean and the dogs when I was shanghaied by Dovie.
“I’ve only mostly forgiven you,” she said, her color high from dancing. Her green eyes were full of life, and her long snow-white hair cascaded down her back in beautiful waves. “After all, you were only trying to protect Preston…”
She was going somewhere with this. I needed to head her off at the pass. “Did you hear how I fought off that crazed killer in the Shaw’s parking lot with only a can of whipped cream?”
Thin slivers of silvery eyebrows rose. “You’re conveniently forgetting the tire iron, LucyD.”
“Post-traumatic stress.”
“Be that as it may,” she said, “I feel as though there’s only one way of making this up to me.”
I sighed. I should have seen this coming. “Don’t you have enough babies in your life? You have Lucifer and Ava…”
“Lucifer?”
“Preston and Cutter’s son.”
She looked flustered for a second, then snapped out of it. “Don’t try to distract me. Besides, I’ll barely see Ava now that Em is moving in with Aiden.”
They’d made the announcement earlier, and also moved up the timeline of their wedding. She was going to take a semester off until everything settled down a bit. She and Aiden both wanted to forge a new kind of normal for Ava. It was strange how life worked out sometimes. A year ago Em had been working as a doctor and engaged to another man…
“Still, that’s two whole babies,” I said.
She cupped my chin and smiled sappily. “But they’re not your babies, Lucy.”
I looked at Sean, caught his eye. His head wound had healed nicely, and his hair had grown in enough to cover the scar. He was no longer a mess, but he was still gorgeous. And mine. “Maybe. Someday.”
“Soon,” she pressed. “You know what they say. New house, new baby.”
“I don’t think that counts for renovations.”
“I think it does,” she said stubbornly.
Desperate for rescue I looked around and found Sean still watching me. I mouthed, “Help me.”
With a smile on his face, he quickly strode over and grabbed my hand. He whirled me away from Dovie and onto the dance floor.
Dovie yelled, “We’ll revisit this conversation, LucyD!”
Sean said, “Do I want to know?”
“Babies.”
“Ah. I should have known that.”
“Yes. Dovie’s nothing if not consistent.”
“Strangely enough, it doesn’t bother me anymore,” he said.
“Dovie?”
Laughing, he said, “The thought of babies.”
“Me, either.” Heaven help us if Dovie found out.
Stars twinkled as Sean pulled me close. Holding me tightly, he led me around the dance floor. I’d skipped the boot altogether tonight and opted for flats but still felt clumsy and awkward as Frankie Valli’s “Can’t Take My Eyes Off Of You” came on.
I immediately glanced over at my father, the deejay. He winked at me, showing a rare glimpse of his tender side. He knew I loved this song. In fact, I often thought if Sean and I got married that it should be played for our first dance.
If. If we got married…
No, no, no. No if.
When.
I was going to start thinking positively.
As Frankie sang about love finally arriving at long last, I wanted to sing along at the top of my lungs but didn’t want to scare anyone.
“How’re you doing, Ms. Valentine?” Sean asked, the back of his hand sliding across my cheek.
“I’m…good.” I looked into his eyes. Smiled. “Really good.”
“I am, too.”
After lifting me off the ground to spin me around, he dipped me low and kissed me. Em let out a wolf whistle, and everyone clapped.
The whistle distracted the big dogs, allowing Thoreau to snatch the rubber chicken and take off. Rufus and Scout gave chase—straight under the food table, knocking it over.
Inside the house, Preston yelled, “Hot damn!”
Marisol cursed Jeremy a blue streak.
Even as Mum rushed to clean up the dogs’ mess, she was saying something about a solarium to Dovie.
I glanced around, suddenly filled with a happiness so powerful it almost brought me to tears. This might be a nuthouse, but it was my nuthouse, and I loved every single looney tune in it.
OTHER BOOKS BY HEATHER WEBBER
The Lucy Valentine Novels
Truly, Madly
Deeply, Desperately
Absolutely, Positively
Perfectly Matched
Undeniably Yours
The Nina Quinn Mystery Series
A Hoe Lot of Trouble
Trouble in Spades
Digging up Trouble
Trouble in Bloom
Weeding out Trouble
Trouble Under the Tree
The Root of all Trouble
WRITING AS HEATHER BLAKE
The Wishcraft Mystery Series
It Takes a Witch
A Witch Before Dying
The Good, the Bad, and the Witchy
The Goodbye Witch
The Magic Potion Series
A Potion to Die For
WEBSITES
www.heatherwebber.com
www.heatherblakebooks.com
FACEBOOK
www.facebook.com/heatherwebberbooks
www.facebook.com/heatherblakebooks
TWITTER
@booksbyheather
Table of Contents
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
OTHER BOOKS BY HEATHER WEBBER
Undeniably Yours Page 24