Linda had reseated herself in the middle of the sofa. This left Ethan and Dallas sitting separately in the opposing chairs.
He raised his glass in the air. “To new friends.”
With a dry smile, his mother raised hers.
Dallas held her glass up. “To friends,” she said, feeling like she stood outside a wolf den.
After taking a sip of her Manhattan, Linda asked, “So tell me, what do you do at my son’s law firm?”
Ethan said, “Mother, I’ve already—”
“Let her talk, son. We’re getting to know each other.”
The predatory look in those blue eyes was all the warning Dallas needed. For some reason, this mama was on the warpath. She didn’t like Dallas, and she was going to pull out everything in her arsenal to turn her boy against her. “I’m a legal assistant. I work for two of the attorneys in the office. Ethan isn’t one of them.”
Linda frowned. “Oh, I’m sorry. You can’t make much money in that position. Ethan tells me that you have a ... child? Out of wedlock? It must be hard to support a child with your salary.” Laying her hand on her cheek, as if just remembering something, she said, “Wait, he also mentioned that you work at a bar? That must help out some. I’m sure the men give you big tips.”
Dallas stood. “Linda, I’m not quite sure why you’ve decided you dislike me. I had so been looking forward to meeting you, and I adore your son. Just to be clear, I do a wonderful job rearing my daughter on the income I receive from the firm. The money I make from the club goes into an education account. I plan on completing my law degree.” She turned to Ethan, who was also standing. “Would you please show me to the bathroom?”
He walked her through the house, apologizing profusely for his mother’s behavior. “I’ve never seen her act like this. I don’t know what’s happened to her.”
“Have you ever dated outside her”—she raised her hands in an air quote—“social group?”
He frowned.
“I thought not. That’s what’s going on. She thinks I’m a gold digger.”
“What the hell? You’re my choice. Mother has no say in it. She’s never behaved so rudely in her life.”
Dallas smiled ruefully. “She’s probably never felt so threatened in her life. A child born out of wedlock? In her family? Her son, dating some poor, dumb hick?”
Ethan opened his mouth in shock. “My God, Dallas. You are not!”
“I know that. But she doesn’t. I’d like to go home.”
“No, Dallas. Please stay. It’s important to me. Mother will behave, I promise. Take a few minutes and join us. Everything will be fine.”
Once in the lavish bathroom, Dallas sat on the cushioned bench in front of the vanity. What in holy hell had she gotten herself into? Was the woman crazy? What kind of person talked to people like that? Dallas couldn’t imagine her mother ever speaking to anyone that way. But then, her mother only cared that her daughter marry a man she loved. Linda obviously had different criterion for who she wanted her son to marry.
Dallas didn’t need to use the restroom. She had just wanted to get as far away from Linda as possible. Leaning into the mirror, she applied more lipstick. Going back out there would be hell. She stared at her reflection and narrowed her eyes. Head up, shoulders back. Ready to go.
As Dallas entered the room, Linda rose and rushed toward her. “Dallas, please forgive me, my dear. Let’s have a lovely dinner, shall we?”
Oh, how this woman loved her son. Her plastic smile was a mile from her eyes, but she would please Ethan. And, so would Dallas. “Oh, I’m so looking forward to it. Ethan said you’re a fabulous cook.”
Linda described what was on the menu as Ethan freshened Dallas’s drink. When he came back, he asked, “Mother, do you mind moving to my chair? I’d like to share the sofa with Dallas.”
With a hint of the predator, Linda smiled. “Of course not, dear.”
Ethan held out his hand to Dallas and pulled her in close to him as they sat down. Settling his arm around her shoulders, he asked her, “So what are, um, Piper, and the nanny doing tonight?”
At the mention of her daughter, Dallas smiled. “They’re picking up dinner at McDonald’s and going to the park. Piper likes playing there more than at the McDonald’s playscape now.”
Ethan glanced at Linda. “I think I told you, Mother, Piper is three years old.”
She took a long drink of her Manhattan and smiled stiffly. “They’re so adorable at that age.”
He asked his mother to tell them about her most recent charity work. By the time she finished, mercifully, it was time for dinner.
Though the food was wonderful, Dallas’s stomach was balled in a knot. She managed a few bites of everything, as Linda’s avid gaze examined every forkful she took. Ethan valiantly kept the conversation going but Dallas couldn’t remember spending a more miserable evening.
As they finished dinner, Linda raised her wine glass. “Shall we go to the living room for drinks?”
Ethan glanced at Dallas and said, “Actually, Mother, I promised Dallas that I wouldn’t keep her out. We never stay too late on work nights. I’ll just call the car.”
Linda rolled her eyes. “Of course, you don’t. And you always see each other on week nights because she works at ... the bar ... on the weekends.”
“Mother!”
Carrying her nearly empty second glass of wine, Linda left the room.
Uncharitably, Dallas figured it was most likely to make her fourth Manhattan.
Ethan shook his head. “My God, I don’t know what to say. I may have her tested for dementia. Seriously.”
Suddenly, Dallas wanted to laugh. The woman was ridiculous. And even though it hurt, Ethan didn’t fall for it.
He clasped her hand. “Grab your wine, and we’ll go out on the patio.”
Ethan called the driver as Dallas gazed around in the last of the evening light. A lovely, lighted infinity pool with two
