Rainshadow Road (Friday Harbor #2)(52)

Lucy relaxed on the sofa and let her gaze travel around the beautifully finished room, the gleaming black walnut floors, the Persian rug woven in cream and sage and amber, the meticulously restored cornice molding at the seams of the walls and ceiling.

Picking up her cell phone, she dialed her parents’ number, and her mother answered.

No matter how Lucy tried to underplay the story, her mother sensed the truth, immediately launching into a state of excited worry.

“I’m coming. I’ll be on the next plane.”

“Mom, no. There’s nothing you could do.”

“That doesn’t matter. I want to see you.”

“You don’t have to. I’m being well taken care of, I’m totally comfortable, and—”

“Who’s taking care of you? Justine?”

“Actually, I’m staying with … a friend.”

“Who?”

“His name is Sam Nolan.”

After a perplexed silence, her mother said, “You’ve never mentioned him before. How long have you known him?”

“Not a long time, but—”

“You’re staying in his apartment?”

“Not an apartment. He’s got a house.”

“Is he married?”

Lucy held the cell phone away from her face and looked at it in disbelief. Bringing it back to her mouth, she said, “Of course not. I don’t go out with other people’s boyfriends or husbands.” Unable to resist, she added, “That’s your other daughter.”

“Lucy,” her mother said on a note of gentle scolding. “Dad and I were planning to visit Alice next week—I’m going to change our flights so we can come out earlier.”

“You don’t have to. In fact, I’d really rather you not—”

“I want to meet this Sam person.”

Lucy struggled to suppress a laugh at the way her mother had phrased it. “He’s a perfectly nice guy. In fact, he’s your dream son-in-law.”

“You’ve gotten that serious with him?”

“No … God, no … I’m not even going out with him. I just meant he’s the type of guy you’ve always wanted me to go out with. He owns a vineyard. He grows organic grapes and makes wine, and he’s helping to raise his orphaned niece.” As she spoke, Lucy looked out the windows behind the settee. She located Sam’s strapping form amid a group of men working with spades. Deferring to the heat of the day, a couple of them had removed their shirts. Sam was fiddling with a gas-powered tiller, doing something with the start cord. He paused to draw a forearm across his sweaty brow.

“Is he divorced?” her mother asked.

“Never married.”

“He sounds too perfect. What’s wrong with him?”

“Commitment avoidant.”

“Oh, they’re all that way until you make them see the light.”

“This isn’t your run-of-the-mill fear of commitment. It’s a lifestyle choice.”

“Are his parents still in the picture?”

“They’ve both passed away.”

“Good, there’ll be no competition on holidays.”

“Mom!”

“I was joking,” her mother protested.

“I wonder,” Lucy said. Often with her mother, it seemed they were having two different conversations. Lucy suspected at least half of what she said had gone completely unnoticed. She continued to focus on Sam, who was pressing the primer button on the tiller to pump some gas into the motor. “You know, Mom, you’re asking a lot more questions about the guy I’m staying with than you are about my injuries.”

“Tell me what he looks like. Is he clean-shaven? Tall or short? How old is he?”

“He’s—” Lucy broke off, her mind going blank as Sam stripped off his T-shirt, blotted his face and the back of his neck with it, and tossed it to the ground. He had an amazing body, lean and long, muscle stacked on muscle.

“What is it?” came her mother’s voice. “Is everything all right?”

“Everything’s fine,” Lucy managed to say, watching the tanned surface of Sam’s back ripple as he bent to pull the start cord of the tiller repeatedly. Having no luck at getting the motor to turn over, he released the handle and talked with one of the crew, his posture loose-limbed, hands braced on lean denim-clad hips. “Sorry, lost my train of thought. I’m still on pain meds.”

“We were talking about Sam,” her mother prompted.

“Oh. Yes. He’s … clean-cut. A little bit of a science geek.” With the body of a Greek god.

“That sounds like a nice change from the last one.”

“You mean Kevin, your future son-in-law?”

Her mother made a disgruntled sound. “That remains to be seen. It’s one of the reasons I’m coming up to see Alice. I have the feeling the situation isn’t as cut-and-dried as she claims.”

“Why—” Lucy stopped as she heard a strange, unearthly baying. She sat up a little and glanced around the room. Renfield was nowhere to be seen. A metallic clank, like a saucepan or a colander being dropped, was followed by whimpering and another prolonged howl. “Uh-oh. Mom, I have to hang up. I think the dog’s gotten into something.”