Victoria had tried, in vain, to push him out of her mind during her train ride to Chicago. As much as she wanted his company, it was too risky for those worlds to collide. A quick visit with her parents was all she wanted. In and out, no muss no fuss. Had she brought John, it would have been a mess. Victoria was certain of it. Katherine would have made a big deal over his long hair, his tattoos, and the fact that he didn’t make as much money as the lawyer. After all, her life was fine before she met him, she didn’t forget things and she made her deadlines. She didn’t have to depend on anyone to help her finish a task. She needed to return to an orderly existence where things made sense and she was in control. John was an obvious threat to that existence. Victoria should have known he was trouble when he’d first walked into her office.

So why did she stare longingly at her phone, expecting him to call?

She picked up the phone and began typing a message to him. And then she erased it. No, no, no, just stop. She set the phone back on the table and heaved a shallow sigh. Out of the corner of her eye, a flash of Katherine’s ruby-red skirts came gliding to her table. Her mother wore a bright smile, but her eyes were judgmental.

“Victoria, what are you doing just sitting there?”

“Breathing, ma’am.”

“Breathe on your feet and make the rounds with me,” Katherine said as she took her by the elbow. She led Victoria to the first clump of partygoers she could spot. Victoria managed to snag a glass of champagne from a passing waiter before being thrown into the group. “Colonel Sheldon, Theresa, you remember my daughter, Victoria. The professor?”

An older man in full evening dress uniform inclined his head at her and smiled beneath a sandy blonde mustache. “Of course we remember Dr. Reese,” he said with a chuckle. “I’ve quarterdecked her on more than one occasion. Fastest pushups I ever saw from a ten-year-old girl.”

They all laughed, Katherine the loudest of them all. “Oh, Lionel. Do you realize how much work I had to do to undo all of the rough and tumble?”

They all laughed some more, while Victoria covertly finished her champagne. “Built up her arms didn’t it?” the Colonel said as he gripped Victoria’s biceps. “You couldn’t ask for more out of a Marine daughter.”

Victoria smiled sweetly at Colonel Sheldon. She’d been a fan of his since their family was stationed at Quantico. When Archie took her to base, Colonel Sheldon always had candy waiting for her. She just had to win foot races for it. “Thank you, sir.”