His eyes narrowed slightly. With thick dark brown hair, classic good looks, a tall, broad-shouldered frame, and most damningly of all, the name Clarke, Superman references had followed him his entire life. He liked them about as much as she did the name Dree.

“Strategic amount of stubble,” he repeated. “What, you think we men can train our facial hair to grow just so?”

“Well, gosh, I don’t know,” she mused. “Maybe I’ll find out after we’re married.”

“Ah.” He dragged the towel over his face. “That.”

“Yeah. That. Again?”

“You say it like it happens all the time,” he said, standing. “This is only the second time.”

“Third. And that’s three fake engagements too many. What was it this time, another debutante hoping that claiming her baby is yours will lure you down the aisle?”

It was one of her least favorite parts about being friends with a man of Clarke’s considerable charms. He liked women, and they really liked him. In fact, Audrey wouldn’t be surprised if there were entire book clubs and wine nights dedicated to figuring out how to get a ring on his finger. Mrs. Clarke West was a highly coveted position, and the more daring prospects had tried to trick him into it over the years.

Clarke’s default escape plan was to announce he was already engaged. To Audrey.

“I don’t date debutantes,” he grumbled. “I’m not sure I even know what a debutante is.”

“Still waiting for the explanation.”

He sighed and faced her. “Elizabeth’s back in town.”

It took Audrey a moment to track. “As in your ex? Superstar lawyer who moved to DC?”

Clarke rolled his neck to loosen it. “Linda somehow talked me into meeting her for lunch on Friday. Except when I showed up at the restaurant, guess who was waiting at the table.”

“I take it not your mother?”

He shrugged, looking for all the world like he didn’t care that his mother had tricked him into a lunch with his ex-girlfriend. But Audrey knew him well. Knew from the tight line of his jaw that it bugged him. Everything about his mother bugged him. Hence why she was Linda and rarely Mom.

“I swear, sometimes I think Linda liked Elizabeth better than I did,” he grumbled.

Audrey smiled. “Of course she did. Elizabeth is a mini her.”

Clarke’s mother had always been a bit of a mystery to Audrey. Somehow the woman managed to be a full-time interfering mother, a full-time controlling wife, and a full-time chief judge of something or other for the state of New York.