“Hey,” Thaddeus said, sounding stern. “You just ignore me? Is that where we are?”

Lela laughed and hugged him. “Sorry. I got carried away. You brought us a girl.”

“She’s a friend, not a sacrifice.”

Freddy rolled his eyes at them, then held out his hand to Unity. “I’m Freddy. Obviously the crazy woman is my wife. She can be intense. Feel free to ignore any questions you don’t want to answer.”

She and Freddy were about the same height. He had dark hair and dark eyes, and there was an air of kindness about him. Unity liked him instantly.

“It’s nice to meet you, too.” She turned to Lela. “Both of you. Thank you for having me over to dinner.”

“Anytime,” Lela said, staring at Thaddeus pointedly. “I was thinking margaritas would help get the evening started. On the rocks or frozen?”

Unity wasn’t much for drinking hard liquor. She and Ellen preferred ice cream and cookies on their girls’ nights in. “Ah, on the rocks?”

“I’ll have a beer,” Thaddeus said easily, taking Unity’s hand and pulling her down next to him on the sectional.

The U-shaped sofa had seating for maybe fifteen people. There was a square coffee table and a movie-theater-size TV on the wall.

“I sent the kids away,” Lela said as she poured different liquids into a martini shaker. “It’ll be quieter that way.”

“Thaddeus said you have three children,” Unity said.

Freddy handed Thaddeus a beer, then sat on the sofa. “Two girls and a boy. They’re a handful, but Lela does great with them.”

Lela brought over the margaritas, then joined her husband. She raised her glass. “Welcome, Unity.”

Unity raised her glass, thinking dinner with his friends was a much bigger deal than she’d realized. Her mind returned to the question she’d asked in the car—why her? Only there wasn’t time to consider it—not with Lela peppering her with questions.

“So you live in Willowbrook?” Lela asked.

“Yes. I grew up there. I have a small handyman business.”

Lela raised her eyebrows and looked at Thaddeus. “An entrepreneur. You have that in common.”

He leaned toward Unity. “She’s not subtle. Just go with it.”

“Hey, I heard that,” Lela protested, then leaned against Freddy and sighed. “Don’t they look good together?”

Fortunately for Unity, the cocktail hour of conversation quickly shifted to more general topics. Freddy and Thaddeus talked a little business, which Unity enjoyed. She didn’t know much about what he did and liked hearing about different projects.

Thirty minutes into her visit, Lela invited her into the kitchen to “help with dinner.”

Unity had a feeling that her presence was more about being grilled than offering assistance, but she didn’t mind. Lela seemed enthused, not mean-spirited.

“I hope you like Mexican food,” Lela said, sliding a 9-by-12 dish of enchiladas into the oven.

“I do. Very much.”

“Good, it’s a family recipe and I had them ready for tonight.”

They sat at the large island.