“Oh now, Justine,” Willy B murmured as Ryder scowled.

“I am not.”

“Was it someone who just looked like you kissing her out in the lot yesterday?”

“That was just . . . nothing.”

“It looked like something to Mina Bowers, who was driving by, and who told Carolee, who told me.”

He’d known it would get around, but he hadn’t expected it to get around to his mother so quickly. “People should mind their own business.”

“Well, that never happens,” Justine said cheerfully. “And oddly enough I heard firsthand from Chrissy Abbot, who was walking her dog, the two of you had another ‘just nothing’ earlier. A little digging and I found out the man in the fancy suit who was here at the time was that Jonathan Wickham.”

“Yeah, he came by to try to steal her back for his hotel, and try to talk her into sleeping with him again.”

“I thought he got married,” Willy B began.

“Oh, Willy B, don’t be so naive. That bastard,” Justine said, with considerable heat. “Why do I hear about you kissing Hope and not knocking that bastard on his ass?”

Ryder’s smile covered his face, and came straight from the heart. “I love you, Mom. Seriously.”

“That’s not an answer.”

“Because I didn’t know until he was out of range. She set him straight.”

“I’d expect no less. If that son of a bitch shows his face around here again, I want you to kick him right off our property. Or call me and I’ll do it myself. I’d like to do it. I should go in and talk to her.”

“She’s got people in there.”

“I’ll talk to her tomorrow then.” She took two long breaths to calm down. “If you want to hit on her and not have people talk about it, do it in private.”

“I’m not hitting on her.”

“If you’re not, I’m disappointed in you. Meanwhile, you go on and clean up, get some rest. I’ll talk to you later. And, Ry, it’s good work here. You can see it already.”

She could, he thought as they left. She always could see. Sometimes more than was comfortable.

“Hitting on her. Jesus. Disappointed if I’m not. You just can’t figure women, even mothers. Maybe especially mothers. Come on, Dumbass, let’s go take a shower.”

He knew the word, wiggled in anticipation, trotting out as Ryder followed.

After he locked up, he turned and saw Hope, with another pie plate, crossing to his truck.

Why the hell were they always meeting up in the damn parking lot?

“You just missed my mother and Willy B.”

“Oh. I wish they’d come in.”

“I thought you had people in there.”

“I do.” She gestured at the two cars in the lot beside hers and Carolee’s. “And I bet they’d have loved to meet her. Your pie.”

“Appreciate it.”