“Thanks,” he said. “I owe you. It was really nice meeting you.”

“It was nice meeting you, too, Karter,” said Mo.

I scooted my chair back. “I’ll walk you.”

Karter jogged ahead of me to open the door.

“Baby, he’s so polite!” Mom called after me. “Don’t be too mean to him, okay?”

I quickly walked out.

Karter stifled a laugh. “Your parents are the best.”

“Oh my God, I’m mortified,” I said. I could feel them looking at us through the window.

“I guess that’s kind of their job, right? To embarrass you? I know my mom does.”

“They act like it’s their job,” I said. “And they deserve a pay raise, because they’re really good at it.”

We walked to the bookstore and found the attorney who’d come to our apartment, Mrs. Redmond, standing outside. She was speaking loudly into her phone.

“Are you serious?” she asked. “That’s not going to work.” She smiled wide when she saw me. “I’ll call you back.”

“Mrs. Redmond?” I asked.

“Briseis, how are you?” She reached out and gave me an awkward side hug.

“You two know each other?” Karter asked.

I looked back and forth between them and it dawned on me why he looked so familiar. It was clear Mrs. Redmond was his mom. They shared the same deep-set brown eyes, the same square chin.

“Through work,” Mrs. Redmond said. “But how do you two know each other?”

Karter stared at his mother. Something silent passed between them.

“We just met,” I said quickly. “I was checking out the shop.”

Karter gave me a stiff smile.

Mrs. Redmond put her hand on my shoulder. “My office is right upstairs if you ever need anything. Are you having a good time? Have you been able to explore? Get a feel for the place?”

“Not really,” I said. “We’ve had some issues with random people showing up at the house.”

Mrs. Redmond’s face grew tight. “Really?”

“Yeah. We had to call the police. A woman named Dr. Grant had to come out.”

“Dr. Grant?” Mrs. Redmond asked. “I didn’t realize she was still running things up there at the Public Safety Office. These small towns are like a trap sometimes. People never leave, even when they should.”

“I’m gonna get back to work,” Karter cut in. “It was nice meeting you and your family, Briseis.”

“You met her family?” Mrs. Redmond asked. She had the same enthusiasm as Mo. “That’s wonderful!” She seemed genuinely thrilled, but Karter rolled his eyes so hard it looked like he was being possessed.

He turned to me. “See? You’re not the only one who has parents who embarrass you.”