shunning anyone either.”
Donna turned back so fast that water splashed from the pot. “The hell you weren’t. You’ve been mad at me ever since the day I married Hank. Don’t think I don’t know that.”
Hank? Who the hell was Hank? Delaney stole another glance at Carl.
He blew smoke from the corner of his mouth without moving his top lip. “Hank, second husband. I’m number three. Third time’s a charm.” He nodded at Delaney, looking for her agreement. She smiled weakly, because really, what else could she do? She shouldn’t be here right now. She had more than enough of her own family drama to contend with. She didn’t need to be a part of this one. She just wanted her money.
Grant sighed beside her. “Mom, this isn’t the time for that discussion. Right now we have to figure out where to get the money to pay back Elaine and get her out of my house.” Grant’s gaze passed from his mother to Carl. “I don’t suppose you have any money?”
Carl shook his head, not looking the least bit concerned. “Nope, sorry, kid, but I’d be happy to make you a beverage. I find that most problems are more easily solved after everyone has enjoyed a cocktail.”
Delaney felt inclined to agree but decided to keep her mouth shut. If only she’d done that with Boyd she wouldn’t be in this mess now.
“Do you have any money, Grant?” Donna stepped forward, ignoring her husband and apparently forgiving her son for the shunning and the gallivanting. She put her hand on Grant’s arm. “Maybe you could pay Elaine and then I could pay you.”
He shook his head. “I don’t have an extra six grand lying around, Mom. Most of my cash is tied up in a work project right now, and until Blake decides to stop being an asshole, I can’t get my hands on any of it. He wants to sue me for breach of contract.”
His mother pulled her hand back and pressed it to her heart, but her sigh wasn’t despondent. It was full of infatuation instead. “Oh, that Blake Rockstone. What a fella.”
“Did you not just hear me say he wants to sue me, Mom? He’s an asshole.”
Delaney had only seen Grant’s TV show once or twice, and she’d thought the host was about as engaging as a Styrofoam cup. He had the same overprocessed quality too. She recognized Botox when she saw it, and he’d had plenty.
“Please don’t use profanity in my home, young man,” Donna scolded. “That’s a quarter in the swear jar for you.”
Grant ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even more than it had been before. “Add it to my tab. In the meantime, give me the information you have on the cow and the freezer and I’ll see what I can do about getting a refund.”
Donna shook her head. “You’ll do no such thing. That’s my gift to Tyler and Evie.”
Exasperation finally filled his voice and stretched it thin. “Mom, I’m sure that Ty and this Evelyn person will understand the circumstances.”
His mother came forward and pulled out the angry-mom finger point, waving her hand so close to his nose she nearly touched it. “No, you don’t understand, Mr. Smarty-Pants. That house sat empty for months after your grandfather died with no word from you at all. Tyler didn’t want to live there but he did, just so he could do the upkeep on the place in case you came home. He cut the grass and shoveled the snow, and he even painted the whole inside. We would have asked you about it, but you never return calls. Half the time, you don’t answer e-mails. You’re next to impossible to get ahold of, and it didn’t make sense to leave it sitting empty, so I rented it.” His mother stood back up and crossed her arms, defiant, satisfied she’d made her point. “I took this nice young lady’s money in good faith and promised her she’d have a place to live for six months. So you’ll just have to find yourself someplace else to go until her lease is up. Maybe that’ll teach you to call your mother once in a while.”
“That went well,”
Donna turned back so fast that water splashed from the pot. “The hell you weren’t. You’ve been mad at me ever since the day I married Hank. Don’t think I don’t know that.”
Hank? Who the hell was Hank? Delaney stole another glance at Carl.
He blew smoke from the corner of his mouth without moving his top lip. “Hank, second husband. I’m number three. Third time’s a charm.” He nodded at Delaney, looking for her agreement. She smiled weakly, because really, what else could she do? She shouldn’t be here right now. She had more than enough of her own family drama to contend with. She didn’t need to be a part of this one. She just wanted her money.
Grant sighed beside her. “Mom, this isn’t the time for that discussion. Right now we have to figure out where to get the money to pay back Elaine and get her out of my house.” Grant’s gaze passed from his mother to Carl. “I don’t suppose you have any money?”
Carl shook his head, not looking the least bit concerned. “Nope, sorry, kid, but I’d be happy to make you a beverage. I find that most problems are more easily solved after everyone has enjoyed a cocktail.”
Delaney felt inclined to agree but decided to keep her mouth shut. If only she’d done that with Boyd she wouldn’t be in this mess now.
“Do you have any money, Grant?” Donna stepped forward, ignoring her husband and apparently forgiving her son for the shunning and the gallivanting. She put her hand on Grant’s arm. “Maybe you could pay Elaine and then I could pay you.”
He shook his head. “I don’t have an extra six grand lying around, Mom. Most of my cash is tied up in a work project right now, and until Blake decides to stop being an asshole, I can’t get my hands on any of it. He wants to sue me for breach of contract.”
His mother pulled her hand back and pressed it to her heart, but her sigh wasn’t despondent. It was full of infatuation instead. “Oh, that Blake Rockstone. What a fella.”
“Did you not just hear me say he wants to sue me, Mom? He’s an asshole.”
Delaney had only seen Grant’s TV show once or twice, and she’d thought the host was about as engaging as a Styrofoam cup. He had the same overprocessed quality too. She recognized Botox when she saw it, and he’d had plenty.
“Please don’t use profanity in my home, young man,” Donna scolded. “That’s a quarter in the swear jar for you.”
Grant ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even more than it had been before. “Add it to my tab. In the meantime, give me the information you have on the cow and the freezer and I’ll see what I can do about getting a refund.”
Donna shook her head. “You’ll do no such thing. That’s my gift to Tyler and Evie.”
Exasperation finally filled his voice and stretched it thin. “Mom, I’m sure that Ty and this Evelyn person will understand the circumstances.”
His mother came forward and pulled out the angry-mom finger point, waving her hand so close to his nose she nearly touched it. “No, you don’t understand, Mr. Smarty-Pants. That house sat empty for months after your grandfather died with no word from you at all. Tyler didn’t want to live there but he did, just so he could do the upkeep on the place in case you came home. He cut the grass and shoveled the snow, and he even painted the whole inside. We would have asked you about it, but you never return calls. Half the time, you don’t answer e-mails. You’re next to impossible to get ahold of, and it didn’t make sense to leave it sitting empty, so I rented it.” His mother stood back up and crossed her arms, defiant, satisfied she’d made her point. “I took this nice young lady’s money in good faith and promised her she’d have a place to live for six months. So you’ll just have to find yourself someplace else to go until her lease is up. Maybe that’ll teach you to call your mother once in a while.”
“That went well,”
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