Page 44 of Nothing to Fear

Yes, okay, her mistake. “I admit, I’m fascinated. You must have such an affinity with the opposite sex. Men have always confounded me. I tend to overthink and overcomplicate things. I know I do, but… I have never met a man who follows through on promises. Hell, not even promises, just shows some common decency.”

“You have now. All of my boys will treat you with the greatest respect, including Ben. And if any of them give you cause for concern or you have questions…” Alice reached into her purse on the table and produced a card. “Call me.”

“I can’t take that.” If Darroch didn’t trust her enough to give out his number, what would he say if he found out she had his mother’s? Maybe she was some crazy stalker determined to get him no matter what. “It wouldn’t be right.”

Alice tucked the card into the side pocket of the purse in her lap, all she could do was look at it.

“There, I have given it to you. I’ll be offended if you refuse it.”

Well, great, hello rock and goodbye hard place. “You mentioned your project.”

“There will be time to talk about that.” Alice picked up her glass. “Do you have siblings?”

“Sisters. Two.”

“And your parents?”

“My mom is… highly strung. My dad isn’t around. I met him. At least who my mom says is him.” Not a flicker of judgment. “Can anyone be as truly good as you seem to be?”

Alice laughed. “No one is perfect. My mother’s words still echo for me, the world is a big place. Everyone has a story and we’re not always in control of it. I’ve seen children neglected and exploited by wealthy parents and less affluent alike. I’ve witnessed parents who torture their kids simply by being together. And I’ve seen single parents prevail and excel. Nothing in life is straightforward.”

No, and until then, she hadn’t put the pieces together. Adopted. Some, maybe all, of the Breckenridge boys were adopted. Were they all adopted at birth or had they lived difficult lives before meeting their saviors?

She wanted to ask.

Wanted to know more.

About Darroch.

Goddamn her.

He’d said he wanted to be all she thought about and he was getting his wish. Maybe the phone number thing was a product of his past. Could he have a phobia? A trauma? Something he may be embarrassed about or wouldn’t want to confess so early in their relationship? How could she have been so hasty to dismiss him? God, put in that context, she was an absolute bitch.

“Mr. Breckenridge must be quite a man to deserve you.”

“Ben is thorough and considerate. We have dinner every Friday night, we’d love it if you could meet us for a drink tomorrow.”

“And crash your date? No thank you.”

“Please,” she said, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. “After thirty-five years of Friday night dinners, I’ve more than earned one drink with a friend after all those I’ve had with his business associates. And it’s not like our boys never crashed. What Ben cares about is the drink we share on our bedroom terrace at home, when he reminds me of the promises we made and the lifetime we’ve spent together.”

“I don’t need to ask where that goes…”

They laughed. “Some things men never grow out of.”

“I don’t know if that’s reassuring or terrifying. Does thorough and considerate continue on from your terrace?”

“Ben knows how to take good care of me,” Alice said and reached for a menu. “Join me in a cocktail?”

“Why not?”

She hadn’t eaten and this was the boss’s wife, maybe that was why not. Something about Alice Breckenridge disarmed her. Stupid maybe, but this was safe, she was safe, and the night was only just beginning.

FOURTEEN

“…SO THEY GET competitive,” she said to Alice, topping off their glasses.

Maybe they’d drunk too much, either that or Alice Breckenridge was the easiest woman to talk to in the world.

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