Page 51 of The Bad Girl and the Baby

“Correct. No, I reckon his head is fine. Well, as fine as it was before Darcy knocked him on his ass. Which isn’t saying much.”

Okay, maybe he deserved that. But that didn’t mean he had to stick around and take any more abuse. “Where’s she gone?”

“Upstairs. But I’d give her a few minutes, if I were you. She looked pretty pissed. Anyway, Summer wants to talk to you.” She turned to the blonde. “Unless you’ve changed your mind now that you’ve met him.”

What could she possibly want to talk to him about?

She came toward him, a smile on her face, and he looked at her properly for the first time. She looked…sweet. Long silky blond hair, blue eyes, and she was small, probably a foot shorter than him, and slender in jeans and a white T-shirt. She held a hand out to him. “I’m Summer,” she said.

The name suited her. He took her hand in his and shook it briefly.

He recognized the name. Darcy’s other flatmate. They’d all shared a cell together in Holloway, but unlike Darcy, Summer didn’t look like an ex-con. He glanced from her to Regan, who was leaning against the wall, the man next to her.

“And this is Regan, who I think you’ve already met.”

She grinned. “When I rescued Darcy from his clutches once before.”

“Yeah, thanks for that,” he muttered.

“And this is Nate. Regan’s fiancé.” The man stepped forward and shook hands, the amused grin still on his face. Maybe he should offer commiserations. He remembered now—Darcy had said Regan’s fiancé had put together the report on Steven. “The detective?” he said.

“Ex-detective.”

“There was a little conflict of interest when he decided he wanted to marry me,” Regan added. “It was the force or me.”

Introductions over, Matt turned back to Summer. He needed to get after Darcy. “You wanted to talk to me?”

“Yes. I asked Donna—on reception—to let me know when you arrived.”

That’s how his audience had turned up. But he still had no clue what they had to talk about.

“I met Lulu the other day,” Summer continued.

“And…?”

“I sort of asked her to my wedding.”

“You’re getting married?” Though he remembered now, Darcy had said something about shopping for bridesmaids’ dresses.

“Next week. Darcy’s my best friend, and Lulu is her only family. I thought it would be nice. But Darcy’s also one of my bridesmaids, and Lulu is…”

“A bit of a handful?” Regan offered.

“She has a lot of energy,” Summer said. Yes, she was definitely nice. “So I wondered if you were free, if you’d like to come as well. Darcy said you’re brilliant with Lulu.”

She did? Why did that make him feel all warm and fuzzy?

“You could look after her while Darcy does her bridesmaid stuff.”

“Do I get to see Darcy in a bridesmaid dress?”

“Of course. And we ordered one for Lulu to match. They’re going to look so cute.”

“You’re talking about Darcy here?”

Suddenly she looked fierce. “Darcy can be cute if she wants to be.” She stepped closer and prodded him in the chest. “Darcy is the best person ever. You made her feel bad today, and I’m willing to overlook it this once because you don’t know her that well yet. But do it again and you’ll have to deal with me.”

“And me,” Regan said. She nudged the man at her side.

---