Page 67 of The Heart Shot
I offered a hand to her.“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Beck.”
“Oh, please call me Maggie, dear,” she replied, giving me a loose handshake. “Mrs. Beck makes me feel old.”
Jameson snorted, rubbing at the back of his neck.
“What brings you here, my dear? Surely Jameson didn’t drag you along simply to check on his poor mother?”
The words tumbled from my lips before I could stop them. “We were having a picnic when he heard about your accident. He was really worried about you.”
Her eyes widened, and I immediately second guessed my decision to tell her about the picnic. Was she the super protective type that would think I would never be good enough for her son?
But then she said, “A picnic you say?” A sly smile split her mouth, eyes sliding to her son. “Have you been hiding this delightful girl from me, Jamie?”
It was the first time I had witnessed Jameson Beck blushing, and I had to admit, I liked it. A lot.
“We’re just getting to know each other, Mom.”
She tutted, fixing him with alook. “I hope my Jamie is treating you well, dear.”
I chuckled, both from her words and the sheer embarrassment written all over Jameson’s face. “Don’t worry, Mrs. B—Maggie.Jamiehas been nothing but a gentleman. You raised a fine man.”
A mischievous gleam appeared in her eyes. “Heisfine, isn’t he?”
Jameson gave a startled laugh. “All right, I think that’s enough. How much pain medicine do they have you on, Mom?”
“Oh hush, Jamie. You ended your date and ran all the way here for nothing.”
“It wasn’t a date,” we blurted at the same time.
She gave us each a wry grin. “Keep telling yourself that, dears. I know two people who are smitten with each other when I see them.”
“Mom…” Jameson said, exasperated, running a hand over his face before locking his eyes with mine. Heat crawled over my face.
“Well, you’ve come, you saw that I’m perfectly fine and that the nurses bothered you for no reason, and now you can get back to your date.” Maggie grabbed a book sitting on the table next to her, effectively dismissing us.
Neither of us bothered to correct her this time.
He shook his head. “I’ll drive Elsie back to her car and then I’ll come stay with you for a while.”
“Nonsense,” she barked. “You go finish your date, young man.”
“Mom—”
“Jameson Henry,” she middle-named him.
I had to cover my mouth with a hand to hide my smile.He sighed, the tips of his ears turning scarlet.
“Okay, Mom. We’ll go finish our…date.”
He pressed a kiss to the top of her head, and I didn’t miss the smug smile on her face as she gave me a secret wink.
“It was nice to meet you, Maggie.”
She smiled and gave me another wink. “Likewise, my dear. You take care of my boy, you hear? I’ll see you soon.”
I worked hard to keep my expression neutral, but my stomach sank.
I wouldn’t be taking care of her son. Iwouldn’tbe seeing her again.
