Page 29 of Inferno
Chapter 8
Two hours later, Prissy glanced up from a report she’d been perusing to watch as Stan entered their bedroom suite and closed the double doors behind him.
“Boys in bed?” she asked.
“Yes, ma’am.Homework completed, baths taken, teeth brushed, clothes laid out for tomorrow. Check, check, check and check.”
“Thanks,honey.” Prissy smiled ruefully. “I didn’t mean to desert you like that, but I needed to put as much distance as possible between myself and our firstborn.”
Stan chuckled. “He’s lucky you did. I honestly thought you were gonna strangle him with your bare hands.”
“I certainly wanted to,” Prissy muttered darkly. “If I didn’t think it would traumatize our other children, I just might have.”
Stan laughed, tugging off his undershirt as he sauntered to the walk-in closet. The sight of his thick, rippling muscles defused some of Prissy’s anger.Some, not all.
Setting her paperwork on the cherry nightstand, she asked, “Did you get the full story out of him?”
“Of course.You know I don’t play that.”
Prissy waited notsopatiently as Stan disappeared into the closet to change his clothes. Two minutes later he reemerged wearing gray pajama bottoms and no shirt. Prissy bit her bottom lip as her gaze latched onto his broad, muscular chest. It was downright criminal how utterly virile and sexy the man was.
Heading to the master bathroom to brush his teeth, he explained, “Manny told me he was defending a girl that Rory Kerrigan was picking on.”
“Taylor,” Prissy supplied.
“Right.”
“I saw her at the school. When we were leaving the principal’s office, she came up and hugged Manny and thanked him. So I figured he must have gotten into the fight because he was standing up for her.” Prissy frowned, folding her arms across her chest. “Why couldn’t he have just told me that?”
“Guess he figured it wouldn’t matter,” Stan said pragmatically. “Regardless of the reason he was fighting, he knew he was in deep trouble.”
“That’sexactlywhat he said.” Prissy scowled. “He reallyisyour son.”
Stan chuckled around a mouthful of toothpaste.
“He’s always been stubborn,” Prissy continued, adjusting the heavy bed covers at her waist. “But it seems that the older he gets, the more hotheaded he becomes.”
Stan finished brushing his teeth, then switched off the light and left the bathroom. “Don’t be too hard on him, babe. You know boys will be boys.”
“Excuse me?” Prissy sputtered indignantly. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Boys fight,” Stan stated matter-of-factly. “Back in Atlanta, Michael and Manning brawled with other boys all the time. It was practically a rite of passage.”
“Only because the neighborhood was overrun by hoodlums who terrorized anyone who was afraid to fight back.The boys had no choice but to defendthemselvesand protect their younger brothers.” Prissy gestured around the large, elegantly furnished bedroom. “In case you haven’t noticed, we’re not in the old neighborhood anymore.”
Stan looked amused as he climbed into the king-size bed. “So I guess there are no hoodlums in Coronado, huh?”
“That’s not what I’m saying,” Prissy protested. “And I can’t believe you’re defending Manny’s behavior when you know what the repercussions might be.”
“I’m not defending his behavior,” Stan countered mildly. “I’m just asking you to cut him some slack. What he did today was honorable, standing up for a young lady who couldn’t stand up for herself. You know as well as I do that if he’d let Rory get away with bullying Taylor, webothwould have been disappointed in him.”
Prissy couldn’t deny it. Even as angry as she was that afternoon, she’d been undeniably moved by the touching encounter between Manning and Taylor. What motherwouldn’thave appreciated witnessing her teenage son’s kinder, gentler side?
Watching her expression soften, Stan smiled. “I seem to recall a few fightsIgot into while defending your honor when we were in high school. Do you remember?”
A tender, reminiscent smile curved Prissy’s lips. “Yes, I remember,” she admitted, awash with memories of being a shy, brainy student who’d miraculously captured the heart of one of the most popular boys at school. While Prissy had never been as woefully frumpy as poor Taylor, she’d been enough of a Plain Jane to go largely unnoticed by most guys…until Stan came along and turned her world upside down.
For as long as she lived, she would never forget the day their paths had collided—literally. She’d been rushing to class when suddenly she’d run right into the solid wall of Stan’s chest. The impact had sent her books scattering across the floor, but that was nothing compared to the way her heart had somersaulted when Stan grabbed her arms to keep her from falling backward.
