Hawk looked at his watch.
“Charlotte, it’s time to go.” Remy hopped up, ready to join them.
“Not this time, buddy.” Hawk thumped the side of his butt a few times.
“You’re staying here with me.” Dulce knelt down next to him and smiled up at Charlotte. “Carter adores Remy, so Mom is bringing him into the office.”
Carter was their fifteen-month-old son, and he was a kick.
“I’m sorry I’ll miss them.” Charlotte turned to Hawk. “I love that little guy.”
“And he loves his Auntie Charlotte, too.” Dulce stood and pulled her into a hug. “Be careful.”
“I will.” She held on for a moment, then stepped back. “Hawk will take care of me.”
Damn, her faith in him filled his soul.
They left Dulce’s office and headed across town to the HRA building. Thanks to midday traffic and an accident on the highway, it was taking longer than anticipated.
“Should I call Pennington and tell him I’m going to be late?” Charlotte picked up her bag from the floor.
“No.” He reached across the console and held her hand. “We’ll be there soon enough.”
“But what if he leaves?” There was a tinge of panic in her voice.
“Trust me, he’s not going anywhere. He’s desperate to find out what you know.” Especially since she told him that his personal assistant—the woman who knew too much—was in custody.
“You’re right.” She rubbed her forehead—she was becoming stressed.
“Hey, why don’t you give your mom a call, see how she’s doing?” Focusing on something positive right now might help. “Let her know we got Kimball, but I wouldn’t go into too much detail. Oh, and let’s not tell her about your meeting with Pennington just yet.”
No sense causing her further worry about her daughter.
“Good idea.” She flipped open her bag, dug out her phone, and called her mom. “Hey, Mom.” She nodded. “I’m good.” Charlotte smiled at him. “He’s amazing.”
She gave her the short version of what went down last night and assured her she was fine and that everything was close to coming to an end.
“Hopefully, we’ll be able to start using our own phones again.” Charlotte turned to him with a hopeful look, then listened to her mom for a few minutes. “You’re kidding. See, I told you he liked you, but you just wouldn’t believe it.” She put her hand over the phone and whispered, “My mom’s boss asked her out on a date.”
Hawk gave her a thumbs-up.
“I have a few things to do today, then I want to hear all about it.” She shook her head. “No, it’s all good. We just have some loose ends to tie up.”
That was a necessary oversimplification.
“Yes, I’ll tell him.” She smiled. “Love you, too.” Charlotte tapped the screen and tossed her phone back into her bag. “Mom says hi.”
“Everything good?” Hawk flipped on his blinker and stopped at the red light.
“Everything’s great! My mom has had a thing for her boss for years, but he was married, so she kept it to herself.” She tucked her hair over her ear and shifted partially to face him. “His wife died of breast cancer about three years ago. Then about a year ago, he started showing an interest in my mom, and today, when she called to check in with him, he finally asked her out.”
“That’s cool.” Her mom was a neat lady who deserved happiness with someone special who treated her the way she deserved to be treated.
“Yeah, I’m just so happy for her,” Charlotte said. “She’s been alone way too long.”
“At least she had you.” He turned right and pulled into the HRA parking lot.
“Ugh, I hate being here.” Her mood suddenly shifted from excitement for her mom to dread. “It’s sad, because I never used to feel that way.”
