“You got it.”
“Thanks, Mack.” She ended the call and smiled at Evan. “Good job, Agent Bowers. I knew you were something special, and this proves it.”
His face colored, and she loved that about him. He was a super agent but didn’t let it go to his head.
“So, my mother.” Kiley straightened her shirt and, having exhausted every excuse not to go inside, marched up the steps to knock on the door. Her heart thundered in her chest as she tried to remember the last time she’d actually seen her mother in person. It had been years, and as she heard footsteps coming to the door, she felt like bolting.
“You can do this.” Standing behind her, Evan placed his hand on the small of her back, giving her the confidence not to run. They’d agreed that he would come in and meet her mom to break the ice, and then when Kiley was ready to get down to discussing her past, he would step out and let them hash things out alone.
The door opened, and her mother looked at her, her eyes wide as she blinked lashes coated in thick black mascara. “Kiley? What are you doing here?”
“I need to talk to you,” Kiley said bluntly.
“You should have called.” Her mother ran a hand over her graying hair and glanced at Evan. “I’m a mess.”
Leave it to her mother to be more aware of the man standing behind her than the fact that her long-lost daughter had shown up to see her. She propped a hand on her hip. Her skinny jeans emphasized her curvaceous figure. She’d paired them with ankle boots and a blouse in a rainbow of colors. Her mother looked ultra-feminine, while Kiley was wearing her usual tactical pants and shirt. They were such opposites, and her mother had always tried to get Kiley to be more of a girly girl but had failed.
“And who is this handsome man?” her mother asked.
Kiley looked at Evan. “He’s my ... uh...”
“Evan Bowers.” He stuck out a hand, rescuing her.
“Lana Dawson.” She shook Evan’s hand. “Are you two an item?”
A broad smile crossed Evan’s face. “We are.”
Kiley warmed at his enthusiasm, but her stomach remained tied in a knot. “Can we come in?”
Her mother stood back, yet she didn’t look happy about giving them access.
Kiley stepped into the space that smelled like fried onions. She took a quick look around the plain living area that held a plaid sofa, a coffee table, and a worn leather recliner. “Where’s Wally?”
Her mother crossed her arms. “Gone, and good riddance.”
Kiley wasn’t surprised to hear her mother had broken up with yet another boyfriend and assumed it wouldn’t be long before another man replaced Wally.
“Want some coffee?” her mother asked.
Kiley shook her head.
Her mother turned a dazzling smile on Evan. “How about you, handsome? Coffee?”
“No thank you, ma’am.”
Her mother cringed. Likely at a good-looking man calling herma’am. She was a beautiful woman and had always resented the fact that she was aging and her looks weren’t as perfect as they’d once been.
“Go ahead. Sit.” She waved a hand, her sparkly pink fingernails glinting in the hot Arizona sunshine pouring in through the bay window.
On her way to the sofa, Kiley stopped to straighten an old landscape picture that had hung in their hallway for as far back as Kiley could remember. She concentrated on breathing normally when her heart was beating like a conga drum.
Evan sat next to her. His knee touched hers, sending a jolt of awareness through her, but he didn’t move away. She assumed he was showing his support, and she would accept all the encouragement he wanted to give.
“So ... what’s up, Kiley?” Her mother perched on the armrest of the recliner and crossed her ankles. “Why the surprise visit?”
“I was in Arizona on an investigation and had a few days off so wanted to stop in.”Chicken.
“And that’s it? You just wanted to stop in?” Her mother’s suspicion was tinged with sarcasm.
