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“No, he’s right,” Isobel admitted with a chuckle. “That was only because I had a crush on you and wanted your attention. Sorry for the near drowning.”

“My whole life flashed before my eyes,” I told her with a sigh. “Of course, I was young. It didn’t take long.” We shared a grin that lingered a few extra heartbeats before she lowered her gaze, blushing a little. Interesting. The night was looking up.

“Isobel recently returned from a few years in New York,” Mom explained. I wanted to ask if there was something wrong with letting the girl tell her story, but bit my tongue for the sake of being polite in front of a stranger. “And there is a good chance she’ll sit at the head of the Board of Directors of her Dad’s casino before long.”

“He’s been playing around with the idea of retirement for a long time,” Isobel explained with a lift of a sculpted shoulder. She wore a tasteful and modest sleeveless dress but was clearly hiding a hell of a body worthy of stirring my interest. “I’m still not sure whether I’m cut out for the job.”

“It could be we need to find you a husband,” Mom suggested.

“Mom…” I murmured, clicking my tongue. “You, of all people, should know a woman can do just as well as any man.”

“If she wants to,” Mom pointed out, mimicking me by clicking her tongue before adjusting the pearl brooch Dad gifted her on one of their anniversaries. “There’s a difference.”

“Anyway…” Isobel concluded, “I have been looking forward to sitting down with you tonight ever since Diana suggested I join you for dinner.”

How nice it is to be the last to know. Of course, Mom played the part of an innocent bystander, sipping her wine while skimming the menu’s contents like we didn’t always come here. If I thought it would do any good, I would insist on a conversation about boundaries, but I might as well talk to a wall for all the good I would do. “I hope I’m not a disappointment,” I replied, forcing joviality I didn’t feel for the sake of keeping things light. It was a relief when a server approached, asking if we had any questions about the menu. I could breathe for a second, trying to adjust my expectations for the meal.

What is this girl doing here? Why would Mom invite her without giving me a heads-up? I knew why, that was the problem, but I couldn’t bring myself to accept it. Since when did I need a matchmaker?

Halfway through the meal, tired of listening to them discuss people they both knew, while I nodded politely and fought off one yawn after another, I couldn’t hold back any longer. “You know, Mom, I was looking forward to surprising you tonight with some good news.”

“Oh?” She raised her brows at Isobel before turning her attention to me, setting down the cutlery she was hardly using in the first place. It was like they were locked in a silent competition of who could eat less. “And what would that be?”

I wasn’t trying to announce this in front of an audience, but I either did it now or stick a steak knife in my ear. “I’ve gone ahead and purchased the rights to a huge hit production. It’s called Revelation and was massively popular on the Riviera for a solid year. We’re bringing it to the Luxor later this year. The contracts have been finalized, and I met with the lead choreographer and co-producer today. We’re going to have a huge hit on our hands.”

No one but me would have recognized the change that came over her and identified it for what it was. It was subtle, the way her nostrils flared ever so slightly and her jaw tightened. “You purchased the rights to a production without consulting me first?”

“I wanted it to be a surprise.” My light chuckle was met with silence that left me wishing I’d let them go on chatting. “This could be everything we were looking for. Weren’t you saying only a few months ago you thought we should look into revitalizing, turning a corner? This is how we’ll do it, believe me. This show has been a runaway hit with nonstop sellout performances.”

If there was one thing my mother excelled at, it was seething. She was at Olympic level and currently giving her finest performance, her brown eyes glittering and the pulse in her pale, delicate throat thumping like mad. “You did it without so much as suggesting the idea?”

Isobel cleared her throat, sliding her chair back from the table. “Excuse me. I need to powder my nose.” At least she knew better than to stick around when World War III was about to start.

The second she was out of earshot, Mom laid into me, “You certainly know how to make a great impression. Make sure the girl knows you excel in making stupid business decisions.”

“Stupid? Acquiring the rights to a production that’s raked in millions is a stupid decision all of a sudden?” Was this an alternate universe? “And what do I care what she thinks? I don’t know her.”

“You will.” Her firm certainty was sickening. “Don’t worry about that.”

“I’m not worried,” I assured her, cutting into a prime rib I no longer had the appetite for. “Because she means nothing and never will. End of story.”

“Now you listen to me…” Mom’s hand shot out and gripped my wrist, her eyes hard when I looked into them. “That girl is wife material. Frankly, she’s probably better than anything you could find on your own.”

“Thank you for the vote of confidence.”

“Grow up,” she whispered. “I’ve seen the parade of pussy you’ve indulged in, and none of them have exactly been winners.”

“Jesus, Mom,” I muttered, glancing around. I should have known better. She wouldn’t say anything like that if she thought someone could hear. Years spent working shoulder to shoulder with men had sharpened her edges, but sometimes she forgot we weren’t pals. “So the solution is finding a wife for me?”

“Precisely. Isobel has everything you need… beauty, intelligence, poise.”

“Everything you need, you mean.” I damn near cracked a tooth, forcing a smile for the sake of diners passing by. “Why don’t you come out with it? What is so important about this girl?”

Her nostrils flared ever so slightly before she touched a hand to her perfectly upswept hair. It had started going gray when I was a kid, not long after Dad’s sudden departure. She had tried to maintain its old hue for a few years before her stylist suggested she let it go natural. Somehow, it only enhanced her looks, causing her to be very vain about it now. “Fine. She’s quite secure, financially.”

And there it was. For once, it would have been nice if she would surprise me. “I didn’t know we were so hard up for the money.”

“There are a lot of things you don’t know.”