“Didn’t you call for a reason?”
“Hmm . . . what . . .oh, yes . . . your sister.”
“Which one?” Of course, it was about one of his sisters. It was always about his sisters. He wondered if she did the same to them, called them up to talk about how concerned she was about him. Probably. He’d have to ask them the next time they spoke. Maybe they got an earful about what a terrible influence Hunter was.
He'd get a real kick out of that.
“It’s Rory. I can’t get in contact with her.”
“Mother, just because you can’t get hold of her doesn’t mean anything’s wrong. Remember, a few weeks back you couldn’t reach her, and she’d turned her phone off because she was at a friend’s place?”
“I don’t know why she had to turn her phone off just because she was with a friend.”
Maybe because she wanted privacy. There’d been many times when he’d fantasized about turning his phone off. Perhaps disappearing to some deserted island for a bit of time alone. Or with a tall, leggy brunette.
Hmm, what would it be like to have Lacey all to himself on a deserted island in a tiny bikini? Would he be able to convince her to skinny-dip? Probably not, she was too uptight for that. But maybe he could get her to relax a little. Perhaps he could threaten her with a spanking if she tried to keep her clothes on. His body tightened as he imagined putting her over his knees and smacking that sexy ass of hers.
He adjusted himself. Cool it. You’re at work, on the phone to your mother, you cannot be having fantasies about smacking Lacey’s tight ass.
“And I made her promise not to do that again. She said she would answer her phone from now on. But it just goes to voicemail.”
Gray ran his hand over his face. “All right. I’ll try to get in contact with her.” Later tonight. He still had work to do, and his mother would never know he hadn’t immediately jumped to do her bidding.
Rory was the youngest of the three of them. And the most rebellious. A wild child, she ran slightly crazy with a group of her friends in New York. Julia, the middle child, was almost the complete opposite of their youngest sister. She lived a few streets over from their mother in Orange County. She went to the same country club, had married a plastic surgeon with his own practice, and spent her days at the gym, getting her nails done, and lunching with her friends.
Gray was the only one with a real job. His mother had been horrified when he’d joined the Navy. She hadn’t spoken to him the entire time he’d been enlisted. It had kind of been a relief. But it hadn’t lasted, and now he’d become her port of call whenever she needed a man’s help. Her words.
“Good. I just worry about all of you so much. You’re my babies. Are you well? You’re not working too hard?”
“I’m fine, Mother.”
“Good. Well, I must go, dear. I’m afraid I haven’t got time to sit around and talk all day. I have things to do.”
As though he’d been the one to call her. He barely refrained from rolling his eyes.
“Goodbye, darling. Tell Rory to call me.”
“Yes, Mother. Goodbye.”
He circled his head around to release the kinks in his neck once he got off the phone from her. Lacey wasn’t the only one who could use some stress relief.
He stood and stretched. He was tired of waiting around for her to come to him. It wasn’t in his nature to take a passive role. It was ridiculous that one of his own employees was practically running the other way to avoid him. And it annoyed the hell out of him that he cared so much. Maybe he shouldn’t have kissed her, but that’s all it had been. It wasn’t like they’d slept together. She didn’t have to act like she was scared he would jump her. And he was going to march into her office and tell her just that.
Striding down to her office, he knocked.
“Come in,” she called out.
He hesitated for a moment. She didn’t sound like herself. She sounded defeated? Tired? Opening the door, he entered the room to find her chair turned, her back was to him. As he watched, she reached up and rubbed at her face.
“Lacey?” he asked with concern.
“I’ll be with you in a second.”
Yeah, he wasn’t standing for that. Moving swiftly across the room, he turned her chair around, ignoring her gasp of surprise. Concern filled him as he noted her red, puffy eyes and the trail of tears running down her cheeks.
“Oh, honey.” He crouched, clasping hold of the chair as she tried to turn away again. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” she told him, scrubbing at her cheeks. She straightened her shoulders and stared down at him. “I’m fine.”