“They know.”
“They do?”
She nodded. “My mom is married to an ex-con.”
That clearly shocked him.
“Although, he was falsely imprisoned for fourteen years for a crime he didn’t commit and has since been exonerated. His stepdaughter, Stephanie, worked for all that time to get him out.”
“Is your stepfather Charlie Grandchamp?”
“Yes, why?”
“I knew him. Inside. Wow,” Jace said on a long exhale. “I had no idea he was living here and married to your mom.”
“Don’t forget my father is also in prison. As an air force general, he was respected and revered by everyone, even people who knew the truth about how he abused his wife and children. That finally caught up to him just over a year ago, when he was convicted, finally, of assaulting my mother. He nearly killed her that time. So, you don’t need to worry about the Lawrys judging you for things you did years ago, especially since you’re all about leading a more productive life now.” She glanced at him. “You are all about that, right?”
“God, yes. I never want to go back to who or what I was back then. I lost everything that mattered to me in the span of five minutes.”
“Then we shouldn’t have a problem.” Cindy forced herself to tug her hand free and stand so she wouldn’t do something rash like kiss him. “I have an early morning. Will you lock up?”
“Sure.”
“Thanks for the pizza, the ice pack and everything else.”
“I’m glad you’re feeling better.”
“Me, too. Good night.”
“Night.”