Sinful Rewards 9 by Cynthia Sax

Author:Cynthia Sax
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2015-02-10T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter Five

I CLEAN THE condo, arranging our newly acquired folding chairs, the mixture of materials and styles in the space appalling. None of my mom’s furniture ever matched either, the pieces inherited from the previous tenants or obtained free.

If I stay with Hawke, this horrific hodgepodge of designs might also be my future. This possibility doesn’t scare me as much as it would have yesterday.

Because I have a plan. I’ll do everything I can to make my business with Cyndi a success. If I decide to stay in Chicago, I can use video conferencing and other technology to connect with our LA clients. Selling Friendly’s rewards will give us an influx of cash. I’ll find a temporary job or two or three to bridge the gap. We’ll make the numbers work.

I load the last dirty plate in the dishwasher and run it, the sound of rushing water calming me. Hawke dying is my primary concern. I can’t go through what I did this morning—believing he had been killed, had left me forever.

My phone buzzes and I look down at its small screen, thinking it is my former marine. I don’t recognize the number. The caller must be someone I know. All of my communications continue to be screened by Hawke’s team.

“Bee Carter,” I answer, pressing the cool phone case against my face.

“Honeybee.” My normally exhausted mom sounds almost as hyper as Cyndi is. “I’m talking on a throwaway phone, just like the spies in the movies use.”

Any concerns I have about throwaway phones are offset by my intrigue. I’ve never heard my mom this animated.

“Do you know Long Haul?” she asks. “He works with your Hawke.”

“No, I don’t know him, Mom.” I slide the bar stools under the counter.

“He’s a very nice man,” she relates. “His wife left him when he was overseas, serving our country. She said she couldn’t wait for him.”

I hear the disapproval in my mom’s voice. Had she waited for my dad, her fateful one-night stand, to return? I’ve never asked, not wanting to bring up the touchy subject.

“Long Haul accompanied me on the flight to Cleveland,” my mom continues. “And then drove me to the apple farm that belongs to the Masterses in Upstate New York. The apples aren’t ready yet. They’re small and green.”

She talks more than she’s talked in years, telling me about Hawke’s friendly parents, her arrival at the farm, and more about Long Haul, relating his life history, her tone tellingly warm. My mom likes the military man and he seems to like her, promising to call to check up on her tomorrow.

This worries me. She’s my mom and I don’t want her to be hurt. But I remind myself that Hawke wouldn’t associate with any dishonorable men. He also wouldn’t risk my mom’s safety.

“It looks like I’m taking that vacation you wanted me to have, honeybee.” My mom sighs. “It could be permanent. The boss wasn’t happy that I didn’t give him any notice. I might not have a job when I return,” she frets.

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