Page 60 of Love in Overdrive

Hey, Laney. I looked for you after I finished last night.

She blinked. Cade? Sorry. I was tired and got a ride home.

She wanted to add that Addison dragged her out of the station. She would have waited for him. But that sounded too needy, even for the old her… Much less the new and improved version.

Can I see you tonight?

She bit her thumbnail. Could he? If she saw him again, would this thing they had move from fling to dating? Did she want that?

Questions bounced around in her head. She glanced up. Her mother studied her. Could she read her mind like when Laney was little? Laura smiled.

Oh no. Now was not the time to even think about Cade or flings. Not when her mom had a sixth-sense that rivaled a psychic. Especially when it came to her children’s love lives.

She shoved her phone in her purse and picked up the menu. “So, what are you hungry for?”

“Delaney Caroline Hunt. Do you think you can change the subject after what I just learned?”

Of course, she couldn’t be that lucky. She’d used all her allotted luck and more in the last week.

Her mother grilled her about the robbery and the kidnapping for the rest of lunch and most of the way back to her parents’ house.

“I’m going to walk home.”

Her mother’s face paled, but she didn’t argue. “Okay, call me when you get there.”

“Will do.” With one last hug, she pulled on her hat and gloves and left. The temps were in the thirties today. The sun shone high in the sky. Laney inhaled the crisp air and smiled. She loved her mom, but after spending time with her, she needed to decompress with a night at home.

She knew it was a challenge for her mother not to accompany her home, check every last closet, and look under the bed for intruders before leaving her baby girl. Her mom displayed a Herculean restraint.

A car came from behind and passed her. She stiffened. Only a few cars traveled through the neighborhood at this time of day. Laney moved to the inside of the sidewalk.

She shook her head. Like someone would grab her on the five-block walk home.

A shiver zipped up her back. She pulled her coat tighter, but it didn’t make any difference. Was someone watching? She glanced over her shoulder. Mrs. Brown waved as she climbed into her car.

Laney’s shoulders relaxed. It was natural to be frightened after an experience like she had. She blew out a breath and focused on the puff of condensation as it disappeared before her eyes. A loud exhaust motored by, and she jumped.

Maybe she should have let her mom drive her home.

“No.” She brushed off the thought. She’d lived in Gray Duck Grove her whole life and had never been scared, especially in broad daylight. But she picked up her pace and hustled the last block.

Once inside the house, she slumped against the door and gave a sigh of relief.

She dropped her coat and purse on the club chair and fell on the couch. Was she alone? She cut her gaze to the other room. Listening, she pushed off the couch, grabbed the bat she kept by the door, and crept through the house, room by room.

“This is silly. I’m being paranoid,” she muttered as she jumped from behind the door into the kitchen. She held her breath as she checked the basement, and only let out a tiny scream at the dead mouse in the trap.

All clear. She exhaled, jogged up the stairs, the trap extended as far away from her as possible, and opened the back door. This was the only thing she missed Pete for, disposing of rodents.

With the corpse in the outside garbage, she washed up and flopped back on the couch. Grabbing the remote, she started flipping through the channels. Reality television? Crime Dramas? Documentaries? She dropped the remote on the coffee table and headed to the kitchen. Opening the fridge door, she stuck her head in. Nothing looked good. Just like on the television. She came out and closed the door.

What did people do at two in the afternoon? Laney didn’t have a clue. She was usually working. A dog. That’s what she needed… a big, fluffy companion. She’d always wanted one. Pete claimed to be allergic, not to mention one big, drooly oaf in the house at a time was enough. She snickered.

Seriously though, she was adding a dog to her wish list. Sadly, her budget wouldn’t allow a pet at the moment… unless it was a pet rock.

She paced the room, landing in front of her full bookshelf.

“Let’s see.” She ran a finger over the spines. Historical romance? Naw. Romantic suspense? She shuddered. Too soon. Romantic comedy? Maybe.