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But Annie didn’t think it was funny, catching a look from Cindy that made her squirm a little. The younger woman, older guy was going to be an issue.
“Nice to meet you, Joel, Ben,” Annie said, threading her arm around Chris’s narrow waist, trying to show some possession.
Joel couldn’t help it, his attraction to Annie was instantaneous. He wanted to ask her how old she was, but fortunately, he caught himself before he put his foot in his mouth.
“No way!” Joel exclaimed, checking Annie’s body up and down. “My major is psychology. We should compare notes, open a practice together when I finish grad school.”
Cindy scoffed, eyeing them both. “You’ll try to psychoanalyze our family.”
“Hey, that’s why I went into psychology, Mother,” Joel declared. “Trust me, Annie, you’ll reap a ton of information if you decide to publish. Our family is a treasure trove of the BS.”
“Okay, Joel, that’s enough,” Chris said good-naturedly, but Annie saw a tick in his jaw that she’d only seen during stressful times. She was itching to get him to continue, but for the sake of her weekend with Chris, it was time to change the subject.
“Would you like to look around?” Chris asked. “I have rooms picked out for you two in case you ever visit.”
“Oh, we’re visiting,” Ben said. “I might move in.”
“Wait until I die before you move too far,” Cindy said, shocking everyone.
“Okay, let’s take that tour now,” Chris said, glancing down at Annie, mouthingI’m sorry.
Chris led the boys off to the guest wing of the house and to Annie’s dismay, Cindy lingered behind, her slender arms folded under her ample bosom, watching Annie, tapping a long manicured fingernail on her arm.
“You’re engaged?” she asked as soon as Chris was out of earshot.
“Yes, he proposed at Maggie and Justin’s wedding four days before Christmas. He got the okay from them first, of course.”
“Of course. Chris is always Mr. Appropriate. That’s really why I’m shocked that he’s going to marry you. You’re not much older than our son.”
“I’m older, trust me,” Annie replied. “Besides, what difference does age make? I have a kid; did you know that?”
“I did. Having children changes everything, doesn’t it? If we didn’t have kids, we would have probably forgotten about each other. Now of course, I could die and if I do, I’ll be leaving my two boys. I’m sure Chris must have told you. He acts like I did it on purpose.”
In spite of her concerns that Chris and Cindy might have been up to something, Annie had a rush of compassion for Cindy and stepped forward to take her hand. “He did tell me and I’m so sorry, Cindy. Truly. What a thing to have to deal with.”
“Yes, and at the same time, my husband walked out on me. Kirk is a gentle soul, but this kind of thing is too much for him. It’s why we never had children together. He can’t take a lot of drama.”
“How is he with your boys?”
“He’s good. My boys are relatively drama free. If they end up here with Chris, you’ll see what I mean. They don’t party much or have a lot of friends that are troublemakers, don’t drink or do drugs.”
“Well, that sounds nice. I hope I can say the same about my son when he grows up.”
“Oh, you have a boy, too. Well, that makes it convenient. Are you and Chris going to have kids together?”
“Cindy, that’s crossing the line,” Chris shouted from the living room.
“Oops, he caught me,” Cindy said, snickering. “I mean, why is it a secret?”
Annie didn’t know what to say at that point.
“Just be warned,” Cindy said in a whisper. “Chris will always take the path of least resistance. It’s historical. Instead of buckling down and going to junior college and saving for college, he joined the Air Force without consulting me. And then when he got out, instead of getting a job so I could get a break after four years of working and raising two little boys alone, he went to college. Yeah. I was so angry at him. So prepare yourself for him to never do the hard thing. At least where you’re concerned.”
“Is Cindy talking your ear off?” Chris asked, returning to the dining room where I had just been warned.
“I only speak the truth,” Cindy said. “So tell me, do you two share all the details of your lives? Or are there verboten topics?”
“I hope we’re sharing everything,” Annie said, glancing at Chris.
