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And why exactly was that? Fleet was determined to find out before Talia got home. It didn’t seem like any woman these days, especially a sister of Talia’s, should be so…demur.
“Fine.” Fleet took the reins. “I’ll pick for the two of you. Shrimp. To be cooked on the grill I saw out back. Alongside a bunch of veggies. All with a side of rice.”
“See? That wasn’t so hard. Thanks, handsome.” He could almost hear her smiling over the phone. “I’ll be home in half an hour.”
“Sounds good,” he said. “I’ve missed you.”
And he had. But the thirty minutes before he saw her gorgeous face again gave him time to probe into the anomaly that was Pixie.
He hung up with a grin.
“That’s good. I like shrimp,” the conundrum told him happily, moving to sit in a chair across from his position on the sofa.
“Then why didn’t you just say so?” Fleet questioned, determined not to let her off the hook.
“Because…” Pixie frowned prettily, then shrugged. “I didn’t want Tallie to be disappointed if I picked something she didn’t like.”
Fleet sighed. “She wouldn’t have asked if she didn’t want your opinion, Pix. You know how it is once you’re in the grocery store. Your mind tends to go blank with all the choices.”
Pixie ducked her head. “I…wouldn’t know. My mother does all the shopping for the household.”
Shit.That’s right. Talia had mentioned that her sister still lived at home, but Fleet had figured she was perhaps between apartments or something. Pixie was a year older than Talia, and at thirty-three, she should be on her own, or at least shopping for her own food. This sounded way more convoluted than he’d imagined.
“You’ve never gone to the market? Even to pick up snacks for yourself?” Fleet inquired gently.
“No. I…” She tucked an errant strand of her fine, platinum hair behind her ear and sighed. “I only go to school, and home.”
Fleet knew his expression was skeptical. “But you went out for a walk this morning,” he ventured.
“That’s because Doug was going with us.” A smile touched her lips. “He makes me feel…safe.”
Did Fleet dare explore deeper?Hell, yes. “And why wouldn’t you feel safe doing something as simple as going to the grocery store? People do it every day; moms, kids, grandparents…” he trailed off.
She brought her gaze up and regarded him steadily. “Tallie hasn’t told you, has she.” It was a statement, not a question.
“Told me what?” Fleet got skitters up and down his spine. This sounded bad.
“Told you we were both shot when we were teenagers.
Ah, shit.
CHAPTERTWENTY-TWO
Well, hello…not.
Talia walked into her living room juggling two bags, and could tell by the look on the faces of the two people sitting there that the time had come to reveal all to Fleet. How much had Pixie told him?
Not much, if the confusion in his eyes was any indication.
“Huh,” she grunted. “Food first, or conversation?” There was no reason to pretend she didn’t know what was going on.
“Conversation.” There had been no hesitancy in Fleet’s reply.
“Fine. Let me put the perishables in the fridge and pour myself a glass of wine, then I’ll be back to fuck up your head.”
She stomped to the appliance in question, and without sorting things through, shoved the whole bag on a top shelf. Reaching above the fridge to her sparse liquor cabinet, she pulled down a dusty bottle of red, removed the screw-off cap, and poured herself an entire juice tumbler.
That ought to do it.
