Obsession Falls (The Haven Brothers #1)

“And how is your new job?”

“I finally feel like I know what I’m doing, so that’s good.”

“You were always such a go-getter. I bet you’ll be in charge soon.”

Mom touched my arm. “I agree.”

The subtle pressure was so familiar.Put on a good show, Audrey. Make us look good.

I took a bite of mini-pancake topped with a slice of strawberry. If my mouth was full, I wouldn’t have to do as much to keep up the conversation.

“Do you remember Alexa Wilcox?” She didn’t wait for me to reply. “She moved back to the area recently as well. I think she has four children now? Is that right?”

“I believe so,” Mom said.

“Yes, four,” the woman sitting next to her answered. I couldn’t remember her name, either.

“She keeps naming them after spices,” the first woman said. “Rosemary, Sage, Lavender. I don’t recall the name of the fourth.”

“Poppy?” the other woman offered.

“That sounds right,” Mom said.

“Audrey is so smart to be stable in her career before settling down,” she said, her eyes on my mom.

“Oh, I agree,” Mom said, her voice smooth. “I won’t pretend I don’t want to be a grandmother, but I’m proud of her for waiting.”

As if I’d waited on purpose and it wasn’t mostly bad luck in relationships. I stopped myself from rolling my eyes.

“I hear you’re dating one of the Haven brothers,” she said.

There wasn’t any judgment in her voice, at least that I could detect, although Josiah Haven was definitely not country club material. Maybe because I wasn’t her daughter, she didn’t have to worry about what a burly, bearded lumberjack of a man would do to her family’s reputation.

“Yes, I am.” I was mad at him, but I couldn’t help but smile. “But it’s a new relationship.”

“He seems like a decent man,” Mom said. “I’m looking forward to meeting him.”

I glanced at my mom in disbelief. Did she mean that? I’d told her about Josiah over the phone and her voice hadn’t betrayed anything. For all I knew, she was just glad her daughter was finally dating someone, and didn’t care who. Maybe she’d finally given up hope that I’d marry someone from the right family.

“He’s a very good man,” I said. “Mom, speaking of my personal life, something happened this morning and I just want to keep you updated.”

Most people wouldn’t have noticed her reaction, but I knew her too well. Her fork dropped a little too quickly, clinking against her plate. And her eyes darted to me a little too fast.

“Of course, dear, we can talk about it later.”

I didn’t want to talk about it later. But habit took over.Don’t make a scene, Audrey.

So I got up to get more mini-pancakes.

It occurred to me as I dished up more food that the ladies at the table hadn’t mentioned the squirrel killings or the vandalism. Maybe they were too preoccupied with the goings-on in their own town, they didn’t pay attention to the news from Tilikum. I was glad. I didn’t want the fact that I had a stalker to be the topic of their conversation.

The rest of the breakfast passed in painful slowness. The food wasn’t enough to make up for the dull conversation, most of which centered around Pinecrest gossip. Husbands, children, and other family members of the attendees were paraded out, as if they were on display, their various life choices and accomplishments—or lack thereof—the morning’s entertainment.

There was a vicious undercurrent of judgment to the conversation that made me push my plate aside and decline the server’s offer of a mimosa. Instead, I sipped coffee and waited until I could reasonably make my exit.

When my mom seemed to have finished her breakfast, I decided it was time to escape. “Mom, this has been lovely, but I’m afraid I can’t stay.”

“You have to leave already?”