“Because his mom went back to Peru so soon.”
It couldn’t be soon enough for Deek’s sake, but she kept that thought to herself. “But I bet he’s happy they finally got married, right?” It made her stomach hurt to think of it.
Emily lined up the last of the tape pieces and then shook her head. “Asher said his parents got into a big fight last Saturday night, and then his mom packed her stuff. Must have been right before Mr. Cooper came to see you.”
“He was here on Saturday?” Lori’s mind raced for reasons Deek hadn’t called her since then if he and Annie didn’t get married as planned. Maybe they’d just put the marriage off?
“Yeah.” Emily stuck her tongue out as she taped the end seams on the gift. “He was talking to Aunt Rachel while you were at the store getting breadcrumbs.”
She was going to kill her sister for not telling her. “So, did Asher say his parents were getting married later?”
Emily shook her head. “His mom told him that Mr. Cooper ruined everything, so now they wouldn’t get married and she wouldn’t ever live with them. It was why she had to leave before his birthday.”
Then why the hell hadn’t Deek called her? If he’d meant all those things he’d told her, why wasn’t he down on his knees and begging for her to come back? Telling her how sorry he was for choosing that user Annie over her?
“I have to go run an errand. Tell my sister when she gets done that she’s got a lot of explaining to do and to be prepared to die.”
Emily’s eyes went wide. “To die? Like daddy did?”
“No. I’m sorry, sweetheart. It’s a figure of speech.” Lori hugged Emily. What a bad choice of words. She’d never have used them if she weren’t so upset. “I just meant that Aunt Rachel is in big trouble with me. I’ll be back in a bit, okay?”
“But what about the gift?”
Lori grabbed her purse and dug for her keys. “We’ll make Aunt Rachel do it when she’s done. Don’t bother her unless you’re bleeding, understand?”
“No. But fine. Can I have a cookie?” Emily frowned as she tried to finish the wrapping job herself.
“It’s too close to dinner.”
Emily grumbled, “Who knows how late that’ll be now. I’m starving.”
“Okay. But just one.” She kissed the top of Em’s head. “It’s Friday pizza night, so ask Aunt Rachel to order it as soon as she’s done. I’m sure she’ll have worked up an appetite too. Bye.”
“I don’t know why both of you are acting so grumpy today.” Em went back to concentrating on her present.
Yeah, well, Deek was about to see just how grumpy she could be.
She did her best to keep a reasonable rate of speed as she drove to Deek’s house. She tried, but couldn’t come up with a logical explanation for his behavior, except for one. He’d lied about his feelings for her.
And she and her newfound confidence that she and Rachel had been working on all week were not putting up with that without having a say in the end.
When she arrived at Deek’s gate, she poked the call button. Asher’s voice rang out. “Who is it?”
Lori took a deep breath to calm her voice. “Mrs. Went. Is your dad home?”
The gate started opening before Asher answered, “He’s downstairs being grumpy in his study.”
Must be a grump epidemic going around. “Thanks.” Lori drove up the long drive and parked under the tall portico. She grabbed her purse and walked to the open front door, while Asher waited for her with a sweet smile on his face.
“Hi, Mrs. Went.” Asher closed the door behind her.
“Hey, you. Happy birthday. Emily is looking forward to the party tomorrow.”
He nodded. “Me too. See ya.” He ran up the stairs and left her standing all alone in the foyer.
Lori walked toward the study and found the door slightly ajar. Should she knock? Or just barge in and blast him with the temper that she’d brewed up on the drive over? Plan B sounded the most satisfying, so she poked the door open and walked inside. Deek had his head inside a Pac- Man machine, and only his fine, jean-clad rear end was visible. She didn’t want to scare him and make him hit his head like she’d done when he’d been fixing the pipes in her kitchen, so she cleared her throat. Loudly.
He called out, “Just leave the plate on the desk, Mrs. Tomas.”
Mrs. Tomas? That must be the housekeeper he mentioned before. “It’s me, Deek. And I need to talk to you. Now!”
His shoulders jerked, and then he hit his head on the top of the machine with a loud thunk. He rubbed it as he turned around. He had his sexy glasses on and a T-shirt that said, Bad Spellers of The World—Untie! It was funny, but she refused to laugh. She’d stick to ripping the man a new one.