Marybell twisted one of her rings on her thumb. “Eyes open or closed? Because it doesn’t count if you had the lights on but your eyes were closed, little lady.”
Oh. Well, who wanted to see all of their flabby parts jiggling, and who’d made up these rules?
You did. You did last night, Em. You wanted to see all of it, and when you did, you liked it. Your eyes were wide-open.
LaDawn’s eyes found Em’s over Marybell’s spiked head. She searched them for a moment and must have sensed Em’s panic. She smiled in her direction before addressing Dixie. “Ladies? Why are we talkin’ about sex when we have other, more important matters at hand? Like who, in all of heaven and hell, keeps takin’ my meatball Hot Pockets from the lunchroom? I can’t keep livin’ like this, Dixie Davis. How can you expect me to truly perform my duties as a proper companionator when I don’t have the right nourishment?”
“Me, I think that was me,” a voice said from behind LaDawn’s tall frame.
Marybell jumped, the chains on her belt loop cracking against the desk.
Em put a hand on Marybell’s hand to soothe her. She understood. She’d spent all morning jumping when she heard Jax’s voice every time she turned around today. A Hawthorne could do that to a woman, among the other wicked things he did to a woman. “Ladies, this is Taggart Hawthorne. He’s going to be doing some work around Call Girls. I’m trustin’ you to treat him nice.”
Marybell slipped from the desk, head down, and nodded on her way out the door. “Nice to meet you. I have to go before my shift starts. Talk to you guys later.” She wiggled some fingers over her shoulder and ducked around LaDawn and Tag.
Both Em and Dixie shared a confused glance before their attention was redirected to LaDawn—who was preparing to sharpen her claws—on an unsuspecting Tag.
LaDawn spun around, her lips in a flirty pout, her eyes playful when she widened them at Tag. “So it’s you who has a hankerin’ for my midnight snacks?”
Tag nodded his head, the dark wisps of his hair poking out from under his knit cap rustling on his down jacket. “My apologies. I thought the boss stocked the fridge. I didn’t realize it was your personal stash.”
LaDawn held her hand out and winked, letting her false eyelashes flutter outrageously. “I shoulda labeled it, but just so you know, I’ll share my stash with you whenever you want.”
Tag took her hand and gave it a shake, the tips of his ears turning red. “I appreciate it, ma’am,” he mumbled low, and reminiscent of Jax.
“Do you like chocolate? Come with me and I’ll show you my secret Snickers hiding place.” LaDawn hooked her arm through his and directed poor Tag away from Em’s office.
Dixie was up in a shot from the chair. “I’d better go save him before we lose another Hawthorne to the wiles of a Call Girls woman.”
Em’s ears pricked—getting all hot, and her stomach plunged. “Lose another Hawthorne?”
Dixie nodded. “Well, yes. We already lost Jax to you.”
Em’s lips went flat. “I told you—”
“You’re not having sex.” She flapped a hand on her way out. “I heard all about it. I didn’t believe it, but I heard it. And you are, too!”
“I am not!”
“Are, too! Are, too! Are, too!” she sang down the hallway, her husky laugh a deliberate taunt.
Disgusted with how thinly she’d veiled her lies, Em reached for her purse and noted her mother had called. She’d ignore it, but it could have to do with the boys. She pressed her mother’s number and put her on speaker. “Mama? Are the boys all right?”
“Well, it’s about time, young lady.”
Em’s chest tightened. It didn’t matter if her mother was calling her to remind her to pick up a gallon of milk, she still dreaded talking to her. “What’s wrong, Mama?”
“Where were you last night? I called your house phone and you weren’t there.”
That’s because I was having sex with Jax. Her face flooded red. Oh, dear Heaven. She could never confide that to her mother. “I think I fell asleep and didn’t hear it. I’m sorry, Mama.”
“What kind of mother doesn’t keep the phone right by her ear when her children are away?”
The bad kind. The dirty kind. She swallowed hard. “Did something happen I need to know about?”
Clora gave a grunt—one full of disapproval. “You need to know you should pay better attention when your children are in the care of someone else.”
“Are you sayin’ I should be worried when they’re with you, Mama?” Whoa. Em looked around her office. Where had that kind of rebellion come from? She rarely defied her mother. She rarely defied anyone. What was happening to her?
But it diffused Clora’s scorn. “No. I’m sayin’ you should be available at all times,” she blustered.
Em almost forgot about her mother when she saw her phone blinking. “I’ll make sure I am, Mama. I have to go now. Talk soon.” She hung up to the tune of her mother’s mumbling. She could even ruin winning the lottery, and lately, it had become a heavy weight she just couldn’t shake.