Susan Andersen - Cutting Loose

She stared at him. “And that was a bad thing?” It sounded comforting to her, all those people concerned about your welfare, interested in what was going on in your day.

“Hell, yeah. I was smothered. You must have suffered something similar yourself.”

“Huh?”

“Being an only child. Tell me that wasn’t constant attention of another sort.”

She stopped herself from laughing in his face, but just barely. Aside from when her folks had felt the need of an audience for their theatrics, parental attention had been in short supply in her house. Mike and Dorrie had a passion for each other that was always front and center. They fought hugely and made up extravagantly. Rarely, however, had that ardor spilled over onto her. Devlin had felt smothered by all the attention he’d received? She’d been so lonesome sometimes she’d just wanted to curl up and cry.

Luckily, she’d had Poppy and Ava to keep her from diving head-first into the pity pool. Over and over again they’d saved her from her parents’ lunacy, from being the odd one out in her own home, and Jane considered them her true family. So had Miss Agnes been.

“So am I right?” he inquired, cutting into her thoughts.

She gazed at him across the table. His bright hair glinted with exotic fire beneath the lights and his eyes were narrowed with amusement as he looked back at her.

“I’m right, aren’t I?” he demanded. “Your folks probably saw your potential early and hounded you to death to live up to their idea of it.”

Not. Oh, man, so not. But she wasn’t about to admit the way it really was-not to someone who’d had an army of people doting on his every move.

Instead she gave him a small smile.

“Wow. That’s downright uncanny. You’re obviously a student of human nature. But hey, you don’t need me to tell you that. I bet you hear it all the time.” She looked at her watch. “Oh, man, look at the time. I’m sorry, I’ve gotta run.” She had to get out of here, had to get out of here, had to-

She closed up her carton and stuffed it in its sack. Pulled on her coat.

Then met his gaze once more. “Well. This has been, um, nice. We’ll have to do it again sometime.”

Like when hell froze over.

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