She walked in, then held out a bottle of wine. “A peace offering.”
One corner of her mouth turned up in a self-deprecating smile. “I’ll admit I took it from the wine cellar, so while it’s a peace offering in spirit, I actually boosted it from my great-aunt.”
“I’m sure Lillian won’t mind.”
The smile widened. “She would, in fact, approve. Lillian believes most problems in life can be mitigated with a cocktail or a glass of wine.”
He took the bottle, set it on his desk and turned back to her. She’d moved to the bed and was petting Charles II. She glanced at him over her shoulder.
“Are you a cat person?”
“No. I’ve never had a pet. They seem all right, even if there are a lot of them.”
“The cat population varies.”
“Lillian says right now it’s fifteen.”
Robyn sighed. “Last time I was here, it was about eight. She better keep her promise and live forever.”
“Because of the cats?”
“You inherit the house. I get the contents and the cats.”
“That’s a lot to take on.”
“It is.” She faced him. “I want to apologize for my behavior. I have a lot of excuses, but honestly none of them matter. I’m genuinely shocked at how I acted. That’s not me, except I did it, so I guess it is.” She shook her head. “There have been too many unpleasant revelations about my character lately. What’s up with that?”
He loved her voice. If it was a blanket, he would wrap himself in it and carry it with him wherever he went. As she talked, she moved her hands and tossed her head, causing her long hair to sway in a way designed to seduce the hardest of hearts.
She wore jeans tight enough to be interesting and one of those silky button-up shirts elegant women always seemed to have in their wardrobes. The dark purple color suited her, but then, Robyn was the kind of woman who would look good in tent flap.
She was still talking, and he forced himself to listen to the words rather than just admire the view.
“My point is,” she continued, “I was rude and unfriendly, and I accused you of taking advantage of my aunt, without a single shred of evidence you’d ever considered that. I’m ashamed, and I’m sorry.”
“No problem.”
She looked at him. “You’re not mad?”
“No.”
“But I said terrible things.”
“Which you regret. I understand. You didn’t know about me, and having me show up was a shock.”
“You’re very understanding.”
“I’m not here to hurt your aunt,” he told her.
“So I gathered. How long have you two been corresponding?”
“Over ten years.”
Perfectly arched eyebrows rose. “She never said a word.”
“But you knew I existed.”
“I’ve always known the house would be passed on.” The sexy smile returned. “There was speculation about you.” The smile faded. “I was such a bitch.”
“You weren’t.”
“Mason, I was awful. It’s been a very odd couple of weeks.” She raised a hand. “I’m not using that as an excuse. I’m just saying. So much has happened that has turned my world upside down.”
Her phone chirped. Robyn pulled the phone from her back pocket and read a text. Her happy, intimate smile had him wanting to put his fist into the face of whoever had caused that particular smile.
“My son,” she said. “He wants to know if I got here okay.”
The instant jealously faded as quickly as it had exploded. A kid he could handle.
She tucked the phone in her back pocket. “I said I was fine and that we’d talk later. I can’t wait to tell him about you. He’s going to be so excited.”
“How old is he?”
“Eighteen. I also have a twenty-two-year-old daughter.”
He did the math. “You had your kids young.”
“I was twenty when Harlow was born.”
“You don’t look forty-two.”
She laughed. “Thank you. Some days I feel older than Lillian, but that’s emotionally rather than physically. Ironically, my kids are nearly as much trouble now that they’re grown as they were when they were little. It’s just a different kind of trouble. Do you have children?”
“No.”
“A wife?”
“I’m divorced.” Twice, but why go into that?
“Me, too. A divorced woman with two grown kids.” She looked at him. “I ran away.”
“From?”
“My life. It’s temporary, but it’s what I did. I couldn’t deal with everything. Doesn’t that make me sound useless?”
“You came here to figure it out.”
“You can’t know that.”
“Isn’t it true?”
The smile reappeared. He felt the gut punch down to his groin.
“It is. I have no idea why I’m telling you this, but I’m going to anyway. My ex-husband is dating my daughter’s fiancé’s twin sister.” She laughed. “I’ll pause and let that sink in.”
Mason replayed her words, trying to get the information straight. “How old is her fiancé?”
“Twenty-six.”
“And the ex?”
“Forty-six.”
“She’s twenty years younger.”
“There is that.”
Mason didn’t get why guys did that. Sure, the sex, and then what? He’d always enjoyed a woman he could talk to—one who challenged him.
“And the twin sister? Your daughter can’t be happy.”
Robyn nodded. “She’s not. She’s really close to her dad, but he kept this from her. Plus Cord is the kind of guy who thinks it’s funny to talk about how if they get married, Zafina will be both stepmother and sister-in-law to Harlow.”
“Worse. He’d be his own daughter’s father and her brother-in-law.”
Robyn’s amazing blue eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. “Oh, no,” she breathed. “I never thought of that. You’re right. That’s so much worse. Her father is her brother-in-law? Shouldn’t that be illegal?”
“Absolutely.”
She still looked shell-shocked. “The only good thing is that Cord doesn’t tend to stay in relationships long.”
“I can see how finding out about that would make for a bad week for you.”
“It did. My boyfriend also told me I wasn’t good enough for him.” She paused. “Ex-boyfriend.”
“Not good enough for him? That’s not possible. Who does he think he is?” Mason forced himself to stop talking. There was a little too much energy in his voice.
What an asswipe. Any man who was lucky enough to be dating Robyn should get on his knees every damned day and thank God.
“He’s a cardiologist.”
“I don’t care if he runs the EU. He’s a moron.”
She smiled at him. “You’re defending me, and you don’t even know me. I could be an awful person.”
“No one who’s an awful person is willing to consider the possibility that she’s awful. Self-awareness requires intelligence, and your apology was sincere. Besides, you’re willing to be responsible for fifteen cats.”