Aunt Delia’s disapproving frown over breakfast the next morning—when Marge was long gone—had had a chilling effect on his lovelife. Of course, that scowl might have had something to do with the fact that Aunt Delia regarded that particular branch of the Taylor line as little better than trailer trash. Nothing he could say about Marge’s superb wit, high IQ, and college degree was likely to change her opinion.
“You keep snooping like that, you’ll get a crick in your back,” Kevin told her now.
“Didn’t have to put my ear to the keyhole this time,” his aunt replied, clearly unfazed by the accusation. “You two had the volume up so loud it interrupted my favorite show. It was a lot better than listening to some cross-dressing weirdo on a talk show.”
Kevin shuddered, appalled and thoroughly baffled by her addiction to tabloid TV. “Why do you watch that stuff anyway?”
“A woman my age has to keep on top of what’s going on in the world.”
“Then you must have a mighty peculiar view of the state of affairs,” Kevin said. “You need to get out more. See some normal folks.”
“You took away my car keys,” she reminded him.
“After you mowed down six mailboxes in a row.”
She shrugged. “Accidents happen.”
“A few too many times in your case. I’ll take you anyplace you want to go.”
“So you say.”
“I will.”
She gave him a sly look. “Including that off-track betting parlor on the river?” she inquired a bit too eagerly.
Kevin saw too late the trap he had set for himself and resigned himself to an afternoon of keno and horse racing. “Tomorrow,” he agreed.
Aunt Delia seemed surprised by the easy capitulation. “Must mean you’re hoping to run across that woman again. What did you say her name was?”
“I didn’t. It’s Gracie,” he said, rather liking the way it sounded. Old-fashioned. Prim and proper. Yep, that was Gracie, all right. Getting her to loosen up was going to improve his summer considerably.
“She’s right pretty, if you like the type,” Aunt Delia said slyly.
“I didn’t notice.”
“Hogwash! The day you don’t notice a woman will be the day they put you in the ground, Kevin Patrick. It amazes me still that one of them hasn’t caught you by fair means or foul. Goodness knows, half the female population of the Northern Neck has tried hard enough.”
Her expression turned thoughtful. “Of course, that’s the problem, isn’t it? They’re all trying too hard. What’s the challenge in that? You need a woman who won’t go all weak-kneed just looking at you. Struck me that this Gracie of yours has spunk.”
“I just met the woman. She is not my Gracie.”
“Whatever. She looks as if she could keep you on your toes. Probably too much woman for you, now that I think about it.”
Kevin fought a surge of indignation and lost. “The woman hasn’t been born who’d be too much for me,” he grumbled.
“So you say.”
“Do you have a license for all this analysis you’re doing?”
“I have something better. I have years of experience. You’d do well to listen to me once in a while.”
“I listen to every word you say.”
“And then pick and choose which half of them to ignore.”
He couldn’t deny that at least half of it fell on deaf ears. “Okay, Aunt Delia, let’s leave me out of this for a minute,” he suggested on a more somber note. “Bottom line. Do you really want me to sell your house to Gracie MacDougal so she can turn it into a bed-and-breakfast?”
For a second, she looked nonplussed by the direct question. Then she squared her shoulders and looked him in the eye, challenging him right back. “Might’s well,” she said. “You won’t let me near the place. It’s a shame to let it sit there, when it could be filled with laughter again.”
His gaze narrowed. He was missing something here. She had fought tooth and nail every suggestion he’d made about putting the house on the market. She’d insisted, in fact, on putting it in his name, though as far as he was concerned it was still hers to do with as she liked.
“Do you mean that?” he asked. “I thought you loved that old house.”
“I do. I spent my entire life in that house. Not a minute goes by that I don’t miss it, but I’m not a fool, Kevin. I know it was getting to be too much for me. I’m better off here with you, though why you’d rather be out here in this mausoleum instead of in town is beyond me.”
She surveyed him, then shrugged. “Besides, you need somebody around who can stand up to you. None of those pitiful Daniels relatives of yours has the gumption to put you in your place when you deserve it. And Molly’s been catering to your every whim since the day you were born. I’ve never seen a housekeeper who’s so taken in by a smile and an occasional kind word. That leaves me to see you don’t get too big for your britches.”
Her eyes sparkled mischievously. “Something tells me that MacDougal girl could hold her own with you, though. I wouldn’t mind watching the negotiations for the house, just to see the sparks fly.”
“Maybe,” he conceded cautiously. He knew what she was up to. She was laying the groundwork for throwing him into more frequent contact with Gracie. He had a hunch, though, that any actual deal would be a very long time coming. Aunt Delia was especially fond of fireworks, especially of the human variety.
“She didn’t back down when you said no, did she?” his aunt pointed out.
“True. She said she’d be back.”
“Good. Next time, I want to meet her.”
The very thought of such a meeting sent a chill through him. He shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“Why on earth not? It is my house she wants to buy, isn’t it?”
“And we both know you’d give it away if you took a shine to the potential buyer. I won’t have you being cheated. If the time comes when you’ve given the matter some thought and you decide you want to sell, I’ll handle the negotiations.”
“Then keep the lines of communication open with Gracie MacDougal. Something tells me she’ll pay top dollar,” she said, regarding him with a canny look. “If that’s all you’re interested in.”
“We’ll talk about it when you’ve thought it over,” he repeated. “In the meantime, you stay the heck away from Ms. MacDougal.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know, getting to know a stranger might relieve some of the boredom around here.”
His aunt went to more luncheons and tea parties than the Queen of England, but Kevin played along.
“I already told you I’d take you to the off-track betting place tomorrow,” he reminded her. “We’ll have lunch, watch a few races. You can throw some of your savings down the tube.”
“Yes, and that will be real nice, but there’s a movie I’ve been wanting to see, too,” she mentioned oh-so-casually. “It’s playing in Fredericksburg.”
For pure sneakiness, Aunt Delia could put the Daniels side of the family to shame. “And you think these two outings will relieve the tedium?” he asked.
“It’ll