Free Gunning for the Groom by Debra Webb Page B

conversation with her mom, in the cemetery at her father’s grave, had been tense and ugly. Grief-stricken, she’d tossed out accusations and hammered Sophia with questions she wouldn’t answer. Frankie prepared for an awkward encounter, though Sophia would surely pour on the charm with Aidan around.
    Sunlight caught on the engagement ring. The fragrant scent of lilies filled the car. Frankie was showing up at her mother’s house with a fiancé and a bouquet of flowers. Her emotions swung from one extreme to the other with every heartbeat as Aidan pulled to a stop in front of the house. The struggle had her waffling between the idea that going to Victoria had been smart, and the possibility that it had been foolish. Frankie needed investigative support to get justice and clear her father’s name. No, she needed only one honest answer. It reminded her of being caught in an undertow. She could see the sunlight, knew where she needed to go, while an unseen force dragged her out to sea.
    She looked up at the tidy Craftsman house with trimmed hedges lining the walkway and steps up to the porch, which was framed with flower boxes on the railing. The ironwork table and chairs had decorated patios or porches in various homes where they’d lived around the world for as long as Frankie could remember. How many quiet moments had her parents shared at that table over the years? What did it mean that her mother still had those pieces?
    â€œThis makes no sense.”
    â€œWhich part?” Aidan studied her closely. “Your mom hasn’t seen the ring or me. There’s still time for the original game plan.”
    â€œThe engagement is the only piece of this puzzle I trust to work as expected.” Frankie stared at the table and chairs.
    â€œIs that an attempt to scare me off?”
    â€œNo.” Her heavy sigh rippled across the tissue covering the flowers. She pushed the bouquet into his hands. “We’re on, my darling fiancé. Let’s make it count.”
    They climbed out of the car and Aidan locked the doors with the key fob. “Play nice,” he murmured, brushing a kiss to her cheek as they walked up to the porch. “I’ve got your back.”
    She wanted to roll her eyes. He had no idea what he was walking into, though she was ridiculously grateful he was with her.
    Her mother must’ve been watching from a window. The front door flew open the moment they topped the stairs. Sophia hovered in the doorway, her hands clutched over her heart.
    â€œFrankie,” she breathed. “Oh, thank heaven. You’re home.” She drew her into a crushing hug.
    Frankie patted her mother’s shoulders, biting back the snide observation that a house she’d never seen couldn’t be home. There would be time for barbs like that later. Indulging her petty streak now would undermine the ultimate goal: to get the truth out of Sophia.
    â€œMom,” Frankie said, escaping the embrace. “This is Aidan Abbot.”
    Aidan extended the vase of flowers. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Leone.”
    Sophia’s eyes, shining with unshed tears, darted from Frankie to Aidan and back again. “Come in, come in. Any friend of Frankie’s—”
    â€œFiancé,” Frankie clarified. “We started as friends, though.” She imagined whoever she married—if she married—would have to be a friend first. She held up her hand to show off the ring and sell the lie. Sophia’s eyes widened and her lips parted, but she couldn’t seem to speak. When they got back to the hotel, Frankie would admit to Aidan that he had been right about the ring making all the difference.
    â€œOh, come in! Come in here and tell me everything.” Sophia gripped Frankie’s hand for a closer inspection. Looking to Aidan, she said, “You have excellent taste.”
    â€œI thought it suited her.” A smug grin crossed his face as