Free Long Gone by Marliss Melton, Janie Hawkins Page A

mother’s cheek. 
    “I left dinner in the fridge for you,” she said. The smile hovering around her rosy lips snared Drake’s attention. It occurred to him that she looked nothing like she used to look when she was married to his father. She’d cut her dark hair into a short, sassy style that made her seem ten years younger. Zumba classes had toned her petite body so that she looked thirty-something instead of fifty-two. It had taken her almost three years to get over his father’s abandonment, but by all appearances, she was better now, and that was all that mattered.
    If his mother could move on with her life, then why couldn’t he? Because he’d promised Sky that he’d wait for her forever, and it’d only been two months.
    “Thanks. I’ll go change first.” He started to head for his basement apartment when he stopped to ask, “Whose car is that in the driveway, anyway?” 
    “ That belongs to my new interior decorator.” Karen’s brown eyes sparkled. She bit her lower lip to keep herself from smiling. 
    Drake frowned in confusion. “ You have an interior decorator?”
    “I’m redoing the living room and kitchen,” she announced with a wave of her hand. “Time for a new look, don’t you think?”
    “Right.” Either his mother had completely moved on or she was going through a midlife crisis.
    “I hope you don’t mind,” she added, “but my decorator will be moving in with us.”
    “Mom,” he protested. “You don’t need to rent out rooms.” A sudden thought speared him. “Dad hasn’t been shirking on his alimony, has he?”
    “Oh, she’s not renting a room from me,” Karen assured him. “She’ll be staying in the basement with you.”
    “What?” His mother wasn’t making any sense.
    There was only one bedroom in the basement, only one bed, and she knew his devotion to Skyler . . .   Wait a minute .
    “How rude of me,” she suddenly exclaimed, casting off her apron. “Of course, you’ll want to meet her first.” Grabbing his hand, she pulled him into the living area. “Sasha, dear. My son is home and wants to make your acquaintance.”
    A raven-haired woman stood at the picture window wielding a tape measure, her back to them. Drake’s heart suspended its beat as his disbelieving gaze recognized the slim, graceful outline of her hips. The hair color was different, but when she turned to look at him, the heart-stopping curves of her face confirmed his hopeful guess. “Sky!”
    Dropping her tape measure, she ran into his arms. They met in a crush of lips and chests and thighs. 
    “Drake,” she breathed against his chin. He could feel her trembling in his embrace as he buried his nose in the hollow under her ear to inhale the scent of honeysuckle and gardenia.  
    “It’s really you.” He pulled back just far enough to feast his gaze on her. “What are you doing here?” He tightened his hold on her. “Are you in danger?”
    She shook her glossy hair, as black as midnight, with eyebrows dyed to match. “I’m fine,” she assured him. Her eyes sparkled with news she was clearly dying to tell. “I’m free. Higgins said your father took down all the key players that Milton was protecting. WITSEC will continue to monitor my safety, and I still have to live under an alias, but I get to live my own life now.” 
    “You’re serious.” He couldn’t believe his ears. 
    “Completely serious.” She clutched him tighter in her excitement. “I’ve decided to use my degree in interior design. Your mother has looked at my ideas and she’s given me my first big job.” Uncertainty overtook her optimism. “I hope that’s okay with you.”
    He tossed back his head and laughed. “Okay? Okay doesn’t come close, babe.” He blinked back the tears in his eyes. “This is a dream come true.” Turning with her in his arms, he eyed his mother in wonder. “How long have you known ?”
    “Just a couple of days,” she said with a shrug and a doting smile.  “It was