Baltimore 03 - Did You Miss Me?

thought about the bra and the boxers. This seemed a situation better handled by his mother. Because he just might kill the guy and that might be wrong.
    ‘Just put on your clothes. Please.’ He hurried to his father’s study, where there was a light on under the door. He knocked then went in, not waiting for a reply. ‘Dad, have you seen Mom? She needs to— Oh, hell no.’ He spun around for the second time in as many minutes. ‘Goddamn hell.’
    Yes, his father had seen his mother. And now, so have I .
    ‘God put doors on rooms for a reason, Joseph,’ his mother said impatiently.
    ‘Next time wait for me to say come in,’ his father added, in a sour voice.
    Joseph could hear zippers zipping and wanted to stick his fingers in his ears. ‘What is wrong with you people? Is this house under some kind of sex spell?’
    ‘What are you talking about?’ his father asked.
    ‘I just caught Holly and some guy named Dillon . . . You need to do something.’
    ‘She is twenty-eight, Joseph,’ his mother said. ‘You can turn around now.’
    ‘No. I’m never turning around again. You’re okay with her doing it on the sofa?’
    ‘Well, no,’ his mother said. ‘I’ll have a talk with Holly about appropriate spaces. But Joseph, you need to know . . . Dillon’s asked to marry her.’
    Joseph turned around at that, staring at his mother. ‘Is that okay with you?’
    ‘Maybe you didn’t hear the first time?’ his mother said. ‘She’s twenty-eight. So is he. They are adults with Down syndrome who work full-time and are quite capable of living independently, with a little help from us. We like him. And he loves her.’
    Joseph blew out a breath, humbled. ‘I guess I can’t ask for more than that.’
    ‘This is what we’ve prepared her for, Joseph. A life of her own, just like any of our other children. I’m sure Holly wanted you to find out a little differently, though.’
    ‘I could live my whole life without seeing any of this again.’
    His mother climbed out of his father’s lap, lightly slapping Jack’s hands away when he tried to drag her back. ‘I’d better take Dillon home.’
    ‘He doesn’t drive?’
    ‘Most of the time yes, but he’s wise enough to ask for a lift when the weather is bad, like tonight. I hope you didn’t threaten to kill him. He’s a sensitive young man.’
    ‘I would never threaten to kill him.’
    ‘You threatened to make her last three boyfriends eunuchs,’ his mother said, exasperated. ‘And then I had to explain to Holly what a eunuch was. I love you, Joseph, but you’re uptight. Other people have sex lives, including your father and me. We did make four children.’
    ‘Please,’ he begged. ‘No more. I’m sorry. I just . . . Bleach my eyes.’
    His mother’s eyes twinkled. ‘Well, sugar, that just answered my next question. You’ve been spending time with Daphne.’ She sobered. ‘How is she?’
    Joseph’s body hardened, just remembering how she was, then he felt guilty as hell. ‘She’s holding up, for now. Stevie woke up, so we’ve had some good news.’
    ‘We heard. Paige called.’ She studied Joseph’s face, suddenly sad. ‘You don’t think you’re going to find Ford, do you?’
    ‘There are so many possibilities. I don’t even know why he was taken.’
    She patted his cheek tenderly. ‘I’m sorry, son. You never said why you came tonight. What can we do for you?’
    ‘I wanted to be sure you all were okay, that the police had been providing good security. I should have come earlier, but I’ve had kind of a busy day.’
    ‘We know,’ his mother said dryly. ‘The police have been kind. We don’t need them, though. You’ve always had us locked up tighter than Fort Knox.’
    ‘I didn’t want to take any chances.’
    ‘And we appreciate that. We’re really fine, so stop worrying. I’ll go see to Holly now. You visit with your dad.’
    Joseph had a hard time looking at his father. His father, on the other hand, seemed to find Joseph’s discomfort wildly amusing. ‘If you could have seen the look on your face,’ his father said, chuckling.
    ‘Look, Dad, I’m really happy you and Mom have a healthy . . . God . . . love life, but no kid wants to think of their parents that way.’
    ‘I know.’ His father walked over to his desk where he kept the good Scotch. ‘Are you here for the night? Can I pour you a drink?’
    ‘Yes and yes. Make it a double, please.’ He sat down next to the fire. ‘Zoe’s