Slow Hands

loved his wife—okay, she didn’t quite fit in the example because, as far as Maddy was concerned, Deborah was a bitch who didn’t deserve him. But hopefully the woman had now been “scared straight” by her close call at the auction.
    She hoped so. Her father certainly seemed to love the woman. He’d shown no signs that his attention was waning, even though they’d been married for a year and had dated for four years before that.
    So maybe all the Turners were changing. Every one of them. Maybe even her.
    They’d reached the lobby floor, and as Tabby led them out of the elevator, Maddy saw into the arched opening of the private room in the restaurant, and stiffened. Oliver was a rotten jerk to be here, when he knew she’d be coming. And she could not even fathom what her father must be feeling, knowing how utterly furious he became at even the mention of her ex’s name.
    “It’ll be fine,” Jake reminded her in a whisper.
    “Stay close.”
    “I won’t let him bother you.”
    “I don’t give a damn about him,” she muttered. “But if Bitsy Wellington puts a hand on you I might chop it off with a steak knife.”
    He threw his head back and laughed, all good humor and masculine sexiness, as they entered the restaurant.
    Everyone stopped talking. Every older person—her father, her aunts, family friends—smiled, probably thinking Maddy had found the right man at last. And every single woman in the place almost certainly envied her.
    She kept her arm wrapped tightly in his, silently staking her claim.
    They were welcomed with a round of introductions, then quickly seated just before the dinner began. Breathing a sigh of relief that things had gone smoothly so far, Maddy took note of every detail, especially the layout of the room.
    She strongly suspected there’d been some rearranging going on before they’d arrived. She and Jake were not seated with the bridal party, but rather at a side table with a few family friends. One of her cousins and her husband sat near Maddy’s father, in the direct line of sight of Bitsy and Oliver’s table.
    Oh, yes. Somebody had switched the name cards. Thank goodness.
    Unfortunately, there had been no way out for Tabby, who cast such obvious glares at Oliver that it was amazing he hadn’t had the sense—not to mention courtesy—to get up and leave. Then again, he certainly hadn’t displayed either of those traits before tonight…why start now?
    “I wonder how Dad’s holding up,” she whispered, her gaze continuing to return to the older man. He appeared fine on the surface, smiling and exchanging small talk with the parents of the groom. But Maddy had seen him cast more than a few hard stares in her ex’s direction, and every time he did, his face went a shade redder.
    “He doesn’t look great,” Jake replied. Then, his eyes narrowing, he craned his neck to peer around the small sea of people separating them from the head table. “The blonde, beside him, is that your stepmother?”
    “In the flesh.” Did that sound too sour?
    “She looks familiar.”
    “She tried to buy you, remember?”
    “It’s something else…. Oh, God, now I remember.” Jake leaned closer, obviously realizing his loud pronouncement had caught the attention of a few people around them. “She’s the one who told me how to find you.”
    Maddy didn’t understand.
    “That night, after you left, I was trying to track you down. I told you a woman told me your name and where you worked.”
    “ Deborah? Are you kidding? I figured it was Tabby!”
    “It was Deborah, definitely.”
    How unexpected. Maybe pure embarrassment had led to the older woman’s actions. It was the only explanation Maddy could come up with.
    Glancing at the head table, she noted the stiff way her stepmother sat at her father’s side. Deborah lifted her glass, stared into the ruby red-wine within it, then tossed it back, gesturing to the waiter for another.
    So unhappy. So very unhappy.
    Much, she had to admit, as her sister looked. Tabby, a few seats down, had a tight, forced smile on her lips. And while her chair was close to Bradley’s, they didn’t touch. Not at all.
    “What the hell is going on here?” she whispered.
    “I don’t know. I just know she told me how to find you, So even though she tried to buy me like a side of beef, I’m ready to kiss the woman.”
    Maddy put her hand on Jake’s forearm, which rested on the edge of the table. Smiling at one of the bridesmaids, who’d stared