Victoria wasn’t about to let her guard down.

When Teague reached out to her, she called Marcus right away.

“Pick a time, and I’ll go with you,” she offered.

Marcus had never dared to contact “Fannie” directly-it was Max who’d gotten her

in trouble, not Victoria. He figured Victoria might know a thing or two about cars,

but the idea that she could actually fix one? That sounded like a joke, and he didn’t take it seriously.

“Sounds good. I still have your coat from last time. I’ve had it cleaned, so I’ll bring it when we meet.”

“Don’t worry about it.”

As soon as Marcus hung up, everyone at the table stared at him.

“What are you all looking at?” he snapped, glancing around.

Isaac gave him a pointed look. “Was that your girlfriend calling?”

After the Curtis fiasco-who had been so eager to show off his new romance, only

to crash and burn—they’d all learned not to pressure Marcus to introduce the mysterious woman.

“It was just about something else,” Marcus replied coolly.

McNeil took a sip of his drink, his gaze lingering on Marcus.

Something about Marcus’s suit looked awfully familiar.

“What brand do you usually wear?” McNeil asked, as if the thought had just occurred to him.

Marcus wasn’t sure why McNeil cared, but answered with a shrug, “Tailor-made. If you’re interested, I can have my team set you up.”

McNeil pressed his lips together, then asked, “How many of that style are out there?”

Marcus frowned, growing irritated. “You think I get my suits wholesale? Every one is made to my measurements. Whose chest and abs are going to match mine down to the millimeter?”

McNeil stared at him, his fists clenching under the table.

Finally, he asked, “What’s the name of the woman you’re interested in?”

Marcus was puzzled by McNeil’s sudden nosiness. He’d never cared about this stuff before.

“Fannie,” Marcus replied.

McNeil’s hands slowly relaxed.

Isaac, oblivious to the tension, piped up, “So when are you and Violet finally getting married?”

A little ways off, Violet was playing with Gwyneth, the two of them looking so much like mother and daughter-even their outfits matched.

The three of them-Isaac, Marcus, and McNeil-had watched McNeil and Violet’s on-again, off-again relationship over the years. Now that they were all getting older, they couldn’t help feeling anxious for the couple.

McNeil gave Isaac a look of disbelief. “There’s not going to be a wedding.”

His thoughts drifted to Victoria.

She’d been keeping busy lately, and he hardly heard from her anymore. Back when he’d made it clear he was heading to Violet’s, Victoria would still call every so often, as if keeping tabs on him.

But lately, with Violet’s surgery, her recovery, and everything else he had to plan for her future, McNeil had barely had a moment to himself.

Only now, in a rare quiet moment, did he realize how long it had been since Victoria had called to pester him.

Feeling restless, McNeil stood and walked away from the group to make a call.

He suddenly wanted to know what Victoria had been up to.

He dialed home. Xenia, the housekeeper, answered.

“Sir?”

“Where’s Mrs. McNeil?”

It struck him that it had been a while since he’d seen Haley, too.

“She’s not home,” Xenia replied, sounding a little surprised. Did Mr. McNeil really not know that his wife was hardly ever home these days? Sometimes she didn’t come back at all.

Xenia had also noticed that the suit Mrs. McNeil asked her to clean wasn’t the Mr. McNeil’s. Last time, he’d been furious and told her to burn it.

Could it be that Mrs. McNeil had someone else on the side?

“I’m fine,” McNeil said, ending the call, but he couldn’t help the small smile tugging at his lips.

Marcus came over and clapped him on the shoulder. “I’ve got to head out,” he said.