Howard stared at his family, holding Isabel’s warm body close to his side, daring them to say something. His brother and Amanda looked embarrassed, his grandmother smiled warmly, but his mother and sister glared back at him.
“I told you I’d bring her to dinner, mother,” he said. “So please tell me what she’s doing in your living room drinking tea without me.”
“We just wanted to get to know her,” his mother said.
“I see,” he said. “Well now you know her, and we’re leaving.”
His mother’s face fell, “Please don’t be angry, Howard. I know how much you work, and I figured she was bored all alone in that drafty house you keep. I thought she would enjoy the company.”
“How thoughtful,” he snapped.
“How was work, by the way?” his mother asked.
“Fine,” he said, thou
