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some men didn’t mind their wives arguing with them. Her smile died. She’d just picked the wrong man. And what did that say about her judgment? Since she never wanted a man in her life again, that was one less worry she had.
    “Welcome back to Santa Fe, Lance. Glad you could join us,” Luke said, his arm curved possessively around Catherine’s shoulders.
    “Thank you, Luke.” Lance tipped his dark head. “Thank you, Mrs. Grayson and Mrs. Poole, for allowing me to come unannounced.”
    Amanda waved his words aside. “We’re proud to have you. I’m glad you’re back, as well.”
    “When is your first auction?” Morgan asked.
    “Six weeks. The entire estate of Herbert Yates will be sold to satisfy creditors,” Lance explained. “With over eight thousand square feet of living space, the task is going to require some hard work and long hours.”
    “It’s unfortunate it had to come to that,” Mrs. Grayson said. “I wish there had been another way. He was a good man.”
    “Whose apparent philosophy was, you can’t take it with you,” Lance said slowly. “He spent lavishly. At least he wasn’t married and didn’t have any children.”
    “Would it have made a difference?” Fallon asked, hoping her voice wasn’t accusatory. Her good mood had vanished the instant she heard Lance worked with an auction house.
    To think she’d actually given a great deal of thought to going out with Lance. He was handsome and charming enough to interest her, and had a lazy, sensual smile that had probably led a lot of women astray. His voice had just enough growl in it to imagine it whispering naughty things in her ear before biting her earlobe. She never stayed in one place long enough to have a relationship. It helped that very few men made her want to get to know them romantically. Looked like her record was going to stand.
    The unscrupulous owner of an auction house had conned her mother into signing over papers to let him liquidate their estate when her father became ill. He’d given them pennies on the dollar. They had lost their home along with irreplaceable antiques handed down through generations. When her mother complained, he’d threatened to call the police. Because of his dishonesty, they’d lost everything
    Lance turned toward her. “No. I have a job to do and I do it.”
    So had the bastard who had cheated her family. Her hand clenched on the stem of her glass of wine. She had her answer. She was seething, but she wasn’t going to let it ruin the day for Kayla or the people who had invited her. But if she didn’t get out of there in a hurry, she’d dash the excellent Bordeaux in Lance’s too-handsome face.
    Subtly shifting away from him, trying her best to keep a smile on her face, she carefully placed the flute on the pristine white tablecloth and made herself relax. She had a quick temper, but this special event was no place to let it get the best of her.
    “Naomi, are you ready to leave?”
    “I—” Naomi stammered, throwing a furtive look at Richard.
    Seeing the uncertainty in Naomi’s eyes, Fallon could have kicked Lance for putting her in a position to leave when it was obvious Naomi wanted to stay. And who could blame her? Unlike his scum cousin, Richard was a great guy.
    “Naomi,” Richard said as he turned to her. “I was hoping we could take Kayla to the new Disney movie. Or, if you’d like to stay longer, I’ll take you and Kayla home when you’re ready.”
    “Kayla, how about going to a movie?” Naomi asked her daughter, already knowing the answer.
    “Yeah!” Kayla shouted. “And I get to hold the popcorn.”
    A shy smile on her lips, Naomi said, “Fallon, thank you for the ride. We’re staying.”
    “I’ll catch you later.” Fallon pulled her matching robin’s-egg-blue leather wallet out of her hobo handbag.
    “Not necessary,” Luke said to her, waving away Lance with his billfold as well. “My invitation. My treat. I’m glad you could come and bring our special