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how lucrative a story about the Merricks is, so I’m very protective of my family.”

      “Sloan. Please, at least let Ms. Hamilton catch her breath before you give her the third degree.”

      Jade Hamilton walked to the wicker sofa and sat down next to his mother. “Mrs. Merrick, it’s so nice to finally meet you. You have a lovely home. It’s so bright and sunny in here.”

      The sunroom had rows of windows that overlooked the rose garden. It also expressed his mother’s culture with the hand-painted floor tiles and brightly colored walls.

      Sloan saw Ms. Hamilton had turned a bright smile at his mother. “It must be a comfort to you to be able to be in familiar surroundings during your recovery.”

      “It is,” Louisa said as her eyes brightened. “I decorated this house, turned it into a home right after Sloan and I moved in.” She looked at him. “Remember, son, how the place resembled a museum?”

      “Yes, Mother, I do.”

      “I had my husband add this room. I needed sunlight … and some color.”

      Sloan cleared his throat. “Maybe we should start the interview.”

      Ms. Hamilton blinked those gorgeous eyes at him. “I thought your mother already had.” She turned back to Louisa. “What questions do you want to ask me, Mrs. Merrick?”

      “I think it’s time you call me Louisa.”

      “And I’m Jade.”

      “What a lovely name. I can see why your mother named you that. Your eyes are striking.”

      Jade couldn’t stop shaking, afraid that any minute they’d discover who she was. “Thank you. My mother told me when she saw their color she couldn’t come up with anything else.”

      Sloan stood. He wasn’t going to be taken in by a pretty face again. Not where his mother was concerned.

      “Around here we’re big on family names,” Louisa continued. “My son was christened John Sloan Merrick. Sloan is his biological father’s name and then my husband, Clay, adopted him when he was eight.”

      Sloan crossed the room. “Mother, I don’t think we need to go into family history.”

      “He’s right,” Jade said, giving him a sideways glance. “This is an interview. Ask me whatever you want, Mr. Merrick.”

      “Your last place of employment?”

      Jade reached into her oversize purse and pulled out her résumé. She handed it to him. “I worked at a small private hospital in Dallas before I took a leave of absence to be with my mother during the last months before she passed away.” Jade felt the tears and willed them not to fall. “She had multiple sclerosis for years.”

      “Oh, I’m sorry.” Louisa sighed. “That must have been so hard on you.”

      Jade didn’t expect to feel an instant liking for this woman. That was what made this so hard. “Thank you. My consolation is that I know she’s isn’t suffering any longer.”

      “That has to be comforting for you,” the older woman said as she took hold of her hand.

      Jade saw the woman’s honest concern and felt the warmth in her touch. She also had the sudden urge to run out and forget it all, especially with Sloan Merrick watching her so closely. She wanted this job. It would be her best chance to get to see the senator. “Enough about me. What about you, Louisa?”

      Sloan started to speak, but his mother sent him a look. He backed off.

      Louisa’s expression softened as she said, “I want my life back. And I’ll do whatever it takes.”

      Jade found herself smiling. “That’s the good news. And as we discussed on the phone, I plan to help you do that. It will also take some hard work and determination on your part.”

      Louisa’s son did interrupt this time. “Well, we want to thank you for coming by, Ms. Hamilton. We will let you know our decision.”

      Jade rose from the sofa. Okay, so it wasn’t a total success. He would get her out of there before she could meet any of the family, or allow Louisa to make a decision. “I’ll be staying in town at the Cross Creek Bed and Breakfast for the next few days.” She started for the French doors when she heard her name.

      “Jade, wait,” Louisa called to her.

      She paused and turned around.

      “There’s no need to go yet,” the older woman told her. “This is my decision.”

      “Mother,” Sloan said, visibly unhappy.

      The older woman straightened. “No, Sloan, this is my choice. Since this happened …” She held up her arm. “No one has asked me how I feel about anything. Well, I’m telling you how I feel now. I asked Jade to come here.”

      Jade spoke up, hoping to calm the situation. “It’s okay, Louisa. Maybe your husband should be involved in this decision, too.”

      “Clay? He’s busy working on an energy bill in Washington.” She sighed. “Take some advice, Jade, don’t get involved with a politician. They’re never home, and your private life gets plastered all over the newspapers.”

      Jade stiffened. “I’ll remember that.”

      Sloan wanted to be as enthusiastic as his mother. But years in the political circus had made him leery of strangers, especially when it came to his family’s privacy. For himself, he’d been burned good, too, but managed to survive. Yet, he still didn’t trust strangers. “Mother, I have some questions for Ms. Hamilton.”

      She frowned. “I’m not going to change my mind. This is my decision to make.”

      He knew he’d gotten his stubbornness from Louisa Cruz Sloan Merrick. The daughter of poor immigrants, she was a one-time beauty queen, and had worked hard to graduate college and marry well. Twice. And she’d been the best mother a son could ask for.

      “Do you have any objection if I take Jade for a walk in the garden?”

      His mother glared at him.

      “I’m only going to warn her about how persistent you can be when you want your way.”

      Louisa turned to Jade and smiled sweetly. “Did I warn you how impossible my son could be?”

      Jade smiled. “He’s only concerned about you.”

      His mother turned back to him. “I will give you fifteen minutes. Then I’d like to show Jade the exercise room upstairs. That’s where I’ll be.”

      Marta came through the door and helped Louisa with her walker.

      A distant cousin, Marta had worked for the family since she was a girl. Now both she and her husband, Miguel, were employed by the Merricks. Louisa had always been loyal to her family and friends.

      Being too trusting was one of his mother’s faults. That and being sucked in by strangers. Jade Hamilton was definitely a stranger. He’d learned the hard way that trouble sometimes comes wrapped in pretty packages. Crystal Erickson had been beautiful and distracting. So much so, he let his guard down. It had been an embarrassment for the family. Never again.

      After his mother left, Sloan crossed the room and opened the doors that led onto a large patio area and the garden beyond.

      “Let’s take advantage of the pleasant fall weather.” Jade stepped out into the brick patio framed with large ceramic pots of flowers. A manicured lawn was edged with numerous tea roses of every imaginable color. “Oh, my, this is lovely.”

      “Gardening is another of my mother’s many hobbies.

      She loves to quilt, too.”

      “It’s nice that she has so many interests.”

      “That

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