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shoved the phone back into its case at her hip. 

CHAPTER 8
    Talmus was not in 'some slut's bed.'  He was in his own bed where he slept every night.  He knew his mother and sister thought he was a merciless womanizer, but he was anything but that.  It had been months since he had been with any woman.  He was slow about forming close relationships and commitments.  When he got the itch, he'd go to a club and spot a nice chic that was looking for a one-night stand, but here lately that sort of life had grown increasingly distasteful to him and his sexual ardor had done more waning than waxing.  
    His mom and sister also thought he was no more than some weightlifting jock that spent his days preening and primping his hard body, but once again he was something entirely different.  He was a fitness trainer for postpartum women.  He had a clandestine relationship with the obstetrical department at Baptist Memorial Hospital.  Anyone interested in training after six weeks of giving birth were often referred to him and he would have her back in shape within six to twelve months.
    Most of the women in his life were married, breastfeeding, and juggling babies, husbands, and full-time jobs.  There was nothing especially glamourous about any of it, except the attention.  Women of every size, race, and economic level adored him.  His pretty boy image boosted his appeal, but the real diamond in his armor was his personality.  He was patient, empathetic and motivational.  His curly black hair, deep dimples, and honey brown skin was a treat for the low-spirited and emotionally drained women who spent hours in his company laboring to get their bodies back while underneath his tutelage.  He secretly enjoyed the esteem they held him in and cherished it.  
    Pam had been disdainful of him ever since he had reached puberty.  Unlike Ramsey, Talmus understood clearly where his mother was coming from.  He had no idea of what exactly had happened in her past to make her so militant and suspicious of male people, but he knew fear when he saw it.  Talmus had an inherent understanding of people and what made them human.  He knew early on that his mother was a basket case.  She was just filled with negative emotion that stemmed from someplace neither he nor Ramsey had ever visited.  They were like babies walking in the dark with her.
    But Talmus had done the same as Ramsey. He'd dealt with his mother's proclivity for emotional control and abuse in his own way.  He was always ready to love her when she was ready to accept him, but he didn't ask questions.  He had his suspicions, but to be honest, Pam had left no opening for either him or Ramsey to really know her pain or where it came from.  She'd just made darn sure they did exactly as she asked and had found some comfort in thinking all her efforts would keep them safe from some unknown monster.  It had worked to a degree, but she had forgotten there could be more than one monster in a child's life and hadn't bothered to check herself.  As a result, Ramsey was afraid of men and Talmus was afraid of women.  Neither one had ever married nor showed any signs of ever doing so.  
    Talmus chewed on his bottom lip as he drove to the hospital.  He was upset, but in control.  He didn't know anything about his father.  He didn't even know where the man lived.  Why would Ramsey still be at the hospital with him instead of down at the station taking care of their mother? Talmus had the strangest surreal feeling that he was still in the midst of a nightmare and that if he pinched himself he would wake up.  
    He'd never known his socially correct mother to carry a gun.  He'd never in his life seen one in her possession.  He had only seen his father once from a distance.  The story was that he had left just before he was born.  Talmus couldn't draw up any sympathy for someone he didn't know or for a man that had not been a father to his only son.  
    His grip tightened on the