“Penny?” Logan asked in disbelief.
Mac shrugged his shoulders and put on a grin. “What can I say? She’s stunning. I love a sassy woman.”
“What about you, Logan?” Rhodes asked, “You have anyone special? Maybe someone you had to leave for the weekend to visit?”
Logan’s face turned red. “No, nope. No one for me,” he choked out, taking a sip of his drink. He didn’t make eye contact. Whatever was in his glass pulled his attention.
The boys and I sat for a bit longer to catch up. It felt good to tell them about Aspen, considering what happened last time I decided to keep my mouth shut. Since spending time with her, I feel like I’ve changed into someone new, and I’m starting to like him.
Twenty Eight
Aspen
Turning the knob to my parents’ house took away any confidence I had built up. I sat and talked with Boone, more like I talkedatBoone, practicing what I was going to say. Crossing the threshold of my childhood home wiped all that away. My nervousness showed. I was wringing my hands and tapping my foot as I waited out back for my parents to join me.
When I arrived, they were ecstatic to see me again. Hugs were exchanged and smiles shared, which showed me the news hadn’t spread to the Westgrove household yet, meaning I beat Marjorie to it.
My parents came out of the house together, and in typical mom fashion, she was carrying some sort of snack with her. Placing down the plate of cookies, she and Dad took a seat next to each other across the patio table.
“How has our girl been?” my dad asked. I hope he still was this pleasant when I told him about me and Boone.
His last words about him were,I don’t think that Cassidy boy is good enough for you anyway.
“I’m good! I’ve been seeing more of Theo and Penny. Theo is staying for a while. She’s pregnant.” I don’t know why I just said that, maybe to soften the blow for what I was about to tell them.
My mom gasped, covering her mouth. “No way! I bet Sissy is so excited to be a grandmother.” Well, that was better than I expected. “Is the father involved?” my mom whispered.
“No, she’s doing it all on her own.” My heart filled with pride talking about Theo becoming a mom and kicking ass without a man to get her through. That was Theo, tough as a nail and determined to prove everyone wrong. You tell her she can’t do something, she will do it a million times over.
“She must be scared,” my mom replied, shaking her head slightly. “If she needs anything, please tell her to reach out.”
My dad usually stayed quiet during these kinds of conversations. If it involved people outside his family or gossip, he tended to just observe from the outside.
Taking a cookie and laying it down on my napkin, I replied, “I will! I want to throw her a gender reveal party when she’s ready.”
The one thing I admired about my mom was her nature to give. She would give you the shirt off her back. As giving and caring as she was, her ability to understand other perspectives sometimes fell short.
“I did have something I wanted to tell you both,” I muttered, picking apart my snack chocolate chip by chocolate chip, anything to avoid eye contact. I noticed my behavior and decided it was time to try something new.
Sitting up, I straightened my back and looked at my parents. Come clean, there was no use in hiding it. “I’m seeing someone. We’re taking it slow. I wanted you two to hear it from me.” I remained with my attention on them, ignoring every urge to retreat and look away.
Finally, my dad spoke and asked, “Who’s the lucky guy?”
“Boone Cassidy, and before either one of you comments, I want to say something.” If I was going to stand my ground, it started with taking control of the conversation. “Boone and I have been friendly since I moved on to the ranch. He and his family have been nothing but supportive and kind to me. I like him. He makes me happy and pushes me to be a better person. If you’re upset, I’m sorry. There is no changing my mind.”
“Better person?” my dad scoffed. “That boy is a mess. His reputation doesn’t fit my daughter.”
“That ‘boy’ has treated me with more respect and compassion than any stupid guy from the city would. He’s kind, hardworking, and pushes me to achieve my goals, not yours. It isn’t up for discussion. I’m seeing Boone, and that’s the end of it.”
No one in this town knew Boone anymore, maybe they did when he was a teenager, but the man I know isn’t the boy he was growing up in Faircloud.
My mom chimed in, her sweet voice trying to calm the moment, “What I think your dad is trying to say is, are you sure he’s what you need? What happened to the future you planned? Going to the city and school? I know you grew comfortable at the coffee shop. When it closed, you made it sound like you were back on track.”
I let out a loud laugh. “That was never my dream. That was your dream forme. My dream is to stay here and be an author. I want to settle down in a place I know and not some big city where I’ll get sucked up and lost.” I didn’t mean to let wanting to be an author slip, but if I was telling them about Boone, I might as well hurt them all at once.
“No,” my dad said sternly. “My daughter won’t be staying here and making a bed with a Cassidy.”
“You’re insane!” I yelled, throwing my hands in the air. “I’ll ‘make a bed’ with whoever I want. I’m a grown woman who paysher own damn bills and doesn’t live under your roof. You may have been able to control me while I was a kid, but new flash, I’m not anymore.”