Page 55 of Instant Bond

“Ty is Cameron’s son,” Karter inserted. The tone in his voice was purely informational and completely neutral.

“I… See,” she said, her eyes darting between the two of us. “You look so young.”

“I am,” I answered simply. She might have been the mom of the guy I was totally head over heels for, but I wasn’t going to feel ashamed or grovel for her approval. And I knew Karter wouldn’t want me doing that, anyway.

“I didn’t realize you had visitors,” she said, looking back to Karter.

“We’re not visitors,” Ty informed her very matter-of-factly. “We live here.”

She blinked several times before giving a slow nod. “That’s… Good to know. Karter, you never mentioned anything.”

“No,” he agreed, giving her a flat look. “I didn’t. Do you still want that towel?”

“Well, yeah, unless you want me dripping all over everything.”

Karter walked out of the room, leaving behind a wall of tension. I wanted to pick Ty up and lock us both in his room until she was gone. But since I couldn’t do that, I sailed past her, joining Ty on the couch. As if he could sense my unhappiness, he cuddled into my side.

“I’m sorry,” she said finally, after an incredibly uncomfortable bout of silence. “I knew Karter was seeing someone, but I didn’t expect anyone else to be here.”

“I’m sorry he didn’t tell you.”

“How long have the two of you been staying here?” She wondered.

“A few weeks. Almost a month,” I answered, as Karter returned with a towel, handing it over to her.

She quickly blotted off the rainwater before taking a seat on the other side of the sectional, eyeing the two of us kind of cautiously. Karter sat down on Ty’s other side.

“Well, do you mind if I ask a few questions?” She inquired. I couldn’t tell exactly how she was feeling about us, but maybe her shock hadn’t let her process it yet. She wasn’t glaring and looking down her nose at us, at least. Then again she probably knew Karter well enough to know he’d throw a fit if she did that.

“I don’t see why there needs to be an interrogation,” Karter responded icily. I cleared my throat, laying my hand on his knee.

“I don’t mind if she wants to ask some stuff,” I told him softly. I didn’t want to cause tension between them, but I could understand where she was coming from, too. And there was no point in trying to hide anything anyway. If Karter’s family was rich and everything then she had the money and connections to find out all she wanted to know whether I cooperated or not.

He heaved a sigh, leaning back in the seat. “Fine,” he relented, waving a hand to indicate his surrender.

“Now, now,” she scolded him, smiling a bit now as she waggled a finger toward him. “There’s no need to be so protective. Of course I would be curious about someone so important in your life. Your mom is going to have a field day with all this, you know.”

“I’m aware of that.” Again, his voice was flat and monotone.

“Well, Cam,” she started. “Tell me about yourself.”

I cleared my throat, glancing over at Karter warily. He shrugged a shoulder, giving me permission to be completely honest. Well, fine, then.

“I’m Cam, I’m 22. I moved to the city about four years ago. I’m a waiter.” I wasn’t sure what else to say.

“A waiter?” She repeated. The upward inflection of her voice and the raise of her eyebrows betrayed her shock at that one. That’s right, lady. Your Ivy League educated business executiveson moved a high school dropout waiter into his penthouse apartment. “Well, that’s… Great. Are you in school?”

“I don’t really have time for that.” Part of me had hoped that my ratty cotton shorts paired with my shirt that said ‘sofishticated’ with a shark in a tuxedo and monocle would have managed her expectations a bit, but apparently not.

“Alright. How did you meet?”

“We met at a café.”

“Karter shared his donut with me!” Ty piped up. “It was really good,” he repeated, giving Karter a look of absolute and pure adoration and gratitude. I had a feeling that giving up that ducky donut had endeared my son to him for life.

I watched as Ty’s irresistible charm cracked through a bit of her guarded exterior, and the corner of her mouth perked up. Just like Karter’s usually did.

“And what grade are you in?” She asked him. I think she was just afraid to learn anything else about me yet or her head would explode.

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