Page 67 of On the Rocks

My mother winced. “I hadn’t realized…I suppose I didn’t want to tell you when it was still in its early days, in case it didn’t go anywhere. But ithasgone somewhere.” She turned, smiling at Mr. Cranson. It was a soft smile. The kind of smile I hadn’t seen her wear in a very long time. It was clear that Mr. Cranson made her happy.

Mr. Cranson leaned over and pecked her on the cheek. “I should let you two have a proper chat.”

My mother nodded. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“Not if I call you first.”

Well, that was horribly cheesy. As awkward as this was, I couldn’t stop grinning.

“It was good to see you, Cora,” Mr. Cranson said. “Hopefully, we can catch up sometime soon.”

“Absolutely,” I said as he passed me, slipping out the door. I turned back to my mother the moment he was gone. “I cannot believe you didn’t tell me!”

My mother threw her hands up. “I didn’t know what to say at first. I didn’t even think I remembered how to date. And never ina million years did I think it would go anywhere. Then one date turned into two and two into…well, you know how it goes.”

I followed my mother into the kitchen. She filled the kettle and plugged it in before rattling around in the cupboard for a pack of cookies. She stuffed an Oreo into her mouth and leaned against the counter.

As I stood there, waiting for her to continue, I got the sense that she’d been worried about more than her and Mr. Cranson not working out. “Were you afraid I wouldn’t approve?” I asked gently.

She sighed, offering me the package of cookies. I took one, plopping down at the table while she made us both a cup of tea. “I did sort of wonder if you might think I was betraying your father’s memory,” she said.

“Not at all,” I hurried to say. “You deserve to be happy, Mom. I think Dad would want that for you.”

My mother smiled. “I think so too.”

“Actually, now that I know you’re not hiding some terrible secret,” I continued, “I’m thrilled for you. And Mr. Cranson.”

“He’ll want you to call him Henry now.”

“Henry,” I said, wrinkling my nose. “Sounds funny.”

“It’ll grow on you.”

“I really am happy for you, though. You know how much I adored him as a teacher, and how much he inspired me to want to teach English myself.”

“I hoped you would feel this way.”

My mother placed two mugs of tea on the table, then kissed the top of my head before sitting down. “By the way, what terrible secret did you think I was hiding?”

“Oh my god!” I laughed at how foolish I was about to sound. “I’d imagined anything and everything from early retirement to you moving down to a beach and opening a fruit stand. I had a really good alien abduction theory going, too. Aiden thought it was hilarious.”

“Aiden, huh?” my mother asked. She sipped her tea. “I’ve been hearing a lot about him lately.”

I ran my finger around the rim of my mug. “Yes, well, we work together now. And he had to help me pull off the reunion when Trish dumped it on me.”

“Is that all?” My mother tipped her head, regarding me with knowing eyes. Eyes that had always been able to see through what I wasn’t saying. “I think this is the part where you update me onyourlove life.”

I pulled my mug closer, inhaling the steam. Why did I feel sixteen years old again? “What do you mean?”

“I may have been otherwise occupied when you walked in?—”

I snorted. “Is that what we’re calling it?”

My mother pointed a long finger at me. “Watch it,” she said, smiling despite her warning. “I’m still your mother. And don’t think I didn’t notice your sex hair or your ‘just kissed’ lips.”

I flushed, touching my fingers to my lips.

“Should I assume it was Aiden?”

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