Page 96 of Home in Nevada

“So, what’s new with you?” my mom asks, pouring coffee from the pitcher on the coffee table. I glance at Jamie, silently pleading for him to jump in and save me with that effortless charm of his, like he always does. But nope—he just raises his eyebrows at me, his smirk practically screaming that I'm on my own here.

Damn.

I feel the blood drain from my face. Nervous doesn’t even begin to cover it—I swear my heart might beat right out of my chest.

“I’ve been thinking about moving back home for a while,” I start, my voice wavering. “And I finally put in my two weeks at work yesterday.”

My mom’s face lights up. She starts to get up to hug me, but I hold out a hand to stop her.

“Mom, wait. There’s something else I need to tell you before you get all excited. Sit down.”

She hesitates but sits back down, her expression a mix of confusion and anticipation.

“I’m…” I trail off, looking at Jamie for support. To my surprise, his face is a little flushed, and he darts his eyes upward for a second before grinning at me.

I feel like a kid again, confessing to my mom about some dumb thing I did in school with Jamie, bracing for the inevitable lecture. Why does it feel like this?

I’m on the verge of throwing up when Jamie slides his hand across the couch cushion and takes mine. His fingers interlace with mine, steady and sure, and suddenly, I feel a whole lot better.

Way, way better.

Jamie squeezes my hand, his smile soft and reassuring. I take a breath and turn back to my mom.

“Jamie and I are... well, we’ve been seeing each other for a while now—” I stop myself mid-sentence.

No. I’m doing it again. Enough of that. No more dodging, no more dancing around the truth.

"Jamie is my boyfriend," I say with conviction. "We've been in a long-distance relationship for a few months, but I'm moving back home for him. I want us to be together—we're going to build a life together."

I glance at Jamie, and he gives me a smile that makes me feel like everything might actually be okay. Then I turn back to my mom.

“I love him.” I pause, the words hanging in the air, but it still doesn’t feel like enough. Not even close. “Actually, I don’t just love him… Ilovehim. Like, can’t-function-without-him love. He makes me better in every way, he always has, and honestly, I think making him happy might be the only sure thing I’ve ever known in my entire life. I just… I wanted you guys to know.”

“Who cares, ya’ big sap,” my dad grumbles from his chair, still not looking away from the TV.

It’s like a record scratches in my brain. My jaw drops, and I feel my heart go into overdrive. “What the hell did you just say?!”

Jamie bites his lip, clearly fighting back laughter, while my mom turns to my dad with a glare so fiery it might actually incinerate him. “Oh, hun, we kind of knew that already. That’s old news—is what hemeantto say,” she snaps, the emphasis so sharp it makes my dad shift uncomfortably in his chair.

“What? What do you mean, you knew?” My head whips toward Jamie, desperate for some kind of sanity check here, but he just gives me that serene little smile, his eyes sparkling with amusement as he shrugs like this is all perfectly normal. Completely unbothered.

“I mean, we figured as much,” my mom continues casually, taking a long sip of her coffee like we’re talking about the weather. “Lucy mentioned a few things about you and Jamie when she came to visit... I can take a hint, you know. She’s such a sweetheart.”

Damn it. I forgot I left Lucy unsupervised with my parents on that trip. Rookie mistake.

“It was my fault she started insinuating things between you two,” my mom adds, tilting her head with a look that’s probably supposed to come off as apologetic, but she’s clearly enjoying herself way too much. “I thought maybe you and Lucy had a secret love.”

“Asecret love?” I repeat, staring at her like she’s grown a second head. “Mom, what the hell even is a secret love?”

She shrugs, completely unfazed, like she hasn’t just said the most ridiculous thing ever. “You know... something dramatic. Forbidden. VeryRomeo and Juliet.I mean, I wasn’t wrong, I just didn’t realize Jamie was playing Juliet in this scenario. And, well, wedefinitelywon’t mention the fact that the story was a tragedy and not a romance…”

I groan as she rambles on, dragging my hand down my face, while Jamie bites his lip, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter. I glare at him, but that just makes him lose it completely, doubling over as his laugh fills the room. Great. Perfect. This is exactly what I needed.

“Lucy opened my eyes to quite a bit during her visit. And Howard’s too,” Mom says, gesturing toward my dad.

I glance at him—still glued to the TV like always. I almost forgot he was there until he scared the crap out of me earlier.

“It’s not a big deal, son,” my dad mumbles awkwardly, shifting in his recliner and grabbing the remote to turn up the volume on the game. “Let’s just stop talking about it.”

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