Page 50 of My Mom's Man
“You trust them?” Reid asks, eyes darting all over me.
“I do.”
He sighs heavily. “Then I trust them too, because I trust you.”
I turn to look over at Mom. She picks at her food before relenting with a nod.
“I trust you too,” she mutters. “Even if it scares the hell out of me. Can I at least get one of my clients to look over the contract for you?”
Quinn is a good man, but I know Mom only wants to help. “I’d like that. Thanks.”
“Where is this place anyway?” Mom asks, relaxing a bit. “Is it even available to lease?” Then, she shakes her head. “Not that little yellow building you always rubberneck when we pass.”
I grin at her. “That’s the one!”
“That place is like a hundred years old,” she complains. “You know how hard it’s going to be for us to clean it up?”
Us?
She wants to help me, and it means a lot.
“I know someone who cleans houses pretty well,” I tease. “Now, if only I could find someone who was good at rehabbing old, crummy properties.”
We all laugh.
And then we get to planning.
When we’re stuffed and ready to conquer the world, Mom leaves, but not before stealing a hug that crushes my ribs. Once she’s gone, I fall into Reid’s strong, comforting arms, feeling peace like I’ve never known before.
He used to by my mom’s man.
Now he’s just mine.
I’m still in high school, in love with a man more than twice my age, and about to embark on an entrepreneurial journey, yet not one of those things feels wrong or overwhelming.
In fact, everything is finally falling into place.
Reid
Several Months Later…
“Yes,” Emma says to the person on the other line. “Saves you money and teaches her valuable babysitting skills.”
I stare at her cute ass as she walks out of the main room and into her office. Emma is surprisingly great at handling business. Some people go to college and learn that way, but other people like she and I, throw ourselves into it and learn the hard way. It’s what makes it fun.
While she chats with one of the parents she sits for, I go back to installing the television on the wall. I’m not great at wiring, so I might have to call my buddy Travis, a certified electrician, to assist. But, since I’m enjoying alone time with my woman, I do my best to figure this shit out on my own in the meantime.
Emma returns and I nearly fall off my laddertrying to get a peek at her. She’s gorgeous as ever with her shiny brown hair and green eyes that glitter like gems, but there’s a new glow about her that lights up every room she enters.
“How did the call go?” I ask as I hop off the ladder and saunter over to her. “Is she game?”
“Pretty much, yeah. Alyssa totally is, but Candace is a harder sell. She just needed more questions answered.”
My girl is smart and came up with a clever idea. For a discount to the parents with multiple children who will need night sitting, they can enroll their older children in Emma’s internship program. They can help out with the other kids and learn the ins and outs of babysitting while in the safety of other capable adults. When they turn sixteen, they can officially work for her. The business model she and Quinn worked out together all show this place exploding with profit, even leading up to franchise opportunities.
“How are you feeling?” I pull her to me and nuzzle my nose against hers. “Any more nausea?”
“Not since this morning.”
