Page 39 of Trusting Blake
Thankfully, the cluster of paparazzi and reporters outside the ranch continues to decrease in size each day. Which means that Savannah and Tori don’t have to battle their way through the craziness as they walk down from the Willowbank ranch. As I shield myself behind the ranch walls while the buzz of the gate rings out and it begins to open, I hear murmuring outside. It’s the first time all week we’ve let guests onto the property, and a voice yells, “ARE YOU GUYS FRIENDS WITH MILA?”
Neither Savannah nor Tori reply – I’ve already asked them to maintain perfect poker faces – and a few seconds later, they slip through the gate and join me. Quickly, I point the remote and close it again.
“Hello, stranger!” Tori says, opening her arms to hug me. “We haven’t seen you forsooolong!”
“Shhh,” I whisper, then gesture toward the house as I briefly hug her. I pull her with me as I start to walk. “No talking until we’re away from the gate.”
“This is so exciting!” Savannah gushes, and when I look at her, I can’t suppress my gentle laughter at today’s choice of earrings. Movie clapperboards.
I lead them to the porch, and then I pause before I open the front door. Twisting around to look at the pair of them, I notice how nervous they have suddenly become. And that’s saying a lot for Tori, who has the confidence of a lion.
“My mom wants to meet you guys,” I tell them.
After Mom let me use the landline to call and invite my friends over, she was insistent that I had to introduce her to them. I don’t tell Savannah and Tori that they are about to, essentially, be vetted.
“We’re going. . . inside?” Savannah squeaks, like we’re standing at the gates of the freaking White House.
“Should I take out my nose ring?” Tori asks.
“No. Now, c’mon.”
Opening the front door, I gesture for Savannah and Tori to follow me inside. Popeye is at the hospital for a follow-up appointment to see if his doctors are any closer to discovering what’s wrong with him, and of course, Sheri has accompanied him. Dad and Ruben are talking business upstairs, and Mom is waiting in the living room to meet my friends. I think she’s just relieved to have somethingnormalto focus on rather than mulling over where her relationship with Dad currently stands.
“Do you think he’s touched this door handle?” I hear Savannah whisper behind me.
I glance back and Tori shakes her head pityingly at me. “Can we kick her out?”
Savannah blushes and holds her hands up, embarrassed to have let her fangirl persona slip out once again. If she knew Dad was in the room directly above her, I think she’d faint.
“Mom?” I say, peeking into the living room. Mom jumps up from the couch and I move into the room to join her. “You remember Savannah Bennett and Tori Coleman, right? We were all in grade school together.”
Savannah and Tori shuffle in after me.
“Of course!” Mom says with her dazzling red carpet smile. “Hi, girls!”
“Hey, Mrs. Harding,” says Tori. “Thanks for letting us come over to hang out.”
Mom is supremely glamorous again. Her hair is in a perfect blow-dry, her cheekbones are bronzed, and her lips are painted a cherry pink. She looks like her usual self – the stunning, talented makeup artist who works on some of the biggest movies in Hollywood, and the gracious, supportive wife of Everett Harding. It’s nice to see her like this, even though it’s all an act. I know my mom – and she simply can’t wear sweatpants to meet guests.
“I’m glad Mila has been able to spend time with her old friends,” she tells them. “Savannah, please tell your mom I said hi.”
There’s a little knock against the doorframe. “What’s all this?”
Dad hovers outside the living room, his expression curious but with a hint of suspicion. He’s never been a fan of strangers in his home. Looking at us all, his gaze rests on Mom.
Savannah is suddenly close to hyperventilating. I can hear her murmuring under her breath, “Oh my God, oh my God, ohmy God!”
Mom moves toward Dad and touches his arm, and I find myself fighting hard not to roll my eyes. Even if they’ve mostly been civil with one another while they work through what Dad’s affair means for their future, it’s definitely not been to the point of affectionately touching one another. But I know what’s going on here – they can’t give anyone the impression that their marriage is on the rocks. And they obviously expect me to play my part too. I try not to let it get me too annoyed.
“Mila invited some friends over. They all went to elementary school together. Isn’t that sweet?” Mom tells Dad, and he raises an eyebrow at her as though wondering what part of me being grounded does she not understand.
“Hi.Hi. Mr. Harding. Everett,” Savannah breathes.
“Savannah is a big fan,” Tori says. “In case you haven’t noticed.”
Dad smiles, as dazzling and as enchanting as Mom – it’s his professional smile. “Well, thank you, Savannah. So, you’re a childhood friend of Mila’s?”
Savannah nods, gulping.
