Page 40 of Invisible String
I squeeze her hand. “Thank you for the beautiful speech.”
She laughs.
“But seriously, I can’t make someone love me. I know he likes me, and that’s something. He’s quiet, and I don’t know much about him. I have a feeling he’s had a horrible past. His mom died when he was very young.”
She swallows the tears that threaten to fall. “That’s sad. Bless his heart.” She clears her throat. Her gaze stays pinned on our laced hands. The seconds of her silence engulf me. “How about we do some shopping? I wish your sister were here. Unfortunately, she ran away, too.”
Right, my sister is on vacation with her friends.
“I would love to meet Max. Let’s invite him out for dinner.” She gives me a shit-eating grin.
Twenty minutes later, we are in and out of different stores. While my mom is busy looking at kitchen gadgets, I speed walkto the lingerie department to get some sexy underwear. I’ve never bought underwear in hopes of a man seeing it. Then, I grab some new swimsuits.
“Ready?” My mom’s sneaky voice has me jumping.
“Warn a girl. Sheesh.”
“Those are cute. Here, hand them over. I’ll pay.”
She reaches for them, and I take a step back, not wanting her to see the stack of underwear. Of course, she’s persistent. She grabs them, causing me to spill the pile of underwear under the swimsuits. She bends to help me pick them up. My cheeks warm.
“Sexy,” she chirps, tucking them under my swimsuit.
“Mom, I can pay.”
“I remember when I first started dating your father. I used to buy the sexiest panties. He loved them. He?—”
“Okay, Mom. Gross.” I stick my finger in my mouth and pretend to gag.
On the way back home, my mom’s phone beeps. I know it’s my dad. She’s been checking her phone every time a call or message comes through, silencing it. It makes me sad that a stupid decision can destroy our family.
“How are you holding up?” I ask, turning the signal light on.
“Honey, I don’t think you want to talk about this with me.” Her voice cracks, and my heart shatters.
“Mom, I’m just worried.”
“Everything will be okay.” She squeezes my thigh.
“You know you don’t have to stay with him because of us. We are grown adults now.” I know it’s a shitty thing to say, considering he’s my father, and I want things to work out. But if she’s unhappy and hurting, then there’s no point.
“I know that, Rainey, but it’s not that simple. I love and hate him, both. Part of me wants to leave him. The betrayal of him sleeping with the woman he shares an office with and theninviting her to our home for Christmas dinner is a slap in the face.” She huffs, shaking her head in disbelief.
“I’m really sorry, Mom. I support you in any decision you make,” I say honestly, but if it were me, I’d say fuck you and your sleazy bitch.
We drive up the cabin’s bumpy driveway. Max is outside with the hood of his car up, apparently checking the oil. I introduced him to my mom earlier, before we left. She suggested we should all have dinner tonight before she leaves. Max was hesitant, but my mom was determined to get a yes out of him, and she did.
“There’s your guy.”
Is hemyguy?
“He’s a cutie. He has a serious face, but I’m sure you can make that boy smile.”
I turn off the engine and peer at my mom. “He’s always been talkative with me, smiling and even laughing,” I say proudly.
“It doesn’t surprise me, Rainey; everything you touch turns to gold.”
I wave to Max when he peers at me, his gaze taking me in. And damn, I want him. When I pop the trunk to get the tons of shopping bags, the crunch of gravel tells me Max is walking near me.
