Page 84 of Famous Last Words
“Fran?” Taking a step closer, Robbie’s mom gets a good look at me, her small hands reaching out and resting on my upper arms as she studies me.
“It’s so nice to meet you…” I trail off when I realize I have no idea what her name is, casting a furtive glance at Robbie.
Thankfully, he catches on. “Ma, this is Fran. Fran, this is my ma, Victoria.”
Victoria smiles, and it takes my breath away because she looks exactly like her son.
“I am so glad to finally meet you, hon,” Victoria continues, her Bostonian accent thick. “I’ve heard alotabout you.” She flashes Robbie a teasing smile.
My heart skitters. She’s heard a lot about me? I know I shouldn’t think too much into it, but how can I not? Robbie’s been talking to his mom about me.
“I can’t wait to show you all of Robbie’s baby photos.”
“Ma,” Robbie warns, but the smile ghosting his lips tells me he’s loving this.
“What?” Victoria feigns innocence. “You’ve never brought a girl home for me to embarrass you before. It’s a rite of passage. Let your poor ol’ ma havesomefun.”
Robbie just shakes his head, but I can tell he’s trying not to laugh. “Come on, babe, I’ll show you upstairs.” He nods for me to follow, walking back through the archway and disappearing, taking my case with him.
He called me babe. He called mebabe.Act cool, Fran.
I glance casually at Victoria, and she offers me a wink, raising her voice for Robbie to hear as she says, “You go ahead, sweetie. I’ll grab the photo albums.”
I conceal my giggle at the same time as Robbie groans dramatically from somewhere in the house.
CHAPTER 33
FRAN
Ifollow Robbie upstairs. It’s even smaller than downstairs. Just two bedrooms and a bathroom, a poky hallway lined with framed action shots and newspaper clippings of Robbie that make me smile because it’s obvious his mom is his biggest fan.
“Okay, this is us,” Robbie says, walking through an open doorway.
“Us?” I balk. “We’resharing?”
He meets my eyes. “Yeah…”
Again, my heart starts going crazy as I step into the bedroom. I’m met with a huge bed that takes up most of the space, facing a bay window with a view of the street. It feels like the primary.
With a questioning glance at Robbie, I ask, “This isn’t your mom’s bedroom, is it? I don’t want to put her out.”
“It was.” He shrugs, placing my case by the bench at the foot of the bed. “Ma has trouble getting up and down the stairs, so we renovated and built a suite downstairs.”
I frown, thinking of his mom and, despite her beauty and the uncanny resemblance she shares with her son, her eyes look tired, sunken with dark circles, and she’s so tiny, skin and bone.
“I like her.”
He pulls on the back of his neck as a sad smile lifts the corner of his mouth. “Yeah, she’s pretty cool.” Glancing at his watch, Robbie tilts his head in the direction of the door. “We should get going. I’ve gotta get to the arena.”
I nod, checking my purse to make sure I have everything before following Robbie out of the room and back downstairs where Victoria is back in her chair, sipping from a mug.
“Okay, Ma. We’re gonna go.” Robbie leans down, pressing a kiss to her cheek. “You gonna be okay here ‘til Rhonda gets in?”
“Wait.” I look from Victoria to Robbie and back again, my eyebrows knitting together. “You’re not coming with us?”
Victoria laughs. “No, hon. Sadly, I can’t get out much like I used to.”
“And it’s not safe for Ma to be around so many people,” Robbie adds. “Germs and shit.”
