Page 3 of Wild Curves
There’s disappointment in her voice and she takes a deep breath, but before she can start the next lecture, I jump in.
“I already met someone.”
I clamp my mouth shut as soon as I say the words. There’s silence on the other end of the line.
“Say that again?”
“I…uh… met someone.” I swallow hard, hoping she doesn’t hear the lie in my voice.
“You’ve met a boy?”
“Ya-ha.” My palms start to sweat. I’ve never been a good liar, and Mom is suspicious as hell.
“Are you going steady? Is he your boyfriend?”
My eyes go to Arlo leaning casually against the bar, a smile peeping out from his thick beard. “Yup. I got me a boyfriend.”
“Oh MeMe. That’s fantastic,” my mother gushes. I wish she’d been this happy when I told her I got into culinary school or when I won the creative dessert award.
“What’s he look like? Is he hunky?”
“Umm…” My gazes slides over Arlo, and I take a step closer to the door so I can see all of him through the small round window. His head is tilted back in a laugh, the deep rumble of his chuckle reaching me through the kitchen door and doing weird things to my belly.
“Um, he’s tall and he’s got a beard.”
“A beard!” Mom exclaims. “I guess that’s what you young folk are all into. But I wouldn’t have looked twice at your father if he had a beard. What’s his name.”
“Arl…” I start to say and snap my mouth shut just in time. My fantasy almost got away from me, but I’m not giving out Arlo’s name to my mother. She’d probably look him up online.
“What’s that honey?”
“Allan.” I wince.
“Allan? Not a very romantic name, but you can’t help that. Where did you meet him?”
“Umm…” My brain freezes and I regret even starting this lie, but I’m in too deep to back out now. The best lies have a grain of truth, so I decide to stick to some semblance of realness. Besides, she’ll never know. “He works at the restaurant.”
“He’s not a chef, is he? Unsociable hours. It’ll hard when you have a family.”
“Mom…”
“Oh, I know, honey, I’m just so excited. Thinking about my grandbabies. Jim!”
She calls out to my dad, making me wince and wondering if I’ve just given her more fuel for the grandbaby pressure.
“Jim! MeMe’s got a boyfriend!”
Dad mumbles something in the background. I don’t know how my softspoken dad puts up with my mother. I’ve never met two such different people. Mom’s loud and talks non-stop, while Dad’s quiet and observant. I know which one I take after.
“We’ll come visit this weekend and meet Allan.”
Wait, what?
My attention snaps back to my mother. “You don’t have to do that.”
“Of course we do. My little girl’s got her first boyfriend. We have to meet this Allan and see if he’s good enough for you.”
Oh shit.
