Page 51 of When I Found You

“I noticed.”

Mom gestures to the couch, and I sit down beside her. We both take a sip of tea and it warms me instantly.

“Feeling better?” she asks.

“Yes, thank you.” I clear my throat and shift uncomfortably. “I apologize for breaking down like that. It’s been—” I heave a shaky exhale. “—A rough couple of months.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” Her understanding smile nearly breaks my heart. She’s so damn young, but I see her older self beneath the surface. It takes all my restraint to keep the tears from bursting over the dam again.

“I shouldn’t.” I shake my head. “It’s complicated, and I don’t want to drag you into my drama.”

“Honey, don’t you worry about dragging me anywhere. You seem like you need a friend, and I’m glad you had the sense to come here.” She pats my hand. “Now, what did he do?”

I laugh. I can’t help it. Mom always was too observant for her own good.

“Are you talking about Arthur?” Dad comes in and sits in the armchair a few feet away.

My face warms. I don’t want to talk about what happened with Arthur in front of my parents, but they don’t know how awkward this whole situation is. How could they? I take a fortifying sip of tea and cradle it in my hands.

“Honey, we already know there’s something between you two.” Mom nudges me. “Victor told me about it on Monday night. Why do you think I came to the office this week?” She winks. “I had to meet the woman who caught Arthur’s attention.”

I nearly choke. “But...we weren’t even talking then.”

Dad snorts. “Yeah, Arthur was in a right foul mood all week.” He laughs. “I even caught him working on the wrong proposal.”

“See?” Mom lifts her mug in salute. “You’ve got him all kinds of distracted. Besides, I saw the chemistry between you two. Positively nuclear.”

This conversation has taken a strange turn, but I forge ahead thankful to even have the two most important people in my life in the same room with me.

With a deep breath, I launch into a brief, non-descriptive account of my relationship with Arthur touching lightly on the events of the last twenty-four hours leading up to this moment.

Their reactions range from horrified to angry to appeased and then circle right back again. Only I don’t reveal exactly what caused the fight, but the mere mention of an argument has Dad on his feet.

“Why is he so stubborn?” He stalks toward the door. “I’m going to march over there and give him a piece of my mind.”

“Sit down, Victor,” Mom admonishes him. “You’re not going anywhere. This is between Kate and Arthur.” She turns back to me. “I’m sure he’ll come to his senses at some point during the night.”

Thoughts of Arthur and his sore...ego and busted nose make me cringe. “I doubt it.”

Mom tilts her head in concern. “Do you need a place to stay?”

“No. Thank you. I couldn’t impose.”

“It’s not imposition. We have a spare room for guests, and it’d be nice to get a chance to get to know you better.”

My soul warms at her words. “I’d love that.”

“Good, it’s settled. I’ll get the spare room ready after dinner.” Mom gestures to the kitchen. “I need to check on the roast.”

After Mom leaves, I catch Dad staring at me when I reach for my tea. “Something wrong?”

He shakes his head. “No. It’s just...I have this odd feeling about you. Who are your parents?”

I nearly spit out the tea and sputter before swallowing it. “Uh. Why do you say that?”

Dad leans close. “Your eyes. Two different colors, like mine.” He chuckles. “It’s not a common trait. We could be related. How crazy would that be?”

“Crazy.” I reply uncertain of what I should say.

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