Page 39 of That's What Love

“Mom, I had no idea how much he had saved,” I say.

“I knew, but he didn’t want you to know much because of your dad. I was afraid of what he might do,” she explains.

I nod. “I understand.”

“Thank you, Mr. Lucas. This has been helpful.”

We shake his hand and head out of the office.

* * *

As we pullinto my driveway after leaving the lawyer’s office, mom looks at me and asks, “Dinner at my house in a few days?”

“Sounds good.”

“How about you invite Eric? I’d love to get to know him more,” she suggests.

I chuckle. “Really? You’ve never wanted me to bring home other guys I’ve dated.”

“That’s because they weren’t as nice.”

I playfully roll my eyes. “What are you making?”

“Your favorite, of course.”

“Well, make sure you use the homemade pasta sauce this time. The store-bought version made me sick,” I laugh.

“I won’t make that mistake again,” she declares. After stepping out and closing the car door, I watch her wave as she drives off.

CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE

I sigh,lying back on my bed, thinking about the news I just received. I pull my phone from the charger and unlock it, tapping Eric’s name.

Me

How about dinner at my mom’s soon? She’s invited you.

After about a minute, I see three dots on the screen that tell me he’s typing.

Eric

Count me in!

Me

I’ll text you the date and time.

Eric

See you then, beautiful.

I decide to call Scarlett.

“Hey, how did everything go?” she asks.

“Good! We’ll discuss it during our movie night this weekend, but you’re going to be pleasantly surprised,” I reply.

“Well, whatever it is, I’m sure it’s good!”

---