He buried his face in his hands, his ears turning scarlet. “Almost.”
She laughed. “Silly man, why would I mind knowing that you were taking care of my son?”
It was my turn to groan. “Mom, let’s keep the focus.”
Dad patted Walker’s hand. “So… she found you in bed?”
He let out a sigh. “Yes. The worst part, though, is that she had read something queer off of me long before I ever recognized it in myself. She thought that this entire time I’d been, I don’t remember exactly, but the gist was ‘winning the war against being gay.’”
Dad shook his head, and I could see Mom gearing up to dispense some truth. She might not pry, but once she’d been invited to the discussion, she didn’t keep her opinion to herself.
“So,” she began. “When she thought you were struggling with it, she was proud of you but never said anything to you.”
“That’s correct, ma’am.”
“Walker, if you call me ma’am again, I’m going to smack you,” Mom warned him, deadly serious. “You can call me Kiyana. Ms. Kiyana, if you absolutely must.”
Thankfully, Walker believed her. “Yes, Ms. Kiyana. I’m sorry.”
“No apologies. I just want to get this right—she thought you were struggling and didn’t help you. Didn’t reach out to you. Didn’t tell you that you had her support.”
“Absolutely not,” he answered, shaking his head. “She would never say anything like that.”
“My Oswald has shared some of his story with you, yes?”
“Yes, ma’am—Ms. Kiyana.”
Mom raised her brow. “My husband’s family didn’t—doesn’t—approve or our relationship. To demonstrate that, they refused to acknowledge Ozzie, and they cut Preston out of the family’s massive trust, not that we were looking to them for support. I suppose they thought he would feel the consequences of his actions and divorce me, ditch the biracial baby, and come crawling back to them.”
I snorted. “They clearly did not know either of you at all.”
“Clearly.” Mom sat up straight, taking my father’s hand. “Ozzie and I weren’t welcome at any of the Cavanaugh holiday gatherings or family functions, and that hurt Preston, deeply. I don’t like it when people hurt my husband. He’s a good man. So, instead of complaining that they had ostracized us, we rejected them, along with their bigotry and their backstabbing ways, and we created a new branch of the Cavanaughs. We’re proud of our outcast status.”
Walker smiled. “I like that. Taking the narrative back. I might need to adopt the idea, considering my mom also fired me,” he said, pulling up his phone.
Momma:Until you repent, you are not my son, nor are you my employee.
My mother leaned forward, her expression pained as she read the cold words on the screen. “I understand her grief, losing Annalee like she did. But how could she push away her remaining child?” she asked, her voice soft and horrified. “I hate feeling sorry for someone who is behaving so badly, but… I hope she finds a way to heal and accept you, Walker.”
“Me, too,” he said, playing with his napkin. “Thank you both so much for being so welcoming, not to mention the delicious brunch and letting me enjoy this gorgeous view.”
Mom reached out and squeezed his hand again. “Just in case you never heard this while you were growing up, the most beautiful thing about any good person is their truth, whatever it is. The only way you can be the bestyouis by being fully yourself. My son is many things. He is gay, yes, but that’s only part of his truth. He’s also fashionable. And a little arrogant, but a lot smart. I missed him when he went away, but it was the right choice, because that tiny little town on the river hadn’t ever accepted him. But his partnership with Joel and now with you—I know he was right to move back. This thing between you might be new, but I’ve never seen Ozzie so happy.”
“Mom…”
“You are a happy man, son, but there’s been something missing behind your eyes. And now I see it. The look you two have when you look at each other? That is all I need to see.”
Walker blushed, and I watched as his humble brand of magic charmed my parents. When he told them a heavily edited version of our muddy adventure, he had them laughing so hard tears were streaming down my father’s face.
We couldn’t ignore the repercussions of Walker coming out to his mother, but we damn sure weren’t going to ignore this truth between us.
CHAPTER23
walker
On the drive back from Ozzie’s parents’, I laid my head on his shoulder. It was weird how the dynamics had shifted once I started exploring my sexuality. There were some things I’d always wanted to do, like lean on someone, but never did because they weren’t “manly enough.”
I was just beginning to understand how much I’d missed out on. Hell, I’d withheld certain types of affection and vulnerability from my previous partners because I’d been trying to play a role with strict rules and no room for softness.
