“Who else would I put on it?” Stick helped out with Andy more than he had to, and had actually been pretty cool with me having to move out of our apartment and back in with Andy, but he wasn’t legal guardian material by any stretch. I couldn’t think of anyone else.
“I mean, not that I think that asshole would care. But I do not want Andy’s father showing up now and demanding custody or anything because he heard I was in here.”
A cold chill ran down my spine as I thought about the man who gave my mom her first taste of drugs…cocaine at a party. “You don’t seriously think that’s a possibility, do you?”
The guy had been married, and had dropped her when she was pregnant with Andy. I never knew what happened to him; he lived in Chesney, not Schoolport. But now I wondered if my mom had kept tabs on him. She had given Andy the guy’s last name, I think hoping that he’d step up and acknowledge Andy. Never happened.
“No, I don’t think it’s likely. But if he knew I was in here…”
“He’d all of a sudden care about the well-being of his son, after not giving a flying fuck for six years?” She flinched, but I wasn’t sure if it was because of my language or the raised voice. “Sorry,” I said softly, apologizing for both.
“I shouldn’t have even brought it up. It’s so unlikely. But it just makes me feel even better that you went to see a lawyer, Lucas. I should have thought about it myself before I came in here.” She let out a strangled chuckle. “But I wasn’t in any shape to think about something like that.”
“I’ll call the lawyer and tell him about Andy’s father. Make sure that we have that base covered.”
She was nodding. “Yes. Yes. Thank you so much, Lucas. It’s so much easier to spend the time in here on things I need to work on when I don’t have to worry about Andy.”
As a son who had given his mother much to worry about when she hadn’t needed it, it felt good to say, “Just take care of yourself, Mom. I’ve got the rest of it.”
Tears streamed down her worn face, but they were tears of relief.
I’d find a way, I silently told myself, as I once again held my mother’s hand.
Chapter19
Lily
“I have to go,”I said to my mother on the phone as I got a text from Lucas saying he was outside the dorm. “I’ve got a date,” I said before I thought better of it. But I’d been thinking about it all day, so it just kind of popped out.
“Oh, who’s the boy?” she asked with keen, lawyer-like interest, which was exactly why I shouldn’t have said anything.
Lucas was my everything, but I wasn’t shrewd Grayson Spaulding’s daughter for nothing. “Just a first date. We’ll see how it goes.”
It was not technically a lie. This was our first actual date. True, we’d been sleeping together for weeks, but tonight was our first “pick you up, dinner and a movie, drop you off (okay, spend most of the night making sweet, sweet love)” date.
“Keep me posted on him,” she said.
“I will if it turns into anything.” Which I knew I’d have to do soon, probably over the upcoming Thanksgiving break. Especially because I was considering staying here instead of taking the train to DC so I could be with Lucas for four whole uninterrupted days. My body shivered with yearning just thinking about it.
“Oh, your father wants to talk to you.”
“Mom, I really have to—”
“Here he is. Bye, sweetie, love you.”
“Love you too, Mom,” I said. I grabbed my jacket and made my way out of my room as I waited for my father’s voice.
“Lily, how are you?”
“I’m good, Dad, how are you doing?”
“Fine, fine. Listen, I wanted to talk to you about Jane.”
I walked past the elevator, deciding to take the far stairwell, where it was less likely that anyone would hear me speaking with my father. “She’s doing great. I think she’s four-pointing all her classes.”
“That’s good.” He didn’t ask how my grades were doing, which I guess was just as well. I was hanging on, but I had to work my ass off to do it. Good thing Lucas worked nights or I wouldn’t have gotten all the studying in I had over the past several weeks. And I still hadn’t made any headway on Montrose’s “the person I am today” paper.
“I appreciate whatever help you may have been to her.”
