“I want a very small party,” she says. “Just you and Ayden and his family, and my niece and her parents.”
I choke on the sip of water I’m taking.
“Are you okay, Mikey?”
“Fine,” I get out. “Just went down the wrong pipe.”
“So I’ll see you tomorrow? I’ll text you the details.”
“Um…sure. See you then.”
I don’t know if Emery wants her aunt to know about us. Lynn is pretty traditional, and I’m not sure how she’d feel about no-strings affair with an expiration date.
Emery
Mom and I are red-faced and sweating by the time we leave the tennis courts.
“I finally beat you,” I tease her as we stop at my parents’ house down the street to shower and change.
“I was off my game today,” she says with a smile.
I get dressed in my old bedroom after a quick refreshing shower. When I walk out into the living room, I’m wearing a clean version of what I wore to the tennis courts—a graphic tee and faded blue cut-offs with flip-flops instead of sneakers.
Mom, on the other hand, glides into the living room in a floor-length pale yellow and blue skirt that she’s paired with a white blouse and matching pumps.
“You look hot, Mom.” I pretendto fan myself.
She laughs and pats her gray stylish bob. “I’m too old to be hot, darling.”
“We’re never too old to look good,” I say as we leave the house and go to grab lunch at our favorite Mexican restaurant.
My mom and I chat about mostly everything, so as we drive to the restaurant, I fill her in on Michael and me. “It’s casual,” I caution her. “So don’t get too excited.”
She promises not to, but as I tell her about our connection through Tony, I can see her enthusiasm building. She’s not one of those mothers who just wants to marry her daughter off. She’d be fine if I stayed single forever. But she also knows me, and she can tell when I’m happy and when I’m not.
“You’re happy,” she says as we sit down at La Casa and place our order. “You like this young mana lot.”
I try to protest, but what’s the use? I’m infatuated with Michael. I do like hima lot.
“So tell me more about him.” Mom’s eyes fill with emotion. “What a tragic coincidence about his daddy and Uncle Tony.”
“I know. I can’t imagine how hard it was.”
“He sounds like he’s got a good head on his shoulders. But it must have been very hard to go through his teenage years without a father.”
“I think his whole life has been shaped by that event.” I take a sip of my water. “He’s a good person. We’re having fun together.”
“I love that you’re so happy, honey.” Mom’s eyes brighten.
I got lucky with my parents. They truly love me unconditionally, and not only that, we actually like each other. My mom is a best friend to me, and I would hang out with her even if we weren’t related.
“Thanks, Mom.” I swirl a tortilla chip through my guacamole.
“Have you told Aunt Lynn?”
“Nope. I’ve been a little preoccupied.”
“You can tell her the sex is out of this world,” Mom jokes.
