"Yep. Katerina and Scottie want to do dinner tomorrow."
She reaches over and takes a handful of pretzels without looking. "I can't believe you two are living together. For a man who's never done relationships, he's going pretty hard with you."
"To be honest, I’m surprised myself," I say. "But I trust him, and we’re building a life together. It just feels right."
"I'm happy to see you happy." She finally looks over at me. Something soft in her expression that she doesn't dress up. "And selfishly, I love Luka for bringing you back to Seattle."
I lean my head back against the couch cushion.
"Me too, Mom," I say. "Now about that guy from work. You keep dodging the question. Are you two dating or what?"
My mom blushes and then before she can answer, my phone rings. Damn it.
Molly.
I know I should take this, but I finally got my mother cornered.
"Saved by my daughter’s busy phone." She grins and stuffs more popcorn in her mouth.
"You’re not getting off that easy. I know where his season tickets are. I’m going to meet him at one of these home games and demand to know what his intentions are with my mother."
My mother pretends she is unbothered by the idea, but I know better. This is the first guy she’s been interested in in years.
I answer before the third ring. "Hey. How are you? Are you doing okay?"
A beat. "Well, that's a loaded question."
That means something is up. I can hear it in her voice. "Tell me."
She exhales. "Carey's out. Fired as of this afternoon. Turns out she's been sleeping with her boss, David Willson for almost a year and his wife found out, then HR found out. The whole thing collapsed at once."
"You're kidding?" I ask. It’s not lost on me that it turns out that Carey was the one sleeping her way to the top all along.
"Gabriella got demoted. Her plan with Carey backfired… badly. Agents are leaving and taking clients with them. Legacy has been hemorrhaging people and accounts for weeks. Morale around here is…" she trails off. "It's sinking, Nat."
"I'm sorry," I say, and mean it. Not for Carey or Gabriella… or even for Legacy, but for Molly and the friends I still have there. Molly’s good at her job and deserves better than watching a firm come apart around her.
"Don't be. I saw it coming after you left." She's quiet for a second. "Worse comes to worst… does your mom have a spare bedroom for an unemployed lawyer?"
I laugh, surprised by it. "I would genuinely love to have you in Seattle. But I’m worried about you now."
"Don't worry about me," she says, and I can hear her smiling. "Just take care of that hot hockey player you couldn't shake."
"I'll call you tomorrow, okay? We’ll talk this whole thing out."
"Yeah," she says. "Sounds good."
I hung up and set my phone down. My mom is watching me with that particular patience she has. The kind that waits without pushing.
"What's going on with Molly?"
"She's okay. She made a joke about the spare bedroom."
My mom doesn't miss a beat. "Well. Now that you’re living with Luka, the room is available. I might need a new reality show watch partner." She gestures at the TV.
I turn to look at her. "What am I to you? Just a space filler until something better comes along?" I tease. I know she’s not trying to get rid of me. "What about Tuesday nights? You can’t replace me before my spot on the couch is even cold. It’s just rude."
She pats my hand. "I said what I said."
