Bennett had always been a good guy, but he just seems to have gotten better with age.
I’m nearly done with my burger when I hear my name.
“Easton?” I look over to see who it is, and my stomach sinks.
“Mom?” I ask, brows furrowing.
“Baby!” she says excitedly. “Oh, sweetheart. I’ve been trying to get a hold of you for days!”
I wouldn’t have known. I had her blocked.
I look at the arms full of shopping bags and start to get pissed. What the hell is this?
Just a week ago, she couldn’t pay bills, but now she has money to buy a bunch of bullshit she doesn’t need?
“What’s all this? I thought you were tight on bills?”
“It’s wonderful news.” Her eyes light up. “I won the lottery. Ten thousand dollars! Can you believe it? And they say scratch tickets are a waste of money. I proved them wrong.”
“Scratch tickets bought with my money?” I ask, jaw ticking.
“Oh, baby, don’t be like that. Be happy! We won’t need your help for a long time.”
Is she fucking kidding me?
She helps herself to the spot in front of me. “I’m glad I ran into you. I wanted to invite you to supper tonight.”
“What? Why?”
“Because you’re my son, silly. This is Christmas. We should be together as a family. I’ve missed you so much. Please? Now that we can afford it, I have everything. A big turkey, all the sides, and pies. So many pies.”
She sounds a little manic. I’m kind of worried about her.
“I don’t know.”
Her face falls. “What do you mean? I’m your mother, Easton. You can’t even come share a meal with us? It’s Christmas! Why do you hate me so much?”
And there goes the big crocodile tears. I swear, the older I got, the more she started acting like my father with all her bullshit.
“Do you have plans anywhere else? With Taylor? She’s welcome to come, too.”
“Taylor and I broke up.”
“Oh.” Her shoulders drop.
“I was just going to stay in tonight.”
“No.” She shakes her head. “That's no way to spend Christmas Eve. Come home, have a meal, that's all I'm asking."
Home. That hasn’t been my home for years, if ever. And the only thing she’s asking? She’s joking, right?
“Please.”
“Are you going to pay me back the money you borrowed?”
She hesitates. Then nods. “If you come for supper, I will.”
She should anyway. She said she would. I fucking did her a favor.
