“I mean, he got scouted at one point. I bet he can tell whether they’re serious about me.”
“Maybe,” I said.
“Ask him.” Liam flicked his chin at my phone.
I picked up my phone and paused with my fingers over the keyboard. What could I say? My son and I were just talking about you? My son finally might like you a little bit?
“Oh, come on, you big baby.” Liam pulled the phone out of my hand, put his hand over the text chain, and pressed the button to video call Harlan. “I don’t need to know what you two text about.”
“You can’t just video call bomb someone!” I hissed.
Oh god, what if Harlan answered naked or something? What if he showed his decorated dick? This could go south in so many ways. Harlan and I had never video called.
“Well, well—hey,” Harlan answered, clearly surprised with the face filling his screen. “What’s up, Liam?”
“Relax, Mom’s here,” Liam said, flashing the screen my way. “She said you might know what the scout meant who came to my game.”
I flung my hands at him. For once, the tables were turned and my son was embarrassing me.
“Yeah, what did they say?” I found it wild how he wasn’t his usual teasing asshole self. He had his phone propped up on whatever table in his hotel room, his chin resting on his fist.
Liam was animated while he filled his apparent new best friend in onmydiscussion with the scout. All the while, my stomach was in giddy little knots. My son suddenly accepted Harlan, and Harlan was being so kind to him.
I didn’t even know he had it in him. But when I thought back to when Harlan first joined the team, he’d been polite. It’s when he knows someone that he turns into his mischievous self.
Harlan knew me. And he’d known me for a couple years now. That thought was shocking.
“Was tonight your senior night?” Harlan asked.
“No, that’s next week.” Liam cleared his throat and tugged the back of his neck. “Do you think maybe you could come? If you don’t have a game or something. It’s Wednesday.”
“Liam, he doesn’t have to?—”
But Harlan’s voice was clear as a bell when he said, “No, I’d love that. What time?”
Liam gave Harlan all the details, and Harlan picked up his phone to swipe around on it. “Yeah, I don’t have anything. I’ll be there.”
“Nice,” Liam said. “Okay, well, anyway, here’s Mom.”
He handed the phone to me and I felt like a teenager, panicking because my crush was on the phone.
“H-hello?” I almost lifted the phone to my ear even though I could see his smug little face filling the screen.
Harlan chuckled. “Hey, Chef. Do you know how these newfangled things work?”
I dropped my jaw. “And you were the one acting like a gentleman doesn’t pick on me for my age.”
“Since when am I a gentleman?” He lowered his voice and wagged his eyebrows.
“Oh my god, gross,” Liam said, huffing out of the room.
“You were the one who wanted me to call him!” I pointed out.
“Do you still want me to come to your game?” Harlan yelled, making sure Liam could hear him as he went up the stairs.
“Yeah, I guess, fine, but don’t be disgusting!”
I giggled and looked down at Harlan on my screen. “Can you not be disgusting?”
