“Nice to meet you. At first, I wasn’t sure if it actually would be,” Easton admits, causing everyone to laugh loudly.
“Collie, darling.” All conversation stops at the sound of my mother’s voice. I spin around, coming face-to-face with the woman who cooked me. I have to make jokes around her motherly nature because it truly is comical at this point in our relationship.
“Mother. Hi.”
As he turns to face her, Easton mumbles in my ear, “Introduce us and watch me work.”
I chuckle to myself, knowing exactly what he means.
Our little bet.
“This is Easton Voss. He’s the man I met in Yellowstone a few months ago.”
“Is that right?” Mom speculates. Her judgement stinks. “So, what brings you all this way, Easton?”
Easton smiles wide, and I just know he’s about to crank up his charm a thousand notches. “It’s lovely to meet you, Mrs. Meadows. Collie has nothing but sarcastic things to say about you.”
Mom had the look in her eyes like she knew what was coming—what to expect in regard to me. But it’s evident that nothing about Easton’s response was what she thought. Her head rears back, and a tick at her lips threatens to break out in a smile. “That’s the most honest thing I’ve heard all day, young man.”
I nudge my knuckle into his side, earning myself a hand hold instead.
What is he doing?
Mother doesn’t miss the affection, her eyes dialing into the joining of our fingers before rising again. “I had my cock in your ass last night, and you can’t handle holding my hand?” Easton whispers into my ear before turning back to my mother.
I almost choke on my gum. “You know how much I love to talk about you, Mother. My favorite woman since college.”
Mom shakes her head. “How long ago was college?” Easton questions.
“Hmm. Eleven years ago?”
“Eleven years of being important enough for Collie to talk about you?” Easton teases. “You’re a lucky woman, Mrs. Meadows. I’m on three months and counting. Hoping she’ll at least consider me worthy for another few months.”
I don’t know how he did it, but the Trunchbull smiles. White teeth brightened to perfection as she belts out a laugh. My mother just laughed. “I like you, Easton.”
“I’m sorry,” I sputter. “I must have misunderstood. Did you just say you like him, Mother? I’m trying to figure out where I am right now. Is this the world coming to an end? Shit. I never got to get my tits done.”
She rolls her eyes. “I know it can’t be that shocking.”
“No, actually it’s really fucking shocking,” I retort.
“Couth, Collie Charlotte,” she scolds me. Meanwhile, Easton is practically in tears from laughing so hard. “And I question why I have so much gray hair. A hairdresser’s worst nightmare. Meanwhile, my daughter is worried about her breasts.”
“Tits, Mother. Get it right,” I correct her, searching for a laugh I definitely won’t find. “And it’s called aging. Pretty sure you can only go down from here.”
She shakes her head, clearly appalled by my behavior. “Good luck with that one, Easton. God help you.”
I send her a cheesy grin, my skin growing tougher and tougher every time I’m blessed by her proximity. Mom turns to walk away, but stops at the sound of Easton’s firm voice. “Mrs. Meadows.”
She gives him her attention, careful not to appear overly taken aback. “Yes?”
“I just want to be clear about something, and I mean this in the most respectful way possible. I know you may mean well by your actions when it comes to Collie. You’re her mother, and I’d like to think you love her as much as a mother should. But have you ever considered what the outcome of your relationship with her would be if you appreciated her quirks a bit more than seeing them as flaws? Maybe put the same effort you make insulting her into complimenting her instead. It might surprise you how much your opinion of her would change. Just a thought.”
Oh, she’s definitely about to shit herself.
But me? My heart soars.
“Collie is my daughter, Easton. What kind of mother would I be if I didn’t appreciate her?”
