“Fine.” Easton pushes the button for Mom’s level and the underground parking lot, then turns back my way. “Are you okay?” he asks after a beat, the hint of concern marring his features.
My lips curl into a smile as a warmth flows through me. Try as he might to keep up the grumpy-asshole persona, it’s been fading since Isaac was born, and even more so now that he has Paige. Some days you wouldn’t even know he was grumpy at all.
“I’m good, I promise.”
“Okay. Good.”
“Thanks, Easton.”
He nods as the doors open to Mom’s floor, and I squeeze his arm as I walk past, grinning until the doors shut behind me.
“Goddammit,” I mumble under my breath. Me and my stupid lies. Now I have to convince Mom and Phil to pretend I slept here last night. In case Easton decides to get nosey.
Inhaling on a groan, I knock on the door and listen as movement sounds on the other side. I force a smile preemptively, just as my mom’s boyfriend, Phil, opens up. “Hi, Sweetheart. How are you?”
His eyes briefly flit to my dress, and his brows furrow to hint his concern, but unlike Easton, he doesn’t voice it, putting on a smile of his own as he waits for me to respond.
“I’m good, thanks, Phil. Is Mom around?”
“She is. Come in. She’s having a shower but shouldn’t be too long. Anything I can help with?”
“Actually, yes.” Phil gestures for me to walk through to the kitchen, and I nod before following behind him, filling him in on my predicament. “I need you to tell Easton I spent the night here if it comes up. No questions asked.Please.”
He stops abruptly and I almost bump into him. “Wow. Oh-kay. Yep. Sure. No questions asked.” He nods to himself, and the smallest laugh escapes me. I’ll forever be grateful that my mom found him later in life.
“Thank you, Phil.” I can always rely on him to help me out—that or he’s terrified of me because he doesn’t have any daughters himself.
“I’m asking questions.” Mom joins us in the kitchen, her eyes beaming with intrigue, and I curse under my breath. “Why are you asking Phil to lie to my darling son? I’d never?—”
“Oh, stop. You lie to him all the time. ‘Of course I didn’t let Isaac watch TV before bed.’” I put on my best Mom voice and Phil laughs.
“Okay. You’re right. I still want answers.”
“Of course you do. I drank a little too much last night, and one of my friends let me crash at his place. Easton saw me leaving just now.”
“Hisplace?”
“Yes.”
“A friend?”
“Yes, Mom. Jeez.”
“Do you work with this ‘friend’?”
“What? No. He’s not an athlete.”
“I never said he was.” Her eyes sparkle with mischievous wonder, and I have to fight myself not to groan.Does everyone secretly think Sal and I are something more than we are?
“So…we’renotcovering you for a one-night stand?”
“No. I can promise you, there was no inappropriate behavior.” I hold my gaze steady and Mom nods. While I often like to pretend otherwise, Mom always knew my tells. It was impossible to lie to her. Easton, on the other hand…
“I believe you. Only…sex isn’t inappropriate. Who taught you that garbage?”
Goddammit.Now I know how Easton felt when I let it slip that Paige had been staying over at his place when they first got together. I laughed at Mom’s teasing.
Oh, how the tables have turned.
