Page 47 of Goode Tidings

"Why do you sound like that?" Eden asks, going back to our table and gulping down her water. She cranes her neck, searching through the front window for signs of Oliver. He's a little way down the street now, standing in the crowd of kids.

"How do I sound?"

Eden turns her gleaming gaze on me. "Angry."

"I'm not angry." Baffled. Flustered. Perturbed. Those all describe me far better than angry, but clarifying the way I'm feeling is a slippery slope. Best to walk a steady path. "Are you ready to round up Oliver and go home?"

Home. Interesting word choice. And not all that accurate. It's the best I can come up with given that I drove us here, and we're going to two different destinations on the same plot of land.

"We need to pay." Eden looks around for our server.

"Already did."

"Oh, um, thank you." She digs in her purse. "I have cash. I can pay you back."

"My treat."

She stops digging and looks at me. "Thank you. For the burger and beer, and for coming here with me tonight." She motions at the scene around us. "I know all this is a fate worse than death for you."

"It wasn't that bad," I admit. Hermie Lovelorn is not my favorite nickname in the whole world, but if I didn't come here and earn it, that means I wouldn't have had great conversation with Eden, or been treated to her little show on the dance floor.

"I appreciate it. And now"—she points at the door—"let's go see if we can embarrass Oliver a little."

"How are we going to do that?" I follow her out the door.

She stops and looks up at me. The night air is cool, and the neon from the Roosters sign shines on her face. "Breathe, Callum. All it takes for a parent to embarrass their teenager is stand nearby them and breathe. Honestly, they make it too easy."

Eden and I stroll down the street on the opposite side. Oliver and his group stand on the corner. The girls stand in a tight huddle, looking at the guys and quickly averting their eyes and giggling. The boys seem unaware, knocking into one another and talking loudly.

"I'm sure I was just like that, but watching it makes me cringe."

Eden laughs. "I know. The girls are hyperaware of the boys, and the boys are clueless."

Oliver looks up at that moment and clocks me and his mom standing here. Eden waves, and Oliver looks away quickly.

She glances at me. "That should check off the 'embarrassing' box for the night."

"It really doesn't take much."

"I told you."

Oliver says his goodbyes and darts across the street. I can tell Eden wants to reprimand him for not waiting for the crosswalk, and hell, so do I. It might be a small town, but cars still have the same impact. She remains quiet, so I follow her lead.

Oliver hops onto the curb. "Hey."

"Hello." Eden lifts her hand like she's going to touch his shoulder, but thinks twice and drops it. If breathing will embarrass him, a motherly touch in front of his friends might make him explode.

We start for my car, parked on the next street. "How was the movie?" she asks.

"Fine," he answers. "You know my survivalist elective?"

"Mm-hmm," Eden answers.

"There's a camping field trip near the end of the semester. It's part of our grade, and if we don't do it, we have to complete a special project instead."

"Um—"

Oliver cuts her off. "Everyone in the class is going, Mom. Everyone." Emphasis on everyone.