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“I’ll have to ask her, Mom.”
Sure, Eli, keep digging the hole deeper, you freaking idiot.
“Okay, well, I’ll just let you two talk and you can get back to me. I’m so excited! I can’t wait to meet the girl who captured my Elijah’s heart!”
I spend another five minutes promising my mom that I will talk to Hartley and get back to her before we finally hang up. I stare out the windshield for a minute before a text from Patrick comes in asking if I’m close.
I text him back, telling him I’m on my way, and pull out onto Main Street heading toward Patrick’s place.
I can’t stop thinking about how the hell I’m going to convince Hartley to go along with all of this. The girl seems to hate my guts and we can barely spend five minutes together without getting upset with the other.
As I pull up in front of Patrick’s place, I try to forget about this new mess. At least for tonight.
I spend a few minutes with Patrick, who looks exhausted and worried, and Brennan, who looks even worse. The kid perks up when he sees me and looks even more excited when he sees the Gatorade.
I listen to Brennan tell me about seeing the doctor and getting to leave school early. He still has to do his homework while he’s home, and I can’t help but laugh when I see his disgruntled face.
Brennan’s eyes start to drift shut and I take that as my cue to leave. I pat his head, letting Patrick tuck him in and make sure that the trash can is by the bed before he shows me out.
“Thanks for grabbing that stuff,” he says as he follows me out onto the front porch.
“My mom heard about Hartley,” I blurt out.
Patrick blinks and then bursts out into laughter.
“Thanks for sharing that, man. I really needed a laugh after the last two days.”
“I’m glad that you can find humor in my pain,” I grumble.
It takes Patrick a second to get himself under control, and he finally calms down and leans back against the porch railing.
“What did she say? Is she already planning your wedding?”
“Yep. I told her that Hartley and I were dating.”
“Are you insane?” Patrick almost shouts before his eyes cut to inside the house.
We both pause, waiting to see if Brennan woke up. When it’s silent, he continues.
“I thought she hated you? How are you going to convince her to date you? Not just date you, but meet your parents?” he stresses.
“I was planning on begging.”
“Solid plan,” Patrick says, his usual easy-going grin stretching his lips.
I sigh, tilting my head back and staring up at the stars for a second.
I am so screwed.
“Let me know if you need anything else. Tell Brennan I’ll be by in a couple of days when he’s feeling better with some pizza, and tacos, and burgers, and––”
“Try to remember that we’re trying to get the kid to stop throwing up,” Patrick teases and I laugh, throwing a wave over my shoulder as I climb back into my truck and head home.
SEVEN
Hartley
It’s late and I’m busy down in the bakery making notes on my pad when I hear a knock at the front door. The only lights I have on down here are the ones in the back hall. I’m working on what I’ll need in the kitchen part and office, and I didn’t think that anyone could even see the light from the front door.
