AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Her hand slices through the air, her blond ponytail whipping around her face. “No. I won’t watch it. Liam, this… girl is all wrong for you.”
“You know her name, Mom. Use it. And what exactly do you mean by any of that? A year ago, you were raving about how wonderful it was for Casey to have a friend like her.”
Her hand comes up, pressing against her forehead. “Yes, Liam. She’s the perfect friend for your teenage daughter. To get her out of her shell. Not for my grown son. You need a mature, responsible woman. Not a wild child that…”
“Be very, very careful what you say next, Mom.”
She sighs and sits in the chair across from me. “Lily, I’m sure you’re a wonderful girl, but what could my son possibly offer you? He will be thirty-six in two weeks. You’re what? Twenty-one? Do you really want that baggage? What could you offer him? He’s experienced his life. I’m sure he’s not looking to relive his twenties a second time, so he can do them with you.” That’s where she’s wrong. I want to experience everything with Lily. And it seems Mom forgets I didn’t really get to experience life as most people my age—at any age since I was fifteen. “You are a young woman with her whole life in front of her. You have the luxury of being free. He has responsibilities. And I know my son would never allow you to see other men.”
My head tilts as my brain unscrambles everything she just said. Suddenly, all my respect for the woman who raised me has evaporated. “Do you want to repeat that?” I ask. “Because I know you did not just call her a whore.”
“Of course, I didn’t, but…”
“Deanna, whatever you are about to say, don’t.” My dad growls.
Then Lily bursts into a fit of hysterics. Her head falls back as she laughs harder than I think I’ve ever seen.
I’m about to have a goddamn aneurysm, and she’s fucking laughing.
“Oh, my God.” She fights to catch her breath as tears stream from the corner of her eyes. “Your mom totally just slut shamed me.” She laughs harder while my teeth grit. I don’t find it fucking funny. “A muffin muzzle couldn’t keep your ex-wife’s cock hole contained, much less wedding vows, and she’s slut shaming me.”
Dammit. I’m supposed to be pissed, but… “Muffin muzzle?” I laugh, too. I even see Dad’s head drop to hide his chuckle.
The problem here is not Lily. Or really even my mom. It’s me. My mom doesn’t know all the shit Krista did. I let her believe the divorce was my fault because my mom has no filter. And I didn’t want her talking badly about Casey’s mom in front of her.
When Lily gets ahold of herself, she shrugs. “It just came to me.” She kisses my cheek, whispering in my ear for me to calm down, then turns to my mom. “You wonder what we have to offer each other? He teaches me patience. I’ve never met anyone with patience like him, whether teaching me to play the guitar or waiting for one of my fits to pass. Because I’ll be honest, I’ve realized I’m difficult. I can be a brat. I am spoiled, hot-headed, and stubborn, and he waits me out. Or maybe it’s determination he’s taught me. To fight for what I want and not just expect to be handed to me. He listens to everything I say. And I mean every single word, no matter how irrational.
“I like to think I show him how to live in the moment—to take risks. He doesn’t need a plan for everything, and he knows that if everything doesn’t go as planned, the world won’t end.
“He’s the quiet to my loud. The hard to my soft. Selfless to my selfish.
“We balance each other. I lift him up. He keeps me grounded. So I really don’t care what you think. I’ve learned the hard way I don’t like myself without him. You couldn’t chase me off with a shotgun. I’d gladly take death than live without him.”
I swear, at this moment, I feel like the chick in this relationship. Isn’t that the type of monologue the guy usually gives the dad over his daughter?
It’s what I expect from whoever Casey ends up with.
At least I’m not crying.
I swear I’m not. It’s just allergies.
Mom, on the other hand, has a river flowing down both cheeks. Her hand clutches her heart as she looks at my dad. “That speech sounded familiar.”
“A lot like the one I gave your dad.”
Grreaat. I really am the chick. And my twenty-one-year-old girlfriend just asked permission to date me.
Date. Not Marry. I will be the one to ask that question.
Mom nods, then opens her arms to Lily, wiggling her fingers. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t be prouder to have you for my son. He’s… he’s missed out on a lot. But maybe he can have a do-over with you.”
And now I’m smiling like a goddamn teenage girl when mom winks and mouths, “I love her. She’s perfect,” until I realize.
The woman just played us all.
Lily
The chatter of voices rings throughout the rooftop venue of the label’s party. Nerves and excitement bubble, twisting my stomach into knots. I can’t believe this is for me.
