“Well, my mother decided if I’m going to be going back and forth between here and Boston, that every other time I’m here, we should stay with her.”
I was afraid of that. But if Hayden can put up with Gin, I can put up with Colleen. He deals with conflict better than I do, but I can handle it. “That’s fair, I guess.”
“I appreciate that. But, I think me being in this house is…helping.”
I can’t deny he’s annoying the hell out of Gin. Enough to sell the house to him? That remains to be seen. “Obviously you can’t explain why to Colleen.”
“No, so now we’re too the part that might make you mad.”
“Oh, none of that was it?”
“Funny.” He snorts. “Hold on to that sense of humor for the next part. Which is me telling my mom that we’re trying to mend old relationships. And because Colleen Reilly is a wonderful woman who will be warm and gracious to you no matter who your mother is, it’s more important for me to be here and try to bring your irrational, unkind mother around.”
I know I should be offended on my mother’s behalf—and yes, mad—but I have to laugh. “And she bought that?”
“She did. And you don’t seem mad.”
I shrug. “I probably should be, except it’s all so ridiculous. It’s really hard not to laugh.”
“Good.” He’s quiet for a moment, watching me. “I’ve been thinking.”
“Please stop doing that. My mother wouldn’t sell you this house, so you thought about it, and now we’re married and sleeping in the same bed with the world’s worst chaperone between us.”
He tries to look chagrined and utterly fails. “That’s what I’ve been thinking about. Well, not the bed part. Actually…no. Never mind that.”
It’s not often I see Hayden flustered. It’s adorable.
“Anyway,” he says firmly. “I was planning to leave for Boston early tomorrow morning. But it would have to be really early to make my first meeting of the day. You have appointments in the morning. And the stress level has been high for all of us. I was thinking of heading back today. I can get Penny settled back in. Maybe we can all get a decent night’s sleep to kick off the week.”
As much as a part of me doesn’t want him to go, he’s not wrong about any of it. “That actually sounds like a good idea.”
“And I’ll be back Thursday night.”
I hadn’t even gotten my entire sigh of relief out yet. “Of course you will.”
“Any chance you can see me off with a tearful goodbye on the curb? Maybe wave a handkerchief as I drive away?”
“Nope. Any chance Penny can stay with me?”
“Nope.”
I had to try.
Chapter Fifty
Hayden
Three weeks later…
“Did you move all the stuff around in the kitchen drawers?”
Hearing Cara’s voice behind me makes me smile, even though she sounds thoroughly exasperated with me. I turn to face her, doing my best not to look smug. “I reorganized the drawers in a more logical way as a favor to my mother-in-law.”
She laughs. “You are so full of shit right now.”
“Tell me the way I have the utensils and cutlery doesn’t make more sense.”
“It’s not about making sense and you know it. You would never do this to your mother’s kitchen.” She arches her eyebrow, waiting, but I keep my mouth shut because I don’t want to admit I wouldn’t dare move a single spoon in Colleen Reilly’s kitchen. “This game you’re playing needs to stop.”
