Page 99 of The Write Stuff

We had a plan. I wasn’t looking forward to executing it.

My mother had been surprisingly easy. Once she told me the story of how she and Mick really got together, however, I wasn’t certain how I felt about Eleanor.

Sure, my mother wasn’t innocent in this. There was a level of betrayal there that couldn’t just be explained away. The thing was, Eleanor was part of that betrayal, too.

Huxley had needed some time to digest the story. It wasn’t that he didn’t believe Mick — I could tell that wasn’t the problem — but she was still his mother. So, for the first time since the first time, we spent the night apart. It made me sad, but he needed the space, so I gave it to him.

I went out to dinner with Mick, Mom, and Lucy, but it wasn’t all that pleasant. I grilled Mick mercilessly on Huxley’s reaction until he finally told me that Huxley would tell me how he felt about things when he was ready.

I felt guilty after that and skipped dessert to punish myself, which had Mom rolling her eyes. Lucy and I walked Mom and Mick to their hotel. Lucy had a lot to think about, too. It was an opportunity she likely wouldn’t get again, so she wanted to think on it, which was a good sign in my book.

“Let’s have some ice cream on the riverwalk,” Mom suggested, rather than say goodbye to us at the hotel’s main door. “I saw an ice cream place not too far from the Starbucks.”

“It’s good,” I said. “Huxley and I had ice cream there once.”

“Oh, yeah?” Mom arched an eyebrow, clearly amused. “Was it a date?”

“Actually, no.” I frowned as I thought back to that night. “One of the readers at the event we were at was kind of … weird. He kept offering to walk me home even though I said no. Huxley stepped in and said he was walking me home, even though we’d argued earlier in the evening.”

“They argued a lot at the start,” Lucy offered. “That’s why I came to back her up. I didn’t want him to be mean to her.”

Mom gave Lucy a “don’t even go there” look. “Yes, that’s why you moved in with your sister,” she said dryly, shaking her head before turning back to me. “So, you weren’t together, and he insisted on walking you home?”

“It was a safety thing,” I assured her. “We weren’t even looking at each other that way back then.”

“Uh-huh.” Mom’s lips swished. “You two always looked at each other that way, for the record, so I’m not falling for that.”

“Oh, give me a break.” I couldn’t even believe she was going there. “He never looked at me as anything other than a geek before we met up this time. Don’t make it into something it wasn’t.”

“I’m not making it into something it wasn’t,” she replied firmly. “You two had crushes on each other. You admitted yours. Huxley had more trouble with his.”

“Because I was a geek.” Immediately, I thought better of what I’d said. It wasn’t the words that bothered me but the way I’d said them. “There’s nothing wrong with being a geek, though.”

“There’s not,” Mom agreed.

“I’m not a geek,” Lucy volunteered, but nobody paid any attention to her.

“Huxley likes that I’m a geek,” I explained. “He even bought me a Star Trek shirt for our first date. He wore one too. It was funny and talked about Kirk and his phaser.” I laughed at the memory.

“It sounds as if you guys have been having a good time,” Mom mused as we arrived at the ice cream shop. “You’ve been having safe sex, right?”

My cheeks burned red hot, and I had to look away from her. “Mom.” I was scandalized.

She, of course, thought it was funny. “I’m looking forward to being a grandmother. You and Huxley are going to have beautiful children. You shouldn’t rush into it too fast, though.”

I pressed my lips together and focused on my ice cream choices. I couldn’t believe she’d gone there. I was in my 30s, for crying out loud. I didn’t need the sex talk now.

“That’s what’s great about being a lesbian,” Lucy volunteered. “You don’t have to worry about accidental pregnancy.”

“Yes, you shouldn’t be having kids anytime soon,” Mom said to Lucy. “You should get your act together first. Your sister already has her act together, so we can talk about kids.”

Lucy scowled. “Way to make me feel bad, Mom.”

“You’re welcome, dear.” She absently patted Lucy’s arm and kept her focus on me. “You and Huxley will be great parents. I can already tell that he’s grown into a wonderful man.”

Briefly, I closed my eyes. “I’m getting vanilla with caramel sauce,” I said because I couldn’t think of anything else to say.

“Sounds good.” Mom’s grin only got wider. “I think I’ll get that too.”