Page 68 of Lease to Love

I had to answer.

Joselyn Sterling did not get sent to voicemail. Especially not when she'd spent the last thirty-six years reminding me that “my broad shoulders had her in labor for twenty hours.”

Her words.

I took a breath and answered. “Hey, Ma.”

“Oh, is that what I am?”

I smiled before I could stop myself. Her voice was loud enough to fill the room through the phone.

“I would've never known, with how I had to find out from someone else that my firstborn had a girlfriend.”

I leaned against the wall. “I was gonna tell you, Ma.”

“Mm-hmm.”

“I was. Not my fault your son can't keep his mouth shut.”

She sucked her teeth. “And it's not my fault my son loves his mother enough to not keep secrets.”

I smiled. There it was. That warmth she could put into a sentence even while fussing at me.

“So… Tell me about this girl.”

I walked back toward the couch and sat down, muting the television as I settled into the cushions. “Her name is Summer.”

“Pretty name.”

I nodded even though she couldn't see me.

“She runs a clothing boutique. Owns it.”

“Very nice.”

“All her own designs. Custom pieces on commission.” I glanced toward the dark television screen. “It's called House of Autumn.”

“House of Autumn.” She repeated it slowly, testing the name. “Anything I would wear?”

“Yes, actually.” I smiled. “Bold colors. Patterns that change with the seasons. Lots of statement pieces.”

I thought about the clothes in the store. “The kind of stuff you'd like.”

“Very me, huh?”

I could hear Ma grinning through the phone and nodded. “Yes. Very you.”

I left out the fact that I'd paid enough attention to know that.

I told myself I knew because I was financially invested in the business, and that it was a one-woman operation that had managed to survive six years in an increasingly difficult market.

It was legitimately impressive. That was all.

“And how'd you meet?” Ma asked.

“She's a tenant,” The cover story came easier the second time. “We'd danced around each other for a few years, then I finally decided to do something about it when her ex messed up.”

“Mmm-hmm.” I knew that sound. “And what else?”