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“Have you been tanning?” I asked her.
She laughed, shaking her head. “No. I was outside a lot yesterday.” She came up to me and poured herself a cup of coffee. “What are you doing here so early? Not that I’m complaining of course.”
I poured myself a cup as well and took a sip before meeting my mother’s gaze. “I needed to come home.”
“Okay.” She took a sip from her own mug and leaned a hip against the counter. “Are you going to tell me how you got that bruise on your nose or am I going to have to ask?”
I swallowed hard. “I…” I sighed, placing my mug on the island behind me. “Zach and Ashton got in a fight. I got in the way and Zach accidentally elbowed me.”
“What did you do after that?” Mom asked, staring at me over the rim of her mug.
“Uh…I kicked him out after.”
“Good girl.” She placed her mug on the counter beside her. “Listen, I know there is a lot of history between you two. You’ve been best friends since you were kids.”
“We have and I’ve had a crush on him for that long too. I’ve watched him go through countless women, but I’ve never said anything. And then he stopped sleeping with random women and we…” I let out a shaky breath. “I love him but he…he left me. Last night. Or broke things off first I should say.” God, I wasn’t making sense.
My mom’s face softened. “How come?”
“He believes Dad,” I muttered. “But it’s what he does. He pushes people away and I don’t know how to show him that I’m not going to hurt him. He let his parents in. Why can’t he let me in too?”
“Oh, Luna.” Mom wrapped her arms around my shoulders. “I know it’s hard. I know it hurts. I don’t know what happened to him as a boy, but he went through a lot. Didn’t his real dad die?”
I nodded, swiping my hands across my cheeks to wipe away the tears.
Mom held me at arm’s length. “What you have with Zach, is different than what he has with Coby and Brogan. I remember when they first adopted him. It took quite a few years for that boy to smile. For him to laugh. For him not to jump at every small sound because he was terrified that he would get into trouble. Or worse.”
“I remember that,” I murmured.
“You see.” She hooked her arm in mine and led me out to the dining room table. “Our men are one in the same. Even though your dad doesn’t like to admit it. But when I first met him, I was actually the one who pushed him away.”
“Really?” I asked, my eyes widening. “Why?”
“Because he got too close. You are so much like him, it’s unreal. You inch your way into someone’s heart, and we can’t do anything about it until we have to give in.”
“But Zach left. He went to another woman’s place.” I looked away, not wanting to see the look of pity on my mother’s face.
She sighed. “Did anything happen?”
“No.” I looked at her then. “What do I do?”
“Give him time.” She paused. “Listen, I’ve tried talking to your dad, but something is…I know it’s not right. You’re a grown woman but he has his reasons for his issue with you being with Zach. But honestly, I think it’s mostly Zach doing the pushing and your dad’s issues with the whole thing is just added pressure. But Zach isn’t the only one who feels like he’s not good enough.”
“What do you mean?”
“Your dad. Me. All of us. We all felt like we weren’t good enough for each other.” She shrugged.
“What’s going on?”
Both of us turned to my dad coming toward us. His dark eyes met mine. “I’ll give you one second to tell me why you have a bruise on your face before I drive over and kill him myself.”
“See?” I said to Mom. “This is what I have to deal with.”
“Luna,” Dad grumbled. “Explain.”
I let all the words spill from my lips. Although I had reassured my dad that it wasn’t Zach’s fault, his face only became redder and redder. I also left out the part that I was naked even though I had been wrapped in a blanket.
“I…” Dad blew out a slow breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. Much to my surprise, he closed the distance between us and gently cupped my face. Tilting my head back, he examined my nose. “Does it hurt still?”
