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Can’t wait to see you in a couple of days! How are things holding up with Liam? I’m sure you two lovebirds will work it out just fine. He can always come and visit you, you know.
Spend as much time as you can with your dad. You won’t see him for another year, sweetie. Try not to be too hard on him. He loves you dearly.
By the way, remember that guy I mentioned I met a week after you left? Well, I want you to be the first to know, I’m engaged!!! What a nice surprise, right? I’ll tell you all about it when you get here.
I love you,
Mom
P.S. No, I haven’t lost my mind, hun. I’m in love :)
When Mom mentioned “surprise”, I never would have thought I’d get the surprise of a lifetime.
As expected, Mom was at the airport waiting on me with a huge grin on her face after I had spent my entire summer in Sydney with my father. He moved out there after he and Mom got divorced two years ago. Bizarre really, ‘cause I left my summer to spend winter with him.
It wasn’t all that bad after I started dating Liam Hollingsworth, who was a freshman at the University of Sydney. We promised to try and work things out, but as much as I liked him, I was also aware that long distance relationships were hard work. So we had decided to see how it’d be for a while; we were basically measuring the difficulty ahead of us or to see if it was even worth trying.
So I was unofficially single, if that made sense at all.
Mom didn’t unfold her secret until we were all alone. This whole bomb landed on me the second we got onto the freeway.
“Okay, I don’t want to keep you waiting ‘cause I know you might be dying to know who the man is, just don’t freak out, okay?” My mom glanced at me sideways before looking out to the road ahead with a large, beaming smile playing across her face.
Well, if her smiles were always this huge, then I didn’t care if she married a preacher. Okay,maybea little, but seriously, watching her now—seeing how happy she was—made me realize how lonely she might’ve been the last two years. It was drastic for her to get engaged with someone so quickly, but if it was what she wanted, then who was I to come in-between her and her Prince Charming? Well, here’s hoping that he was the one after all.Hell, I have yet to meet him.
“Seriously, who is your mystery man? You’re killing me, smalls.” Pulling out my strawberry lip salve, I popped the tin open before I glided my pinky over it and applied some to my lips.
“It’s Brett Edwards,” she said with a pained, crossing on sour, face.
I dropped my lip salve along with my jaws. “You’re kidding, right?”Please, please, please, tell me that you are. I was praying to the gods—or whoever was listening—to help me salvage my senior year in high school.
Mom exhaled a long sigh—a big indicator that she was darn serious. “This was why I never mentioned it to you because I was afraid ofthis; that you might change your mind and never come back here, Liv.”
She was imagining the extremes. Come on, really? It was no big deal. I was a grown up; I could deal with this. “But Brett, mom? Really?”Thatdid not come out right. Personally, I had no problems with Brett, his only child on the other hand,Greyson… Ugh. Kill me now.
He was your typical asshole… Thinking about him was a waste of energy. Enough said.
Mom reached out and gave my arm a tight squeeze. “He’s amazing, Liv. He treats me like a queen. Not only that, but he makes me feel wonderful. I did promise you that I wouldn’t marry again until I found my Mr. Darcy. Well, I believe with my whole heart that he is, Liv. He loves me. Well, he’s been in love with me for decades. That’s why he never got married.”
That got my attention. Pride and Prejudice was our all time favorite film. For her to mention Mr. Darcy, it was major deal. “What do you mean? How long have you known him?”
“Since high school and then college, but he left to live in Chicago after we graduated. As you know, I was dating your dad since I was seventeen, so he never stood a chance.”
My mom’s story was disheartening, but at the same time, inspiring. I had to suppose if Mom and Brett would be happily married and in love, my feelings about Greyson would have to be set aside. I had nothing against true love.
“I also forgot to mention it to you, hun, but we moved in with them. Greyson lives in the pool house, so you’re in the clear. I promise.” My mom rushed to add in that teeny, bitty piece of information.
Inhale, exhale, Olivia.The world wasn’t ending. This was my chance to give Mom her happiness, so I dared not ruin this for her. Living with the Edwards—of course!Brett and Mom were now engaged.
“I need a moment to digest this tidal wave of crap, Mom.”
“I’m so sorry to do this to you, Liv. I wanted to warn you, but I was scared you might not come back home.”
“You’re being silly. Of course I’d come back, but I would’ve appreciated a little adjusting time, you know? This is a lot to take in, Mom. The crazy, major, upheaval kind, but if you’re happy, then I’m happy. That’s all I want.”
My mom looked misty-eyed before she gave me a grateful smile. “Thank you, sweetie.” She sniffed, wiping the sides of her eyes. “This means a lot to me. I expected screaming or even an attempt to get out of it, so thank you for not putting me through that. You’re the best daughter a mom could wish for.”
She always gave me too much credit; however she was my mom, right? They always tended to do that, even if their kids were horrendous. “Thank me after a week and I haven’t scratched Greyson’s eyes out.”
