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I smiled. "What did you say?”
“I love you,” she replied.
How could I be angry at her now? Fighting back tears, I walked over, sat beside her, and hugged her. Trying to copy what she said, I told her I love you.
Mom chuckled and I knew I had butchered the pronunciation, but the meaning came through. I tried again, and this time, the words seemed to flow a bit easier. She hugged me even tighter.
When we released each other, she said, “If you want to stay in New York and finish our vacation, that's okay with me. I know how much you have always wanted this.”
I had accomplished what I set out to. Damien is on the case. Staying in New York would do little good except for giving us a break from the restaurant. We needed it but I knew my mother wasn’t really enjoying herself.
“It’s okay, Mom. I think a slow ride home is what I’d really like to do. Have you decided? Will you come for the ride with me and Damien?” I asked.
“I’m so confused. Why do you want to spend so much time with a former professor?” she asked.
That was an excellent question and there was only one answer I could come up with.Sorry, Damien. “We’re...dating.” I know this was going to get a reaction, and not a good one.
“MaKayla, you can’t date him. He’s...too old for you,” she said.
That wasn’t the reason I expected her to say. Maybe he was a former teacher or maybe long-distance relationships don’t work, but not age. I thought she was more accepting regarding that. “Mom, he’s not that much older,” I stated. I didn’t find ten years at our age to be a major issue.
“He seems closer to my age than yours.”
Sadly, she was right. Mom was eighteen years older than me. “Mom, you always told me that women mature faster than men, which means Damien and I are pretty much the same age,” I grinned. I loved it when I could use her own words in our debates.
“MaKayla, why is it that I’m only hearing about this now?” she asked.
Because I just made it up.“We...I...I wanted to keep it private. It’s new and I didn’t want to say anything. It’s not like we are in a serious relationship.”
“He is willing to drive us all the way home. Sounds serious to me,” she stated. “I really think the two of you should slow things down.”
This lie was horrible and someday she was going to learn the truth and be so angry with me. But if she knew who he really was, she’d be angry now. No matter how I handled this, the results were going to be the same. Might as well put it off as long as I can.
“Trust me, Mom. We are taking things very slow.”Like not moving at all.
“I guess the only way to ensure that the slow pace continues is for me to join you on the trip. When do we leave?” she asked.
I hadn’t discussed that with Damien yet, but I had to tell her something firm or she would think we hadn’t made up our minds yet.
“Check-out is at eleven tomorrow, so we thought we’d leave at ten. If you are sure you are coming, I’ll let Damien know.”
“I’ll be there. Might even sit in the front seat so I can get to know him better,” she said.
“Oh, this is going to be fun. Not sure which one of you will be asking more questions. I think I’ll bring some headphones and listen to music instead,” I warned.
“I don’t ask a lot of questions. Not like he does,” she said, trying to defend herself.
Yes, you do. The difference is I’m paying him to ask the questions.
“Oh, this is going to be a long ride home, isn’t it?”
“Then you agree, we should fly?” she asked.
I shook my head. “That would defeat the purpose of us spending time to get to know each other better.”
She got up and said, “I guess I should go and pack.”
“We have all day to do that. If you’re feeling better, we can still go and take in a show,” I suggested.
