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“Because of circumstance. Look at his mother. She remarried right after his father died. How did that look to you?”
She said nothing, just stared at me with those concerned eyes I knew all too well. It was the look she gave me when we’d sit at my father’s bedside. When she wanted to make it clear that he wouldn’t recover without admitting it. When she watched me cry and didn’t know what to say because ‘he’s gonna be okay’ would have been a lie.
“I’m leaving for college in three months—”
“Hopefully sooner if you get the internship,” she said.
“Oh? Now you want me to leave?” I asked, surprised by the news.
“I want you far away from these Grayson Boys,” she admitted.
I held up my index finger. “It’s one dance.”
Her eyes narrowed, zeroing in on my hand. “What’s that?”
I dropped my hand knowing full well what she was referring to. “What?”
“On your finger.”
I glanced down at my hand. “Oh, this? Just a ring.”
“Where’d. You. Get. It?” she asked through clenched teeth.
I cocked my head. “Do you really want to know?”
She dropped down onto my desk chair, looking more exhausted than I’d seen her since my father died. “How did this happen?”
“Nothing happened. It was a gift. And now I want to go to a dance. It’s that simple.”
“I’m scared for you.”
I knelt in front of her, taking her hands in mine. “There’s nothing to be scared about.”
“So you think. But I’ve seen this same scene play out before.”
“I’m not Maureen. I’m not going to marry Seren and forget about the little people.”
“That’s not what I’m scared of,” she said.
“I told you. He’s not who you think. Come on,” I said, trying to lighten the mood. “Help me pick out a dress.”
She didn’t look convinced or excited, but her eyes moved to the bags on my bed for a long time before she responded. “Well…let’s see them.”
Relief swept over me. I knew she didn’t like the idea of me going with Seren—or him giving me a ring, but she at least wanted to help me look nice.
I stood up and unzipped the first bag. A gorgeous deep green, floor-length, strapless dress lay inside. Sparkles adorn the bodice.
“Oh my,” my mother said.
Yes. Oh my, indeed.
CHAPTER 30
Grace
Seren stood in the driveway, waiting for me the next morning. “Hey.”
“Hey,” I said, as he moved toward the garage.
