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“When…” I watched her let out a deep breath. “I need you to explain this to me, Edie. I would really like to understand how Lars came to be the boy that took your virginity.” While I knew that my mom loved Lars to death, this wasn’t about Lars. Mom knew Talon well enough to know that this could get messy if not handled with the utmost of care.
So, starting from the first day of school and not stopping until Lars had left just a couple of hours ago, I told her everything. I told her about the overprotectiveness, the fighting, the kiss, the restroom…hell, I even told her about Rosa Venice. I told her everything, leaving out the intimate details, but she didn’t need those to see the whole picture.
When I was finished, she looked concerned, but not in a bad way. “You’re in love with him?”
“It wasn’t hard to do,” I admitted. “I mean, I already had love for him as friends. I’ve known him my entire life, and he’s always treated me well.”
“You’re not worried that you’re limiting your…your life experiences by getting so serious with Lars so soon?” she asked.
“Not really.” I shrugged. “I mean, it’s crazy to expect forever with your first love anyway, right? Plus, while not ideal, people survive broken hearts all the time.”
“Oh, honey,” she sighed. “If you really think that Lars is ever going to let you go, then I think you might really be in over your head with him.”
“What do you mean?”
“Edie, I know Lars Finley well enough to know that he never would have gotten involved with you if he wasn’t already thinking of forever,” she said. “Knowing how damaging a fallout with you would be, Lars will never let you go, honey.” She reached out, then squeezed my leg. “I hope you’re serious about Lars, because there’s no way that he’s not serious about you.”
“Yeah, he said as much,” I muttered. “But I thought…you know, guys say things when they’re…uh, excited.”
“Yes,” she replied quietly. “Yes, they do.”
I immediately thought of Hawkley, and if I had any kind of relationship with my father, I’d punch him in the face for the look in my mom’s eyes right now.
With nothing left to say about men and their promises, we went to bed.
~
Lars~
Though it wasn’t super late, it was late enough to be rude. While I knew that my parents were the supportive kind, they both worked, and it just felt selfish to wake my dad up for advice that he might not even have for me. While I would normally call Hunter for advice, this was the one time when I couldn’t. I didn’t want to divide his loyalties between me and Talon, though I knew that he’d always choose me if it came down to it.
So, after leaving Edie in her bed, satisfied and spent, I had stopped to get something to eat, had stalled like a motherfucker by taking my time eating, then showered before knocking on my parents’ bedroom door. I always felt uncomfortable knocking on their door because my parents still liked each other very much, and if I could keep my mind from going there, then I would.
After about a minute and a second knock, Mom was opening the door, and she looked sleepy enough to make me feel better about interrupting their sleep. Had she been flushed and wide-eyed, I would have been mortified. Granted, had she been otherwise occupied, Dad would have answered the door, making sure to protect her modesty.
“Is everything okay?” she asked groggily.
“Yeah, sorry to wake you.”
“It’s okay,” she said, smiling softly.
“Can you get Dad for me?”
Her brown eyes sharpened, coming alert like any good parent. “Sure,” she drawled out slowly.
“Everything’s fine, Mom,” I semi-lied. “I promise. I just need to talk to Dad about something.”
“Is someone pregnant?” she asked, totally prying.
I choked out a laugh. “Not that I know of.”
“We’ll understand if you got-”
“Sweet Jesus, Mom,” I swore, cutting her off. “No one’s pregnant. I just need to talk to Dad.”
Though she didn’t look like she fully believed me, she still gave me a terse nod before going to get my dad. I waited patiently outside their bedroom door, not daring to peek inside, even a little. Though I was allowed in their room, that was their private space, and I respected that.
When my dad came walking through their door, he didn’t look quite as sleepy as Mom had, but he did look very concerned. However, since I rarely knocked on their bedroom door at night, his concern was warranted, and so was Mom’s uneasy feeling.
