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I crossed my arms, glaring at him. “About the party tomorrow?”
“No…” He snapped his fingers and looked directly at me. “That’s right. Mom’s also on her way here.”
“WHAT?” I shouted.
He grinned and pushed off of the wall.
“Yeah, she feels bad about yesterday and wants to apologize.”
“And you just happened to forget that very vital piece of information? Tenley is downstairs.” I stared at him in shock. I needed to get back to my bedroom and put on a pearl snap, some Kimes Jeans, make sure there was no blood on my face, and get out of here. If Mom showed up and I looked like this, with Tenley here, I was doomed.
He shrugged his shoulders.
“How far away is she?”
“Well, depends on how good Cash has been at stalling her,” he replied and grinned wickedly. “I’ll bring you that shovel and fix your door.” The moment those words left his mouth, he dashed away, disappearing outside. A light breeze danced through the kitchen, blowing some snow inside from the porch. I mumbled several curse words under my breath after him, frustrated I couldn’t give chase since I wasn’t wearing clothes. Slugging him a time or two would be a nice lesson as well, but there was no time.
Scrambling to my bedroom, I grabbed my belt off of the top and threw open the doors to my closet. Gathering my clothes, I jumped into the pants, shrugged the shirt over my arms, and began shoving the belt through the loops.
If my mom saw anything that was this house, even just a couple decorations, she would know something was up. Besides, I wasn’t exactly in the forgiving mood, even if Tenley had reminded me to not be so irrational about it all. For crying out loud, a bull had taken a dump on my floor. Things weren’t exactly perfect right now.
Besides, out of anyone who had called me something like that, accused me of being someone I’m not, the last person I’d ever expected it from was my own mom. Especially since she hadn’t even given me a chance to explain what had really happened. And I’d seen her cut Tenley off before she’d been able to jump in and speak in my defense.
Quickly knocking on the bathroom door, I asked Tenley how long she was going to be, figuring I’d rinse my face off in the other bathroom on my way out if she was going to be there for a while.
“I’m just sitting here, in my clothes, all dressed and ready. I didn’t know if I should come out or not,” she replied, and I chuckled.
Opening the door, I walked inside. She was literally sitting on the toilet lid, waiting. I splashed some water on my face and used a clean towel from the cupboard beneath the sink to dry off.
Facing the sweet woman, I gave her a reassuring smile. “Wait maybe five minutes after I leave before going upstairs. Then I’ll come back inside and get you once I’ve fended off my mom.”
“Weston, you have to somehow make sure my mom and your mom don’t have a moment alone to talk about us. From now until you decide you’re ready to say something,” she quickly warned.
“I know, darling,” I replied, and she took a deep breath. “I promise it’ll all be fine.”
“It better be. I’m really excited about this Christmas,” she muttered.
She rose from the toilet seat, her shoulders scrunched up to her ears in apprehension. Gently, I slid my hands against her cheeks and tipped her head up. “I’ll be back shortly,” I whispered and softly kissed her lips.
Her eyes remained closed even as I pulled away from her velvety taste. Even as my hands disappeared from her face, she remained still and silent. Man, what a sight she was to look at. Again, wearing a cute, gingerbread man knitted sweater with a pair of tight fitting jeans that showed off everything I was loving on her. She’d twisted her hair into a simple braid, which stretched down her back.
I took one last look before hustling up the stairs. Time to face my mom and hopefully turn her away. There wasn’t time to hash out what had happened, not while I was hiding a girl in my house.
There was a part of me that hated how I agreed partially with my mom. I was acting a little more childish. I was sneaking around with Tenley. But I also knew my mom, and I wanted just one perfect date with Tenley. That was it. And once that happened, then my mom could know. Along with everyone else, she was allowed to know.
Rounding the corner, I pressed the brakes on the Razor. My mom was standing there, chatting with Cash and Remington. Whatever they were discussing, even my dad was involved. Pointing at something, waving a hand back and forth.
Whatever distraction Cash had come up with, seemed to be extra good.
So much so, that they all began walking back down the hillside. I watched as they slowly trailed along toward the main house.
Was my mom really on her way to apologize, or had Cassidy made something up to get me out of the house? Though as much as I hated to admit, the fact that Tenley’s mom and grandma were here was enough motivation to leave the house. I couldn’t risk my mom seeing them without Tenley around. Or myself.
Whipping the Razor around, I zoomed off to go pick up Tenley and return to the entrance of the ranch. We had way too many decorations to put up before all of the family friends arrived for our annual Duke Christmas Eve party. A party I hadn’t attended for eighteen years until the guests all left.
A party that had my stomach twisting in knots. This was much more of an intimate gathering, no matter how large of an attendance there typically was. These people had known my family for years. The one time of the year that my parents invited guests to come to the ranch. Some of them were my parents’ friends from town, others were my siblings' friends, or their kids' friends. People that spent the day with us every year on Christmas Eve for years, except for me.
Until this year. Which I was joining because Tenley and her family had been invited. By Keaton, so that kept some suspicions at bay, but everything was feeling messy. As if dumped in a massive pot and someone was stirring it all together. And whoever that person was, I had no control over.
