AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You don’t know?” he asked. “You said I got in trouble.”
“I only know Mom was annoyed with you. What happened with Mac?” his sister asked. She turned to her husband. “How come you know and I don’t?”
“I found out before Carson showed up and you were with Adele. It’s not like your father was going to say it in front of her.”
“That’s something at least,” he said. He told his sister what he did. “But I confessed the next day.”
“Don’t make it harder for us when it really is an emergency,” Ava said.
“Please,” he said. “It’s the only time I’ve ever done it. If it had been Mac that pulled me over he would have let me go and I would have been completely honest why I was speeding.”
“Even with Laine in the car with you?” his mother asked, lifting her eyebrow.
“Yep,” he said. “She found it funny but made me confess for lying.”
His mother shook her head. “So this is serious?”
“I’m not sure anyone would say what we have is serious when we laugh more than anything else when we are together.”
“Good for you then. Why isn’t she with you today?”
“She wasn’t invited,” Carson said. “But she knows you were in the shop buying Ava a vase and wanted to see her. We both know you flew over to do that and flew back since you were in Boston last week.”
His father cleared his throat and he knew his mother was caught. “I’m only looking out for my son.”
“No reason to worry. I don’t think she had any plans today. I can call and see if she wants to come over.”
“Don’t do it in front of us and put her on the spot,” Delaney said. “No woman likes that.”
Guess putting her on speakerphone was out of the question. “Fine,” he said. He stood up and walked to the house and called Laine.
She picked up on the second ring. “Am I bothering you?” he asked.
“You’ve been bothering me for weeks,” she said. “But right now, I’m only folding laundry. I was talking to my parents.”
He knew she talked to her parents on Sunday for a weekly check-in. He found that sweet.
“Good to know,” he said. “My parents would love if you could join us for a cookout today, but if you’re busy or it’s too last minute they will understand.”
“I’d love to,” she said. “But I’ve got clothes in the dryer that I just started. I won’t run it while I’m gone and if I leave them wet, they will be smelly when I get home.”
“I’m giving the excuse that you’re doing laundry?” he asked. Man, that was going to look horrible to his parents.
Laine let out a laugh. “No. Not an excuse. It’s the truth to give me an hour if that works. I’m not sure about their timetable. I don’t want anyone else held up and I’d love to come see everyone.”
“Oh,” he said. “Yeah, I’ll come get you in an hour if you’d like.”
“Perfect,” she said. “It gives me enough time to make cookies too.”
“You don’t need to make anything,” he said.
“Yes, I do. I can’t waste time talking to you. See you soon.”
She hung up on him again. He walked outside. “She’s in the middle of laundry. She won’t leave her clothes wet in the dryer but asked if I could get her in an hour.”
“I like that she doesn’t jump for you,” his mother said.
“That’s not nice,” he said.
