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Hayden booked us a junior suite at the Baymont Beach Resort, which is a fancy way of saying he booked us a whole apartment.
I don’t know what a step up from a junior suite is because this room is incredible.
There’s a stocked bar, a living room, a dining area inside and another one out on the balcony. Every room has a view of the ocean, and with the sliding doors open, you can hear the waves hitting the shore and feel the salty ocean breeze against your skin.
This place is perfect.
“Can we live here?” I joke to Mom, standing on the balcony and watching the ocean.
Mom slides her arm around my shoulder and leans her head against mine. “I wish. This is the first time I’ve felt like I could breathe since you left for that party last night.” She looks over at me, her gaze probing, but her tone gentle. “I just had a bad feeling.”
I’ve had enough time to decompress, and Hayden was right; being here is helping. I don’t feel stressed or stretched thin or even like I’m lying—even though I know I am—when I tell her, “The party was fine, Mom. Everything is fine.”
“You’d tell me if it wasn’t, right?”
“Of course.”
It doesn’t feel like a lie because, of course, Iwouldtell her if there was something I couldn’t handle.
Last night may have been a close call, but I handled it.
And besides, I did talk to one adult about it. Just not her.
Mom has always been a touch overprotective, but Hayden is more willing to trust my judgement. He’s willing to actually listen to what I think and let me take the chances I feel comfortable with.
Mom is much more risk averse.
I don’t think she’d like hearing that I’d rather talk about this stuff with him. She may be marrying the guy, but I’m practically full grown. I don’t think she considered that she’d have to share parenting responsibilities with him.
“Listen, I know living with Landon isn’t the easiest thing in the world. We knew it wouldn’t be,” I remind her. “But we resolved to be open-minded about it, and leaving after one week would not be giving it a real shot.”
“Open-minded, yes. But only up to the point that you’re in any kind of danger. That shuts it all right down.”
“I’m not in any danger, Mom. I have it under control.”
Mom gives me a knowing look as she shakes her head. “Honey, I know you think you do, but in the week we’ve been here, all I’ve seen is that Landon is a loose cannon. I’m not going to wait for him to blow you up to leave. The way Hayden talked about it, I expected Landon to at least try in the beginning to be civil, but he has made no effort whatsoever. If this is him on his best behavior, I do not want to see his worst—and I certainly don’t wantyouto see it.”
I nod. “I agree that he isn’t trying to make this any easier on us, but I don’t think it’s easy on him, either. It’s not your fault, but I do think his dad moving some woman he doesn’t know into the house… I think it bothers him.”
Mom doesn’t say anything, so I take that as progress.
“I told Hayden that I think we should do some stuff together.”
“Like family dinner?” she asks dryly.
“Family dinner didn’t go to plan,” I acknowledge. “I suggested a movie night. Tomorrow when we go home. Something normal families do, where there is no access to alcohol—stolen or otherwise—and we can just do something together that doesn’t crash and burn. That’s what we need. One successful interaction. We need a win. Maybe if Landon can have a successful experience in this new family unit and realize it’s not all bad and something he needs to destroy… maybe he’ll stop being such an asshole. Maybe thenhewill be more open-minded. But the first step is giving him a successful family event. Givingall of usa successful family event.”
Mom regards me skeptically. “And you think movie night will do it?”
I shrug. “It can’t hurt that we’re doing something where we’re all in the same room, but not even talking through most of it. Seems like there will be less opportunity for things to go wrong.”
Mom cracks a smile. “How hope-forming. As long as we all stay quiet, we might be able to get along.”
“After this, we’ll try charades,” I joke.
“Maybe we can all attend mime school together,” she suggests primly.
