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“Teagan…”
She smirked and leaned over to lay her head on his shoulder briefly. He turned automatically and kissed her temple.
Odd reflex, now that he was thinking about it. Almost as if he’d been trained to do so, but the only thing Teagan had trained him to do wasn’t proper for public viewing. Or for public thinking, apparently, given how it made his cheeks go red and hot in an instant.
She scooted a bit closer, and he tucked his arm around her shoulders before draping it across the booth behind her.
Mindy came with their drinks, and like she’d promised, Teagan asked her about her eyeliner. And then she lit up like a thousand fairy lights as she explained to Teagan exactly what product she used and how she did it, and by the time she left again, she was smiling and Teagan was following her on Instagram.
“How do you do that?” Jaxon asked.
“Do what?” she asked, taking a sip of her soda and making a face before switching with him. “That’s disgusting.”
“I told you not to get that.” He wasn’t going to let her change the subject, but he had to say it.
“Tastes like soap,” she gagged.
“Lovely,” he deadpanned, watching as she took a long sip of his and sighed.
“That’s good, that,” she nodded to his drink. A pina colada seltzer that he’d only ordered because he knew damn well she’d hate the one she got.
He smirked a little. “Happy to hear it, but how do you do it?” She raised her eyebrows quizzically, and he continued. “How do you always know the right thing to say?”
She shrugged. “It’s common sense, really. And I did what I’d have liked if I’d been in her shoes.”
“You complimented her eyeliner, though. Seems awfully particular to have just been something that came to you.”
Smiling a bit, she shook her head. “Not really. You made her feel itty bitty and unpretty and unimportant. I chose something I could compliment without seeming fake, and fixed all three in one go.”
“Maybe you should be the one running against your father,” Jaxon said with a grin. “Because that’s diplomatic of you, Teags.”
“Maybe one day,” she said, sniffing. “I don’t want to be in charge. At least not until Dad’s done. And Brad’s done. I think it’s what he wants. Eventually.”
“I think Brad would be happy to get out of law school at this point,” Jaxon said with a laugh.
“Mom and Dad would be happy for that as well,” Teagan said with a laugh.
Jaxon reached for the soda she’d placed in front of him, taking a small sip and finding it surprisingly not as soapy as he’d originally expected. But the mention of Teagan’s mom was chilling even long distance, so maybe he was just trying to find anything to think about that wasn’t Cassandra Madden’s death glare.
“Hey…” Teagan leaned over and checked him with her shoulder. It was an awkward positioning, so it hit him in his underarm and made him huff out a laugh.
“Yeah?”
“Mom’s an idiot. And I’ve known that for a while. Her judgment is flawed. She’s lucky to have my dad.” Was he really that transparent? It was like she was reading his mind.
Jaxon laughed a little at that. “Nah, I think with the information she has on me, her judgment is at the very least, warranted.”
Teagan snorted. “It’s not. But she’ll warm up to you. Or else.”
“Or else what?” he asked. “You’re not going to go see her?”
She shrugged. “Whatever works.”
“Teags, you can’t not see your mom.”
“I won’t have to for long. She won’t be able to stand it. She understands me more than Shea.”
“Even if your boyfriend is a degenerate?”
