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“Oh, Mom. I acted like a total child just now with Beck.”
“How so?” she asked, clearly with her own mouthful of ice cream.
Focusing back on my dessert, I picked up my spoon and moved everything around in the bowl. “He said he was going to call when he landed. He never did.”
“Maybe he was rushing to get to his grandfather, sweetheart.”
Taking a bite, I nodded. “I thought that too, but as the hours passed, I started to worry, so I called him.”
“And?”
My gaze lifted to meet hers. “His ex-girlfriend answered his phone. Turns out she picked him up at the airport and had been with him the entire time, until she offered to bring him home. And I made a stupid comment that I regretted the moment I said it.”
Mom’s brows lifted. “Avery, I never pegged you for the jealous type.”
“Oh, me neither,” I said, pushing more ice cream into my mouth. It was so cold, and I had so much in my mouth, I was surprised my mother understood me when I said, “Turns out…I am.”
She chuckled. “I’ll admit, if I was in your shoes, I’d be a little peeved by that myself about the ex answering, but if you trust Beck, then you have nothing to worry about.”
Pointing my spoon at her, I said, “See, this is why you’re my mom.”
“Did the two of you promise each other anything?”
I sighed. “No. We didn’t. But…I really thought he felt the same way I did. Maybe he does, I don’t know.”
“Give him a few days, darling. He lost his mother, found a huge family, you, then his grandfather had a heart attack. I’m sure he’s worried he might lose his only other close family member from his mother’s side.”
Scooping up more ice cream, I said, “I know, I will. It’s just, hearing her answer his phone and knowing that they were once a couple…and I think they were really close. Like, it was his only serious relationship. I asked him once, but he really didn’t say too much.”
“He could have simply moved on and doesn’t feel like it’s relevant.”
I laughed. “Seems like it is now, since she’s in his apartment in the middle of the night.”
“You haven’t told me how you acted like a child.”
Dropping the spoon into the now-empty bowl, I covered my face and groaned. “Let’s see, I told him that we hadn’t promised each other anything, and that if he needed to find comfort in an old friend, to have at it.”
Mom’s shoulders dropped as she gave me a disappointed look.
Continuing to hide my face, I said, “I know. I know! But it hurt, Mom. I know he has a lot going on, but would Daddy have done that to you?”
She paused for a moment, then set her own spoon down. She drew in a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Your father and I had a very complicated relationship at first. I won’t go into the details, but he hurt me very badly, Avery.”
I could feel my eyes go wide. “What?”
Smiling, she waved off my look of concern. “Obviously we worked things out, but it was a rough road at first. Sometimes men don’t always see what’s right in front of them, darling. To Beck, this woman is just there to help him. Comfort him like any friend would. I’m sure he’s upset about his grandfather and about having to leave Montana. And leaving you as well. What he sees as a kind gesture, you see as him wanting affection from someone to help him deal with his emotions. But do you really think he’d do that?”
I really didn’t have to think very long or hard about my answer. “No, I don’t think he would do that.”
She reached across and took my hand in hers. “If it’s meant to be, Avery, then it will be.”
I wiped a tear away.
Squeezing my hand, she whispered, “Don’t give up hope, Avery.”
“I won’t, but…”
“Just take a deep breath.”
I did as she said and nodded. This was all new territory for me, and I knew it was for Beck as well.
The next morning, I took a shower, got dressed, and grabbed my phone to head to work at the boutique. As I walked into the kitchen, I found my brother sitting at the island, along with my parents.
“Avery, is your phone turned off?” my mom asked.
Glancing at it, I cursed inwardly. “I forgot to plug it in, and it went dead. Why?” I asked, after plugging it into the plug my mom kept in the kitchen. It took a few moments for it to start up.
“Morgan called me and said she was trying to get a hold of you. There’s a power outage on Main, and the city isn’t sure how long it’ll be before it’s fixed. They’re not opening the store today, so you don’t have to go in.”
