Page 21 of Trip Me Up

Silence dropped over the table like a blanket. A wet one.

“Like family.” Jackson draped his arm around Noah’s shoulders.

I winced.

Sure enough, Mother said, “Are you seeing anyone, Samantha?”

“No, Mother.” I hadn’t had even a one-night stand in months. Not since Kyle. All the stress over CASE had zapped my libido.

“What about Jackson’s friend Cooper? I saw you talking with him at the foundation holiday party.”

“Coop?” Jackson’s laugh was loud. “Not a chance.”

“He’s like another older brother, Mother.”

“He’s very eligible. Maybe a better match for Natalie, though.”

While she and Natalie argued about whether Cooper Fallon was too old for Nat, I finally had a chance to eat my cooling eggs and pancakes. But the respite didn’t last long.

“Samantha, I found the perfect dress for you for the Valentine’s Day ball. I ordered the black one because I know it’s the only color you’ll wear. But it also comes in rose gold, which would be much more festive.”

And now my news had to come out. “Mother, I’m not going to make it to the ball this year. I’m going on a trip.”

“A…trip?” She blinked. “Another academic conference?”

So she had been paying attention over the past four years. “No, this is different.” I had to pick my way carefully. Heidi’s confidentiality clause didn’t make exceptions for family. “It’s a road trip of sorts. With a…friend.”

“A friend?” Her eyebrows arched toward her hairline.

“Or a colleague?” I wished I knew the right words to use that wouldn’t set her off.

“Which is it: a friend or a colleague?”

I hesitated. “A colleague who’s also a friend.”

“A male friend?”

I winced. “Yes.”

“Samantha.” Her mouth curved down. “This isn’t another Stephen situation, is it? He’s not angling for a position in Jackson’s company? Or Charles’s? He has to know you don’t have any money of your own.”

My chest heated. “No, Mother. It’s not like that. We’re friends. And colleagues. Nothing more. We’re traveling together for a few weeks to do some school-related things.” It was sort of true. The book tour was school-related for me.

Her forehead didn’t crease anymore, but her eyebrows twitched. “School-related things.”

“It’s highly technical. Want me to explain it?” That usually got her off my case. Mother had a head for finance, not computers.

“How long is this trip?”

“About three weeks. You can text me if you need to check in.”

“Be careful, Samantha. You don’t want to get into another unfortunate situation.”

She’d never let me forget it. Not that I could. “I won’t.”

With one last hawk’s glare at me, she turned to Alicia and asked her something about the nursery she and Jackson were setting up.

I slumped in my chair. My appetite was gone, and even my coffee was too cold to drink.

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