Page 35 of Raised On It

“So, you and your parents are pretty close then? This business stuff doesn’t get in the way?”

“I love my parents. We may not agree on what to do with the farm, but we’re still tight as can be. I rarely miss a Sunday dinner.”

“I can’t imagine spending time with my family because I want to and not because it’s expected of me. You have no idea how lucky you are.”

He turns back in the direction of the truck, and I follow his lead, only now realizing the truck is so far away it’s no longer in view. Sweet Lou comes up from the rear and slows down to walk beside us with his toy in his mouth.

“I’m sorry things aren’t better with your family, Mase. Has it always been that way?”

“Well, I’m an only child, but I’m not a boy, so there’s that.”

“Thank God for that.” He gives me a wink, sending shivers down my back in the very best kind of way.

“I still got the boy name, though. Lucky me.”

“Nah, I like it. It’s kinda hot.”

“Anyway, my parents come from money and are pretty old school,” I say, ignoring him.

“More details please.”

I hate talking about my parents. In fact, I never do, so why I feel so comfortable talking to him about them? I have no idea.

“Okay, let me find the right words. Um…my parents are of the mindset that even though women go to college and get degrees, their real purpose is to look pretty on their husband’s arm while not using the degree they worked so hard for. You know, our skills are apparently better used to make a beautiful home and of course one to two perfect children. I was pretty much a used-up spinster at the ripe old age of twenty-six.”

“Understood. So, how do they feel about your career?”

Our pace is slow, taking our time walking up and down the rows of hops. He picks a leaf here and there while he listens.

“That’s a bit of a loaded question.”

“How so?”

“Well, how my parents feel about my career, let me rephrase that. How my father feels about my career changes, depending on the circumstances. My mom…she feels whatever her husband tells her she feels.”

“Ouch.”

“You have no idea.”

“I’d like to, though, so why don’t you enlighten me?”

Miles Montgomery sure can be sweet.

“Well, before I was a success, they were embarrassed by what I chose to write. Let’s just say, Sunday dinners with my parents, if we had had them, would have consisted of them telling me what a disappointment I was to them, and how I was shaming them by writing X-rated trash.”

“X-rated, you say? Maybe I should check out your work.”

“That’s the thing. They act like I write porn, but I don’t. I write about real life, and real life includes people falling in love, and like most people in love, sex is usually a part of the equation.”

“I like the way you think, lady. Your parents, however, sound a little stuffy, if you don’t mind me saying.”

“Not at all. Your assessment would be extremely accurate. The thing is, when the series sold and got lots of notice, they were suddenly proud and claimed to have always known I had it in me or some crap like that. Then, when things ended with my ex, I was wasting my life and letting the family down. Merging my family with his would have been a great investment for both of our families’ legacies. My career…my happiness…didn’t matter. So, not only did I lose the guy but I also lost my family. Why? Because I was just a pawn in their nasty scheme, and in the end, I was the least important person involved.”

“So your parents just wrote you off like that?”

“Not sure, because I wrote them off first.”

“Was it hard?”

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