“And after?”
I had barely thought about after. “I’ll be visiting when Mollie has her baby. I can’t let them go without knowing their aunt. And you and I could go to the diner!”
“We’ll make a habit of it,” he said. Henry’s voice was soft, and I wondered if he dreaded the idea of me leaving.
Or if he would miss me at all.
But I couldn’t think about it. Not when he was already heading to a difficult weekend.
“Can I go through your CDs?” I asked. “We need some road trip music.”
“They’re all yours. But please don’t pick the Metallica one. I’m not in the mood for my mother’s favorite band.”
“Noted,” I said as I went through them. I went for one of the newer Lila Wilde CDs. Once I put it in, I looked at the rolling nature out my window and tried to ignore the excitement at being able to see more of Henry.
The open country roads turned into the highway about halfway through the drive and then buildings started popping up. Before I knew it, we were in the city again.
Knoxville was smaller than Nashville, but still had traffic. Henry was a safe driver, though I could see him get antsy as more people were around.
We pulled into a small house on a hill. There was one blue car in the driveway and roses blooming in front of the door.
Henry took a breath. “Here we go.”
“Put these in.”
“I’ll be?—”
“Nope. These will help. You got tense when we hit the city. So don’t add to it.”
Henry slowly took the earplugs and put them in. I tried and failed not to feel proud of myself as we got out.
“There you are!” a voice yelled as the door opened. “We have so much to catch up on, Henry. To think you’ve been on actual TV and I didn’t?—”
A woman with graying brown hair and thick glasses froze when she saw me. She was nowhere near Henry’s or my height, but she had his same facial structure.
“You brought her! I thought you said she was busy!”
“I thought so too,” Henry said. His voice was louder than usual, yet still soft in comparison. “But she rearranged her schedule.”
“Wow.” Henry’s mom walked close, appraising me. The hairs on my arms stood. “You are something. Very different than the woman I imagined he’d bring home!”
And there it was. I was used to it, but it stung each time.
“Mom.” Henry’s voice was flat. “I like her the way she is.”
“It’s not a bad thing! I just expected someone who likes books and is as quiet as he is. You’re still incredible.” She held out a hand. “I’m Colleen Connor.”
“Wren,” I replied as I shook it.
“Now that’s a handshake your dad would have loved,” Colleen said.
“I thought the same thing,” Henry agreed.
“Come in, come in!” She waved us both in the door. “I’m so excited you’re here!”
Henry followed me in, and I tried to observe how he was doing. With his hands in his pockets, he seemed to be doing what he always did.
The tension line in his shoulders wasn’t completely gone, but it was far better than it could have been. He hadn’t been kidding. His mom’s base volume was a yell. I wasn’t sure how he would have fared if I hadn’t stepped in.