Page 65 of Undeniable
I popped my head back and closed my eyes as the song started. I listened as Kelsey crooned about how it wasn’t easy letting go of your old self.
The old me had been resolute about not taking a chance on love again, but Mazzie had slipped past every defense I’d built since Natalia. Every wall I’d carefully constructed. The night of the Wolf Howl, I’d thought my heart had jumped out of my chest when her steel coat of armor melted, and she’d stopped lying to herself about how much she needed me. Best night of my life, aside from when she’d confessed that she loved me.
My phone buzzed with a text, and at the same time, the bus bounced slowly over a set of railroad tracks, jarring me out of stupor as my cell slid off my lap onto the seat next to me.
I fumbled to retrieve it, hoping the text was from Mazzie. My excitement fizzled out when I saw my mother’s name.
Mom
Did the team win today? Also, I know it’s last minute, but I want you and Mazzie to come over for Sunday dinner tomorrow. I would like to meet her.
We won. It was a great game. As far as dinner, I’ll have to ask her.
I didn’t think Mazzie was ready for the third degree from my mom. But I guessed it was now or never because if I knew my mom, she wasn’t about to let up until she met the girl who’d stolen my heart.
22
Mazzie
I tiptoed into Kaylee’s room at the Armstrongs where a nightlight glowed from the outlet below the window. She was fast asleep, curled up on the queen bed, covers at her feet.
I batted away the emotions clogging my throat. I’d seen my sister happy but not like she was at the Armstrongs. In the three weeks we’d been here, she was thriving like I’d never seen her before. The situation we were in was bittersweet. We didn’t want to see our mother in jail, but the accident had led us here. A beautiful home, a loving family, and all the necessities Kaylee needed to grow and thrive.
I pulled up the sheet and covered her then kissed her on the head. “I love you, lil’ sis.”
I was overwhelmed with gratitude to the Armstrongs for opening not only their home but their hearts to us. Mrs. Armstrong had met with my mom’s lawyer yesterday and signed the papers to foster Kaylee. No matter what lay ahead, I knew with certainty that Kaylee was in safe and loving hands.
I had to keep pinching myself, incredulous at how seamlessly everything was aligning for us. Yet a part of me couldn’t let go of my mom’s plight. But I couldn’t keep wasting my energy on the what-ifs concerning her case. I had a life that needed my attention with school, my job, and now, Lucas.
And Lucas? Christ, I didn’t even know where to begin with him. He was becoming more than the man I was in love with. He was becoming my beacon in the dark of night. The moment my mind wandered into murky waters, I thought of him. His reassuring smile. The way he looked at me with such intensity it made my heart skip a beat. The warmth of his touch. The electricity of his kiss. Hell, everything about him was a lifeline pulling me back from the edge.
As I closed Kaylee’s door gently, I thought of the day at my mom’s house. Saying I love you to a man had been as scary as the depths of hell and euphoric, like I was floating in space. I still wasn’t sure I’d recovered. Nor did I want to. I’d been smiling more than ever. Bailey brought up that very thing when she picked me up at the country club. “You’re glowing, chica .”
I carried my gooey feelings with me to my room, passing Bailey’s room on the way. She was in the kitchen, grabbing bottled water for us.
I flipped the switch adjacent to the door inside my room, and the lamp on the bedside table glowed. I kicked off my shoes and tossed my purse on the chair. As I pulled my phone from my back pocket of my black slacks, my gaze landed on the pile of mail on the dresser.
I’d been so busy that I hadn’t paid the electric bill. I grabbed the stack of envelopes, mostly junk mail, crawled on the bed, and sifted through the envelopes and advertisements.
Bailey’s voice filtered in from the hall. “I just got home. I had to pick up Mazzie. It’s late, Erik. I’ll talk to you tomorrow. Yeah, I’ll let her know.” I detected irritation in her tone.
She breezed in with two bottles of water and set mine down on the nightstand. “Lucas wanted to make sure you got his text.” She crawled on the bed and opened her water.
“He wants me to have dinner with his mom tomorrow night. Not sure I’m ready for a thousand questions or to be studied like a lab project.”
“You should go. Get the interrogation out of the way.” She laughed. “My mom knows Priscilla from charity events. She’s nice. Just be yourself, and she’ll fall in love with you like Lucas did. Like me when we first met. Remember freshman year in the cafeteria?”
“I’ll never forget that. You were telling some guy to fuck off in the middle of the cafeteria.”
She giggled. “Because he thought he could play with my hair, and I didn’t even know the fucker. Anyway, you spit out your drink as you walked by. All over dickhead’s khaki pants. I loved it.”
We dropped into a fit of giggles.
I segmented each envelope into a junk pile and a must-read pile. “Not to change the subject, but are you and Erik okay? You sounded moody with him.”
She busied herself fixing the junk mail into a neat stack. “I think I’m ready for a break from him.”
I halted midway of placing a marketing card on the junk stack. “Did something happen?”
