Page 139 of That Moment
Scotty smiles politely. “Yes, ma’am. So far so good.”
She grins. “Well, that’s a good start. At least my grumpy husband hasn’t scared you off yet.”
My face is on fire. Why does this feel like I’m sixteen all over again, and mom and dad are meeting my first boyfriend?
Dad doesn’t look up. “Not trying to scare him off. Just making sure he knows what he’s getting into.”
“Excuse me?" I scoff. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
Scotty meets his gaze evenly, giving my knee a gentle squeeze under the table. “I do, sir.”
“Don’t do that,” I scold both of them. “Don’t talk about me like I’m not here, it’s annoying.”
“I’m sorry," Scotty leans in, clearly forgetting where we are, and kisses me. I freeze, so does he, and then his eyes fly open and he sits back. The air tightens again, but only for a second because I burst into laughter, covering my face with my napkin at the completely outrageous situation this has become.
Mom sighs, leans back in her chair, and waves her hand like she’s brushing the tension away. “Honestly, this whole thing reminds me of us back in the day.”
“Deven,” Dad warns.
She ignores him. “I’m serious, Hudson. You don’t remember? We were the same way—me showing up where I wasn’t supposed to, you constantly staring at me then telling me I was the one causing trouble.”
“Because youweretrouble,” he mutters.
She beams. “Still am.”
I shake my head. “Here we go.”
Scotty looks intrigued, a little nervous. “Should I brace myself?”
“Yes,” I say at the same time Dad grumbles, “No.”
Mom props her chin in her hand, eyes sparkling like she’s already lost in a daydream. “See, I was the Scotty in this relationship.”
Scotty blinks. “Ma’am?”
She laughs. “Oh, don’t look so alarmed. I mean, I was the one his parents didn’t approve of. The ‘wrong choice.’ The one they swore would ruin the family name.” She leans forward conspiratorially. “They weren’t wrong. I did sneak into a bar with a fake ID.”
“Deven.” Dad’s tone drops a full octave. “They don’t need every dirty detail.”
“Oh, hush, they’re grown. Besides, they love it.” She glances at me. “Don’t you?”
“I mostly love watching Dad squirm,” I laugh.
“That’s my girl. Anyway, there I was, eighteen, wild, and too smart for my own good. And there he was, sitting at the bar, looking like every broken-hearted soldier in every movie.”
Scotty chuckles low, earning him a quick look of warning from Dad. He sobers immediately. “Sorry, sir.”
Mom continues, unfazed. “His eyes told me what I already knew: he didn’t stand a chance the second he saw me. I asked him to buy me a drink, and he told me to go home.”
Dad groans. “Because you wereunderage.”
“Details,” she says, waving a hand. “Anyway, he didn’t, of course. But we ended up talking until closing. And the next morning, he found out that I was his best friend’s little sister.” She smirks. “And they were roommates at the time.”
My jaw drops even though I’ve heard this story a dozen times. “Mom, you were insane,” I laugh, still having a hard timeimagining my mom as a wild child. “Kind of a total badass, though, to be honest.”
“She’s a bad influence,” Dad winks. “And she’s lucky her brother didn’t kill me.”
“I’m lucky you didn’t run.”
