“You doing okay over there?” Sean squeezed my knee as I looked out the window and remembered things.
“Yeah. Just thinking.”
“Whatever needs to happen, we’ll make it work.”
“I know, but it sucks you’re meeting my mom under these circumstances.”
“Yeah.” Sean blew out a breath. “It’s not ideal, is it?”
“I guess I should tell her you’re coming too.”
“Probably.”
I took my phone out of the center console and shot off a text to my mom:
Sean and I should be there in about an hour
A reply came right away:
You’re bringing Sean?
He offered to drive
Wish I had makeup to freshen up
I think that’s the least of our worries. Are you doing okay?
The best I can. Virginia just made us lunch. We went and got me some clothes at Goodwill a few hours ago
I’ll get us a couple of hotel rooms for the weekend and then we’ll figure out something more permanent for you
I had been saving money to buy a new car, but since Sean was still letting me drive the Escalade, getting my own vehicle wasn’t pressing.
You don’t need to do that. Insurance will pay for a place for me to stay, or the fire department said they could get me in touch with the Red Cross. Until then, Virginia said I can sleep on her couch
Not tonight. We’re getting you a hotel room at least until other arrangements are made
Are you sure?
Absolutely. See you around 3
“Everything okay?” Sean asked as I set my phone back in the cupholder.
“Yeah. But we should find a hotel for the night.”
Sean dug into his jeans and pulled out his wallet. “Grab my AMEX.”
“You don’t need to pay for our rooms,” I protested. “You already paid for gas.”
“I know I don’t need to. I want to.”
If Morgan got wind of her father paying for a hotel room for my mother, I wasn’t sure what would happen. It was bad enough that she thought I was a gold digger, and she’d probably think my mom was in on some scheme to take Sean’s money too.
“At least let me pay for one of the rooms,” I argued.
“Declan …”
“Sean …”