Page 149 of Duke
“Have you thought about what it’s going to be like?” I can tell Mom is choosing her words carefully. “Raising a baby on a cattle ranch? Probably gets lonely. There’s a lot of distance between you and, well, everyone else.”
“Might be, at least at first. But Duke’s family is super close, literally and figuratively—”
“I’ve noticed.” Now she’s smiling. “I like that. A lot.”
“And they all help each other out. It annoys him sometimes how far up his butt they are, but I think it shows they care.” I grab her hand. “I’ve got a solid support system here, Mom.”
She nods, then sets her mug on the coffee table. “I’ll be honest, Wheeler. I was surprised when you said you were keeping the baby.”
“Makes sense. I was surprised too when that slowly but surely became the right decision.”
“And you’re sure?”
The bathroom door opens, and Duke emerges. He’s wearing a towel wrapped around his waist and absolutely nothing else.
God, he’s handsome. His wet hair sticks up every which way. His well-muscled torso still glistens—with water, steam, who cares, honestly?—and my eyes follow the happy trail of dark blond hair that arrows downward toward his groin.
I can’t help but smile. “My mom’s here.”
“I can see that.” He gives her a little wave. “Hey, Fran. Gimme a second to get dressed, all right?”
“Sure thing.” Mom puts hand on her face.
“Aw.” I pat her leg. “You’re blushing.”
“Duke is…really something else, Wheeler.”
“I know. That’s why I’m having a baby with him.” I lower my voice. “He’s thoughtful and emotionally intelligent and—”
“A friend.” Mom blinks, her eyes filling. “The way he defended you last night…your father never went to bat for me like that. Ever. He’s too self-involved.”
Swallowing hard, I look down at my hands. “I’m sorry you’re going through what you’re going through, Mom. But I need you to know that I’m not following in your footsteps by committing to this man and having a baby.”
“I know you’re sorry, honey.” She reaches over to tuck my hair behind my ear. “And I know you’re on a different path than mine. Duke is wonderful, Wheeler. Heck.” She scoffs. “I might be in love with him too!”
“I heard that!” Duke shouts. “And I’m very flattered, Fran, but unfortunately I’m taken.”
“Lucky woman!” Mom shouts back, all smiles now. She turns to me. “I mean that, Wheeler. You’re lucky, but so is he. You’re lucky to have such good friends in each other. But I’m your mother, and I’m always going to worry about you. Now I know, though, that I don’t need to worry about you being with someone for the wrong reasons. I can’t let you make the same mistake I did, and as luck would have it, you’re not.”
“Aw, Mom. Thank you for saying that.”
“I know you love it here, but please don’t be a stranger, all right? I didn’t sleep much last night because of…well, everything. But my excitement also kept me up.” She takes my shoulders in her hands. “I’m going to be a freakinggrandma, Wheeler!”
“Correction: you’re going to be the best grandmaever.” Duke saunters into the room as he pulls a clean T-shirt over his head. “From what Wheeler tells me, you’re going to be a natural.”
She’s laughing and crying and, shit, so am I.
All this crying. At least it’s happy tears now.
“Y’all be good to each other,” Mom says hoarsely. “But I don’t need to tell you that.”
Duke plops onto the couch beside her. “You got it. Now tell me something, Fran.”
“You name it.”
“Ever seen the Colorado River by ATV before?”
Mom laughs. “I haven’t, no.”
