that doesn’t get you off the hook for telling me why you can’t even drink your beer right now.”
I glanced at the offending can, like it’d given away my secret even though I knew I was doing that well enough on my own.
I’d always sucked at hiding my emotions. Jordan was the best at that, Mikey was perhaps the worst. But, I wasn’t much better than him. When I was angry, I lashed out. I got into too many fights. I shut out those who tried to help me. I would brood and sulk in my thoughts, but never share them with anyone.
Maybe because I knew no one could help.
Maybe because I was too scared to admit I needed it.
“Ah,” Mom said after a long pause. “It’s a girl, isn’t it?”
I sighed, running my finger along the edge of my beer can. “That obvious, huh?”
She chuckled. “Well, I’ve seen you bent out of shape about many things over the years, Noah. But this… that misery on your face… it’s the kind only a broken heart can bring.”
When I didn’t say anything more, Mom rolled her lips together, considering her next words before she spoke again.
“You know, I always knew that when you did fall for someone, you’d fall hard. You used to watch me and your dad so closely, and I had a feeling that you’d be the one who held out for the right one. Now, don’t get me wrong,” she added with a wry smile. “I’m not naïve enough to think you’ve never dated and broken a few hearts of your own. But, I guess I just knew that you wouldn’t really give your heart away. Not until you felt like it was right.”
I shook my head. “How do you do that? Do all moms have some sort of superpower where they can just see right through their children?”
She laughed. “Oh, I wish. I think you were just a little easier for me to read,” she said on a shrug. “You’re like me, in a lot of ways. And I think we’ve had a special connection ever since you were born.” She chuckled again. “Your dad was always jealous of it. He wanted you to be a daddy’s boy, but you were always on my hip when you were sick or down about something.”
I smiled, heart aching at the mention of Dad.
“Now,” she said, patting my knee. “Tell me about her.”
I sighed. “You’ll be disappointed in me if I do.”
“Try me.”
“She’s engaged,” I said first, ripping the Band-Aid off.
Just like I thought, Mom’s face paled. “Noah Emmanuel.”
“I know, I know,” I said, pinching the bridge of my nose. “Trust me. I tried to stay away, to keep a boundary between us. But, I swear to God, Mom — she was like a magnet. The harder I tried to stay away, the more she pulled me in. And I have no idea why or how. I just know that I was powerless to resist when it came to her.”
Her eyes softened at that. “Well, if I’ve learned anything when it comes to love, it’s that it rarely follows all the rules we set in place for it.” She sighed. “It’s Ruby Grace Barnett, isn’t it?”
I didn’t answer.
I didn’t have to.
“You know, when you were younger, I used to have to wait days for you to finally open up to me about what you were upset about,” she said. “I mean, your younger brothers would break in minutes, and Jordan would take it to the grave. But you?” She smiled. “All you needed was time.”
I nodded, knowing it to be true.
“And I understand if that’s what you want now. I just hate seeing you like this, and I want to help.” Mom reached over and squeezed my forearm. “But, I can’t if you don’t tell me what happened.”
I sighed, looking up to the sky before I met her eyes. “I don’t even know where to begin. I don’t know how we ended up here, or how it all started. It just… happened.”
“When did she stop being the annoying girl who kicked the back of your pew?”
I scoffed. “When she showed up at the distillery wearing a dress that made her look more grown than me, and heels that made her legs stretch on for days, and lips painted as red as the paint on Dad’s old Camaro.”
Mom smiled. “How about you start there, then.”
So I did.
And before I knew it, the sun had set, the half moon and stars above