Trials and Tiaras (Untouchable #7) - Heather Long Page 0,107

know how determined you all are.”

“Okay,” Frankie said slowly as she cradled her coffee cup. The stuffy nose sound was still there, but she still seemed pretty upbeat. “How painless is this going to be?”

The teasing note even pulled a grin from me, and I pressed a kiss to her hair in thanks. “Yeah, Mom. Because trust me when I say there are some conversational topics I don’t want to have with you, and I’d really prefer you didn’t have with my girlfriend.” Case in point, see what happened in the kitchen earlier.

Swirling the wine in her glass, Mom shook her head. “Nothing like that. Let’s just say that unconventional relationships require as much care if not more than a conventional one. In a standard relationship, there are two people who each have their own hopes, dreams, likes, and dislikes. It can be a challenge to balance those competing needs and desires, even when you adore the other person. The more people you add, the more complicated it gets.”

“Fair,” Frankie responded, and when she shifted to lean against me, I curled my arm around her. “We’ve worked on that. We’re always working on that. Talking, figuring things out, being honest.”

“That’s good,” Mom told her. “That’s really good. Communication is going to save all of you. But there’s also things like jealousy. Expectations. Boundaries.”

“I think we’ve got the jealousy handled,” I told her. “Not that it won’t happen or we don’t get a little envious if someone gets a little more time than others, but I think on the whole, we all know we’re welcome.” Most of the time. Bubba was coming around, and so was Archie. To be honest, I didn’t mind that they were less inclined to share her in bed. That was fine. Coop and I didn’t want to share her all the time either.

“What about you, Frankie?” Mom focused on her, and I frowned. I wasn’t alone.

“What about me? I’m not jealous of their friendships.”

“Do you have rules or boundaries in place for if they want to see someone else too?”

“Woah,” I said before Mom went any further down that path. “We’re not seeing anyone else. We’re not going to.” I’d cut off my arm before I cheated on her. We’d hurt her enough with seeing other girls because we were stupid.

No more stupid in my future, thank you very fucking much.

“No?” Mom actually looked surprised, and if I wasn’t mistaken, pleased.

“No,” I said firmly and squeezed Frankie. “It’s us and Frankie. That’s the relationship. It’s not open to anyone else.”

“Jake,” Frankie said, and the look she gave me curbed some of my irritation that Mom would even suggest that. “It’s okay. It’s not an unfair question to ask.” Maybe not, but still… “And I’m glad your mom is comfortable enough to ask us rather than trying to guess or assuming the worst.”

“Exactly,” Mom said, leaning forward with her elbows on the table. “This is why I wanted you to all be honest with the families. We can be supportive, I intend to be supportive. But it’s important to know your boundaries, and that everyone knows them.”

“Trust me,” I promised her, “we know them, and I make sure anyone who thinks they can interfere knows them too.”

“Good. Something else to keep in mind, going to college is going to seem like you’re just extending your high school careers. You’re not. Frankie, you have been living independently for far too long, so you’re going to adjust probably with greater ease than the boys. Not that I expect their adjustment will take long with as much time as they spend at your apartment.”

I snorted. “Thanks, Mom.”

“You still technically live here, Jake,” she reminded me. “And you are quite versed in looking after yourself, but this isn’t just a ten-minute drive away. It’s moving to a huge city that you don’t know, with its own personality and culture. It’s new schedules. New jobs. New everything.”

“Except us,” Frankie told her. “We’re all old shoes. We’ll be fine. And besides, it’s kind of an adventure. NYU has a huge arts program, and yeah, will being in the city be weird? Maybe. But I can’t wait to ride the subway or the ferry. I want to go and see all the sights. Play tourist when we’re not busy. It’ll be fun.”

“All right, well then take this advice exactly as I intend it. You guys are all young, but you’re smart and you’re committed. This is fantastic. But you’re all also at the very