Cocking my head, my smile grows. “I don’t think that really counts.”
She shrugs, and my eyes move away as I feel her car move over the small incline of a driveway, that sinking feeling hitting me even harder when I realize we only lived a few streets apart. “Whatever. Anyway, it wouldn’t matter. Mom can be… overdramatic?” I let out a laugh as she puts her car in park, the front door opens and a woman and man walk out the front door. Okay, the woman doesn’t really walk, she runs out the door, off the porch, across the small walk, and straight for Piper’s side of the car. Piper turns her head my way and raises her eyebrows way up onto her forehead. This must be her “I told you so” look. Only, her mom makes an abrupt turn and heads straight for my door, opening it quicker than I’m able to.
“Oh, my gosh! This is the man my daughter brings home?”
Smiling, nervously, I look at Piper. Her brows still raised with that “I told you so” look. As her mom takes my hand, I quickly unbuckle my seatbelt, and I put on my game face. “Mrs. Rhodes!” I get out of the car, smiling brightly. “So good to…” She pulls me into a hug, slamming my body against hers. I hold in my gasp of surprise. “Meet you.”
“Oh, please. Call me Janet.” She squeezes and I hold my breath. My arms are straight out, not sure if I should hug her back or wait it out. My parents are definitely not huggers. Even though Mom and I are a little close, we’re definitely not close enough for that.
“Sheesh, Janet. Give the guy a break.” She releases me by the sound of who I think is Piper’s dad. As she takes a step back, a nice looking man walks over, hand out. Now, a handshake I can do. Reaching out, I take his hand and shake it. “You’ll have to forgive Janet.” He smiles. “She misses Piper too much and gets a little overzealous.” He knows as well as I do it’s because I’m here and her daughter has never brought home a guy before. I like him already. “Need help with your bags?”
“I think…” I start.
“We’ve got them, Daddy.” Piper walks around the car and right into her dad’s arms. “I mean, we’re only staying a few days so it’s not like we brought a ton.”
Opening the back door, I pull out both of our duffle bags and as I close it, I watch her mom walk over and put her arms around Piper and her dad. A family hug. It’s cool that her parents are still so close. Still a loving family when mine is shit. I guess I’m a little jealous. Of course, I never really had that even when Mom and Dad were together.
“C’mon. Let’s go inside,” her mom yells.
I follow them to the front door, their arms still around each other. I shake off my feelings, wanting to have a good time and maybe wanting to be part of that, if even for a little while.
I think Piper spoke to her mom after she directed me where to set our bags upstairs. Since then, her mom quit being quite so… a sixties, possibly seventies mom? I mean, I love her attitude but if she’d just tone it down a piece. Smiling, I think about how her mom said to put our bags in Piper’s bedroom. Piper’s mouth dropped open and eyes widened. Free love? I wouldn’t think she’d want that for her daughter. Still, her mom is actually refreshing. I chuckle thinking about how Piper snuck over to me and told me which room was the guest room so I could put my bag in there.
Lunch was fun, until Piper’s mom brought out all their photo albums. I watched the sweet light blush cover Piper’s cheeks as we all strolled through her childhood. As the light color of blushed deepened to rose across her cheeks made my heart beat a little faster. She really is beautiful.
“You all don’t stay out too long. Remember, we need to get things ready for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow.” Against my better judgement, Piper had talked me into going out to the ice cream shop in town after dinner. The fear of running into a bunch of my old so called “friends” has filled me to the brink with stress. But Piper batted her long eyelashes at me, telling me she was dying for one of their pineapple sundaes, which I’ve learned is her favorite and something you can’t get where we live now. So, I conceded. Reluctantly. Guess I’m finding there isn’t much I can say no to her about. Maybe I’ll be lucky and there won’t be anyone I know. Yeah, right. Like that’s gonna happen.
Chapter 6
Piper