This was the first time I’d heard this story, and I was on the edge of my seat. “So, what happened?”
“After our first date, we went our separate ways.” Her smile was coy and she shrugged. “Two weeks later, we happened to be at the same restaurant, both of us on dates with other people. Oh, he hated it. Loathed it with every fiber of his being and made sure the whole restaurant knew it, too.” Mama laughed at the memory and shook her head. “Made a damn fool of himself right there in the restaurant, embarrassing that poor girl he was on date with.”
That sounded like the man I remembered, so full of life and energy. Never met a stranger. “And you were so bowled over by the gesture you left your date to be with him?”
“Heck no! He spent the next two weeks trying to convince me that date number two would be worth it. Three weeks later, we went on our second date and never looked back. That’s what I want for you.”
That was what I wanted for myself, but I couldn’t tell my mother that I’d pretty much given up. “It’s important to find that with the right guy Mama, not just any guy.”
She smacked her lips and narrowed her gaze in my direction. “You won’t know if he’s the right guy or the wrong one until you give him a chance.”
I shook my head. “That’s not happening, Mama. He is a client—temporary and fake, but a client all the same. And I am a professional.” There was no amount of chemistry in the world worth risking my business. My future.
“The heart wants what the heart wants, honey, that’s all I’m saying. You think you can control everything, but you can’t. None of us can.”
“I’m not trying to control anything except the future of my business. I can do everything within my power to make sure it succeeds, even playing nice with a notorious bachelor for a chance to reach out to his readers.” I’d even contemplated another move, one destined to help Time For Love, but that could also call Oliver’s authenticity into question.
“He doesn’t seem like a bachelor to me.”
“That’s because you’re wearing rose-colored grandma glasses. He has no interest in anything beyond a few nights together, not even casual dating. I’ve had plenty of those—Preston and Lyle and Greg, just to name a few in case you’ve forgotten. Even if I was interested, which I’m not, it wouldn’t be him.” Anyone but Oliver would be my new motto whenever a bout of attraction or lust came over me.
“Your daddy, rest his soul, didn’t want it, either. Until he found someone he didn’t want to lose more. I never once worried he would be unfaithful, because I didn’t drag him down the aisle. He begged me to marry him, because he wanted me enough to make sure no one else could have me. That was enough for me.”
I smiled and wrapped my arms around her. “You and Daddy have a wonderful love story, Mama. Thanks for sharing that with me. I hope to have something similar. Someday.”
She rolled her eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. “Let’s see if you’re singing the same tune after some bombshell in a judge’s robe shows up for her first date with Oliver.”
The twinge in my stomach had nothing, absolutely nothing, to do with my mama’s words—and everything to do with the fact that I’d had five cups of coffee today and no food.
That was my story, and I was sticking to it. “I’ll be back late tomorrow morning with a change of clothes.”
Her lips poked out in a pout and I knew a tirade was coming. “I don’t see why I have to stay overnight for a simple sprained ankle.”
“Because your blood pressure is elevated, Mama. That’s why.” She refused to change her stubborn ways and we continued to fight about it. “Should’ve sprained your ankle at the fresh air market, instead.”
“Smart ass.”
“Stubborn ass,” I shot back, earning a smile and a laugh.
“At least you come by it honestly.” Her lips curled into a sincere smile and she shooed me off. “Bring Oliver with you tomorrow, he’s what the girls call ‘good eye candy.’”
I groaned over the sound of her laughter. “Thanks for that, Mama.”
“One of us should appreciate the good looks God gave him.” One brow arched, silently daring me to deny what I was doing.
“You go right ahead. I’ll focus on my business. My independence.”
Mama smacked her lips together. “Be careful, or all you’ll have to curl up with at the end of the night is your independence. A nice, hot man is much better, honey, trust me.”
How on Earth a laugh managed to wiggle its way out of me when I was so frustrated, I had no idea, but it was just what I needed to defuse the situation before I yelled at my own mama, a sin she would never let me forget. “Thanks for the imagery, Mama. Really.”