The Player and the Single Mom

I wasn’t sure what to say to Jenny. I wasn’t sure I wanted any food fancy or otherwise. Mostly I wanted my bed and the ability to take my bra off.

My kids seemed to be enjoying themselves well enough for being ensconced in a group of strangers. Ava had settled herself next to Faith, who she clearly looked up to, and Johnny had been told to order any appetizer that he wanted. He was happily plowing his way through calamari. Marigold had placed herself between Cash and Toby and had played her cards right. She was getting undivided attention from Toby, who was showing her something on his phone.

Sandwiched between Jenny, who was very nice, and Hank, was a distracting experience. Cash’s brother kept brushing his leg against mine and he was either the world’s biggest manspreader or he was doing it on purpose. Hank had similar features to Cash, but he seemed like something of a dirty dog.

I kept my focus squarely on Jenny. “I’m looking forward to tomorrow. I’m happy to make a dessert if you want.”

“That’s so sweet, Sera, thank you. If you were just our guest, I would tell you no, but you’re family now so I just might take you up on that.” Jenny laughed and squeezed my hand.

Cash’s mother was in her mid-fifties with shoulder length hair that was a mix of silver and blonde. For some reason I had remembered her as being a little older. Maybe that was because the day I had pushed past her in the stadium for a football game, I’d been mostly focused on Johnny and his inability to hold anything in his hands for more than thirty seconds. If I had walked past Jenny on the street earlier today I would not have recognized her as the same woman because back in November I hadn’t honestly paid that much attention.

Her words now made me inexplicably tear up. It was such a completely different response from the Huxtabys, John’s parents. They had been polite to me, but not much more. Not particularly interested, not particularly warm. Jenny’s smile and words looked and felt genuine and I was shocked by how much I appreciated the idea of being part of a bigger family.

“Aw, honey,” she said, when she saw my tears. “What’s wrong?”

I sniffled and shook my head, the lump in my throat too large to force words out. Finally, I managed to choke out, “I just appreciate you being so welcoming. I’m sure this was not what you pictured for Cash.”

“I don’t worry about Cash,” she said. “He knows what he’s doing. He’s always been my child who makes good choices.” She glanced over at Hank. “Unlike some people.”

Hank paused with his rum and Coke halfway to his lips. “What the hell did I do?”

“What didn’t you do?” she said, with a frown. But then Jenny bent down and dug a tissue out of her purse and gave it to me. “Here, honey, wipe your eyes. Everything has turned out exactly the way it was meant to, and now overnight I have three grandkids and another on the way after waiting years for just one.” She smiled.

I pressed the tissue under my eyes.

“Mama, are you making Sera cry?” Cash asked, sounding concerned from his seat three down. He looked prepared to stand up and whisk me out of there.

Seeing Cash in a suit was like lighting a fire to my panties. I had never seen him dressed up, and he filled out that suit like Goliath goes to the Oscars. It was sexy as hell. I loved the polish, but with the country boy still creeping through with his drawl.

“I’m fine,” I assured him. “Your mother is being sweet to me.”

“Oh, okay, good.”

“Are y’all planning on getting married?” Cash’s father, Dave, asked.

I froze, tissue still at my eyes.

“Dad, stop,” Cash said. “Don’t just ask that, here, at Faith’s graduation dinner.”

“What?” Dave asked, like he genuinely didn’t understand the big deal. He even held his hands out. “I’m just asking. You are having a baby so it seemed like a natural question to ask.”

“It’s awkward, Dad,” Conway said. “It’s like asking a woman when the baby is due and you don’t even know for sure she’s pregnant. If you don’t know, don’t ask.”

“Then how the hell am I supposed to know?” Dave asked.

I replaced the tissue with my water and kept the goblet firmly in front of my mouth for much longer than was required to take a sip. I was not wading into this debate.

“Maybe you don’t have to know,” Faith said, rolling her eyes at her father. “Maybe it’s none of your business.”

“How is it none of my business? Cash is my son. Sera’s carrying my first grandbaby.”

“Maybe they don’t want to talk about it in front of certain individuals,” Toby said, tipping his head toward Marigold.

“Dave,” Jenny said, giving her husband a head shake of warning.

Dave put his hands up in surrender. “Okay, okay.”

That was a powerful marriage. One look and Jenny stemmed the tide. I envied that. John had never listened to a single thing I said, ever. Funny how you realize that later, after the relationship is over. I didn’t necessarily see it at the time.

But then Dave added, “I kind of always figured Cash would marry that Becca.”

It was such a clueless dad thing to say that I found myself fighting the urge to giggle. I put my hand over my mouth with my napkin to try to cut off the giggles. I could not look at Cash or I was convinced I would erupt into laughter. The comment was funny to me because of the general randomness of it but also because Cash and I had just talked about Becca. I also wasn’t easily offended by familial humor given my own father’s. I would have spent half my childhood in tears if I had.

“Dave!” Jenny said in pure horror.

Hank, who had been sipping on his drink, choked on it. I turned to see if I needed to pound him on the back.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

His eyes were watering and he was waving his hand and nodding to indicate he was fine. He had obviously been drinking and then started laughing at his dad’s remark. I found myself disliking Hank just a little less, because frankly, it was funny.

“Dad, Becca and I broke up like five years ago,” Cash said. His voice had an edge to it. “Why would you bring her up?”

“It just came to mind that I thought you two were headed down the aisle back in college. She was with us at your graduation dinner. Boy, time flies.”

“Dad, you can’t just say out loud everything that comes into your head,” Conway said, looking amused and horrified simultaneously.

“I was twenty-two years old. That would be like Faith getting married now.”

“Hell no times one thousand,” Faith said.

“Maybe we should just focus on celebrating Faith today, shall we?” Jenny said. The look she shot her husband this time had him giving her a sheepish smile in return.

“Amen to that,” Faith said.

Dave raised his beer bottle. “Congratulations to my baby girl, we’re very proud of you.”

“Thanks, Daddy.”

Her siblings all gave her some variation of the same and fortunately the awkward moment passed, as did my urge to laugh so hard I cried.

Two hours later we were back at the hotel and I was grateful to remove the ill-fitting dress. I took my bra off in the bathroom with a massive sigh. We had a two bedroom, two bathroom suite. Johnny had claimed the sectional couch in the living room and the girls were going to be in the other room, so we had a decent amount of privacy. I was eyeing the shower and wishing it was a soaker tub when there was a knock on the bathroom door.

“Can I come in?” Cash asked.

“Yes.” I shifted behind the door just in case the kids were wandering at will, given I was only in my panties. I had put Marigold to bed and said goodnight to the other two, but you never knew who was going to do what.

Cash closed the door behind him and spotted my state of undress. “Hey, now,” he said. “What’s going on here?” He took a step toward me.