Page 46 of Forbidden Dreams
He chuckled. "Right? I'm just glad I'm with Reina. Ever since we started dating someone seriously, Mom is on a mission to ensure that all of us are paired off. It's like she has this checklist for knowing her kids will be okay. Career. Check. Married. Check. Baby. Check. Check."
I shuddered. "Sounds terrible. Glad I'm not an official Sterling."
Morgan gave me a pitying look. "Don't be so sure about that. I'm positive that Mom included you when she was talking about blind dates."
"That's ridiculous. Why would she care if I'm settled?"
"I have a feeling she worries about you the most."
"There's nothing to talk about." Speaking of which, I hadn't checked on my mother in a while. It was past time. Ever since I discovered a delivery service to provide her groceries, I didn't go over there as often. It allowed me to avoid hearing about my dad.
"You got plans after this work?"
"I'm going to check on my mom."
He sighed. "Maybe we'll see you at the bar later."
"Yeah, maybe." It was better to be noncommittal with them. I didn't like to raise their hopes because I usually needed time and space to myself after seeing my mother. If she'd break ties with my dad completely, it would be better. But she was incapable of ever doing that.
To maintain a relationship with her was to maintain a relationship with him.
"See you later," Morgan said as he left.
I went back to work, enjoying the quiet. Outside, the streets were probably full of happy couples and families. But in here, it was just me. I'd enjoyed a few good years with the Sterling family. But now they were paired off. They'd have less time for me.
It would be a good idea to see my mother if only to remind myself of the life that I was destined to have. It wasn't finding someone I could love forever.
When it was evening, I cleaned up and ventured outside. The parking lot was emptying. I got in my truck and headed for the trailer park that I grew up in.
Mom said many times over the years if she moved, Dad wouldn't be able to find her. She needed to move on from Dad and build a new life, but she didn't want to.
A voice in my head reminded me that I hadn't done that either. I was still stuck in the past. I liked to remind myself of where I came from so that I wouldn't get ideas about a different future.
I parked in her driveway, noting the lack of flowers and bushes. There were never any holiday lights. What was the point when the magic of the season never visited your house?
I knocked on the door, never sure what I would find. Then opened it when I heard the weak, "Come in."
Lately, I worried that Mom was depressed.
I pushed opened the door. "It's Cooper."
"I'm in the living room watching my shows."
I think she liked imagining her life was different, not that she'd ever do anything about that. She worked as a grocery store clerk, worried that the new self-checkout lanes would eventually take out her job, and she'd have no way to make a living.
She'd tried working for the delivery services, but her car wasn't reliable, and she wouldn't let me buy her a new one.
The kitchen was cluttered, as if Mom was too tired to clear the surfaces. I didn't blame her. I had a feeling she felt beat down by her circumstances. The constant roller coaster of hoping Dad would come home, and then when he did, it was only to take her money.
I'd hated that she was so weak when I was a teenager, but now I wanted better for her. I wanted her to provide for herself.
I opened the fridge, pleased that she had milk, eggs, and other things.
I went into the living room. I'd gifted her a new TV at some point, but there were the same threadbare carpet and worn chairs that we'd had when Emery and I were kids. "How are you doing?"
Mom sat in the recliner, the one that dad preferred when he bothered to stay for any length of time. "The store is reducing my hours again."
I sighed. "What are you going to do?"
