Page 20 of Barron's Second Chance
His heart always hammered at this part. He never failed to feel guilt over what he had put her through.
"I had only been at the airport for ten minutes before this woman in big sunglasses came rushing up to me, asking if I was a model. And the rest is history." She paused before smirking at the camera.
"I guess I should thank my ex as well. If he hadn't dumped me, I wouldn't be here chatting to you fine people!" Then she saucily winked at the camera before taking a bite from her bowl.
That wink haunted him. It was a clear "fuck you, Barron," as if she had said the words herself.
As the video ended, he moved the coffee table where his laptop sat closer to him.
He reached out and hit replay.
7
No Place Like Home
Eden'sfacebrokeintoa wide smile as her Mom pulled up to their brick ranch-style home. It looked the same as it always did, but she especially loved it in Summer. The grass was greener, and the flowers dotting the outside front porch were bright and colorful. Shoot, even the small picket fence that lined their property looked whiter.
It wasn’t the childhood home she grew up in. That was a small two-bedroom rented cottage a few blocks away. It served them well in the past, even though their shared, tiny bathroom was constantly overspilling with feminine products.
But once Eden started commanding more contracts and shows, she came into more money than she needed. She first bought her Mom a bigger house with three bedrooms, a space for entertaining, and a decent-sized yard. It wasn’t too big since Eden wasn’t here for most of the time, but her Mom deserved a place to call her own. Somewhere she could bring her friends to entertain without bumping into each other and have them stay over without folding out their ancient pullout couch. And now that she had Mike in her life, he could stay over and keep some of his things in his own bathroom.
Eden quickly unbuckled her seat belt and climbed out of the car as she took in their beloved home. She always got a sense of pride when she saw what she could supply her Mom with and that she was able to do something to make up for her years of struggling as a single Mom. No one would believe her but being home in New Haven trumped any location around the world. Hard to believe, given that she'd worked and vacationed in some stellar spots. But as the age-old saying goes, "there's no place like home."
"Mom, the roses are looking so good!" She complimented as she practically skipped up the path toward their front door.
"It's alright, sweetie; I got your bags." Her Mom's voice rang out sarcastically, without malice. Eden skittered to a stop before rushing back to help her.
"Sorry! I got over-excited.” She popped a handle up and dragged one of her bags back up the garden path.
"The door's open," her Mom called out behind her.
Eden huffed in exasperation. "Mom! I know we live in a safe town, but you still gotta lock the doors," she chastised as she turned the silver knob on their blue front door. "I read last week that crime in Pensyl-"
"Surprise!"
Eden’s voice died out, and she jumped a foot in the air as she heard a bunch of voices chorus out in unison.
"Holy shit!" She yelped, her hand on her heart as she surveyed their living room. It only took her a second to get her bearings in place before she gave a scream of delight and rushed through to greet the familiar faces.
"Sof!" She cried as she gathered the petite woman in her arms. They rocked sidewards back and forth while gripping each other tightly.
"Sofia,move!" She felt her best friend get pushed aside before she stared down at Sefina MacDonald, Sofia's mom.
"Mama Sefina!' Eden grinned widely as the small Samoan woman cupped Eden’s face with both hands.
"It's been too long.” Sefina pushed her hair lovingly aside.
"Well, you have all summer to get sick of me," she quipped as she grasped her soft forearms before pulling her close for a hug. She glanced over Sefina's shoulder and spotted Ryan. They wiggled their fingers at each other before she reached out and gripped his hand, giggling as he kissed them.
Of all of them, Ryan was the one she had seen most recently. She invited him to New York to hang out while she got ready for the Met Gala and had him as her plus-one to the many after-parties. He was in heaven, surrounded by beautiful men and couture fashion.
Next, she greeted Mike, her Mom’s boyfriend of two years. He was a local mechanic, which was how the two had met. Her Mom had taken her car in to be serviced and had gotten serviced herself, as her Mom liked to joke, much to her horror.
That wasn't a euphemism, either. She once made the mistake of surprising her Mom with a visit and walked in on them half-naked on the living room couch. She never made surprise visits again.
Despite that sickening moment, she got along well with the older man. He made her Mom happy and treated her like a queen. That's all she cared about. Even if her Mom was getting more sex than she was.
She turned to the remaining couple, who were beaming at her.
