Page 148 of Crash Course
"You gave him a chance."
She shrugged. "I saw the good in him. He deserved an opportunity to have a better life. I was and still am proud that he’d moved on from his past."
His mother. So forgiving. "A lot of women would run from a convict."
"I wouldn’t blame them. Lucky for us, he figured out how to live an honest life."
"He knew you’d leave him, huh?"
"I made that clear. And, if I’m any judge of character, brace yourself because I have a feeling Cilla is going to set some boundaries with you."
"Like not socking her father?"
Mom snorted. "Something like that. I’ll tell you the same thing I told your father. Figure it out or you’ll wind up a lonely man."
He sat back, blew out a breath. Between the booze and now this, he’d turned his life into a shit show. At least he had the opportunity to fix it.
Since they were having this heart-to-heart . . . "Mom? There’s something else."
"Oh, boy."
He laughed. "It’s nothing horrible. At least, I don’t think."
Mimicking his gesture from a few minutes earlier, she rolled one hand. How could he tell her, after they’d built her dream home, he wanted to leave it?
"You know," he said, "there have been a lot of changes around here with Maddy, Liv, Brodie, and Lena."
Mom nodded. "Indeed, there have. It’s been hard for you. I’ve seen it."
"Not hard." When she gave him a heated look, he shrugged. "Okay. Yeah. It’s been an adjustment. But it’s been good, too. My brothers are happy. The house is full of life."
"A lot of life," Mom cracked.
Cruz snorted. "Yeah. Which brings me to my point. With all these people around, I realized something." He held her gaze. "I need space. Mom, I didn’t plan it, but the other day I drove by a house in Asheville. It’s for sale and it caught my eye. I’m going to put an offer in."
Before she could speak, he plowed forward. "Not full-time. I think it’ll be a part-time thing. The house is close to downtown. I could use it as an investment property for vacation rentals. Then, when it’s not rented, I’ll crash for a few days when I need privacy. I can commute home for work. Plus, Cilla just bought an office close to there. I’d be close to her. Figure out where this relationship is going."
There. Said it. Just blurted it out. He sat back, dipped his head, and waited. When nothing happened, he looked back at his mother, found tears shimmering in her eyes.
Shit. He’d made her cry. Again.
"Mom, I’m so sorry."
"Don’t you dare," she said. "Don’t apologize for wanting to live your life. I told Ash the same thing when he moved out. I love having my babies in my nest, but I refuse to be the reason you don’t chase your dreams. If this move will make you happy, I want you to do it. Life is too short, and opportunities don’t always come. When you have them, and you want to grab hold, you should."
Relief landed on him like a ten-ton concrete block. His shoulders drooped and he let out a huge breath. "Wow," he said, shaking his head. "You’re amazing. I always knew it. I didn’t want to make you sad, though."
"That’s the thing, my boy. I’m always sad when one of you leaves for even a day. Love does that. It’s not a bad thing."
Yeah. He supposed it wasn’t.
Mom stood tall and nodded. "You have my blessing to do whatever will make you happy. Now, go get cleaned up and get to work. We have a business to run."
24
The soft clunkof Cilla’s bedroom door handle sounded and she opened her eyes just as the door came open. A shaft of light from the hallway pierced the darkness. Mom had closed the blinds and drapes, ensuring not a smidge of light would enter. At first, Cilla considered it overkill, but given the stabbing whenever she opened her eyes, she welcomed the pitch-black.
Having never had a concussion, Cilla hadn’t known what to expect. All she knew was her head hurt.
