Page 99 of Badd Baby

I snorted. “That would be a pretty stupid trick, Rune. You'd make it to Christmas and find out I'd lied to you. And then what?"

She laughed. “True. I still don't know if I believe you."

“Fine," I said. "Pick anyone from my family. I'll call them right now, and you can ask."

"Your mom," she said immediately.

I got out my phone and FaceTimed Mom. It burbled a few times and then Mom appeared on screen, her hair in a high, messy bun, dirt smudging her cheeks. She was holding a gardening glove in her hand as she swept a wrist over her upper lip. "Hey, baby boy. How's LA?"

I pivoted the screen and leaned closer to Rune. "Say hi to Rune, Mom."

Mom squealed. "Duncan Badd! Give me a warning before you spring your girlfriend on me! I'm all dirty from gardening."

Rune laughed. "It's totally fine, Mrs. Badd. It's good to meet you, sort of." She frowned. "I, um…about the first time we spoke. I…that's not how I'd have wanted that to go."

Mom didn't answer right away—the screen showed blue sky shifting and rocking as she walked somewhere, and the back of the house hove into view as she took a seat in one of the chairs around the firepit in the backyard.

"It happens," Mom said. "And believe me, I get it. It's okay."

"You've raised a wonderful son, Mrs. Badd. I don't know what's going to happen with Duncan and me, but I can say that Duncan has made me realize that maybe not all men are cheating assholes. Which is how I felt when I met him."

Mom cackled. "Oh, honey, that's a hell of a compliment. I do know that feeling, trust me. I found a good man, and we've done our best to raise good men."

"You have," Rune said. "I mean, I only met Dane briefly, and while he might be a bit of a lunatic, if he's anything like Duncan, he can't be too bad."

Mom laughed even harder. "Dane is definitely a bit of a lunatic, but we love him for it."

"Most of the time," I muttered.

"Oh, hush, you," Mom said. "The women are talking."

"Oh, well ex-cuuuuu-se me," I said, chuckling. "Carry on."

"So," Mom said, in between sips of water from a big pink insulated tumbler, "to what do I owe the pleasure of this unexpected call?"

"Duncan is trying to tell me that the winters there aren't that bad," Rune said. "I said I wasn’t sure I believed him."

"Oh, well, he's not wrong. I mean, I grew up in Seattle, and it's not that different. It gets cold. There's snow once in a while, and blizzards rarely. Gets dark early. It'd be an adjustment for someone who grew up in the perpetual summer of LA, for sure, but it's not Antarctica."

Rune sighed. "Great."

I frowned at her. "Why do you say it like that?"

"Because you're making a pretty decent case and I'm not sure how I feel about that," Rune said. "Winters aren't the only hold-up, though."

Mom dragged the heel of her palm over her forehead, mixing sweat with dirt in a long brown smear. "Rune, honey, there'll always be hangups and holdups and worries and fears. You don't ever know if you're making the right decision. All you can do is make the best choice you can with the information you have, and then make the best of it. I know my son is a good man. I know that no matter what you decide about you and him, he'll be there for you—and not just because he knows his father and I will kick his ass if he isn't."

"Mom!" I protested. "Unnecessary."

Mom ignored me. "Follow your heart. But listen to your head, as well."

"What if they're telling me different things?" Rune asked.

"What can you live with? What can't you live with? You're pregnant. You're gonna need support. But support can look like a lot of different things. Just speaking from a purely selfish standpoint, here, we'd love to have you in our lives." She grinned. "And not just because snuggling grandbabies is one of my favorite things in the world."

Rune sighed. "The more people I talk to, the more confused I get."

"In the end, no one can decide what's best for you but you, Rune. Not me, not Duncan, not your parents or your best friend. Only you."