Page 11 of Break the Barrier

“No, Mom.” I shake my head. Though, the thought gives me serious pause. When Thea first threw this whole thing at me, I wasn’t completely opposed to it as much as I thought I should be.

The idea of marrying her wasn’t something I was scared of.

It was more the idea of it being fake that bothered me so much.

Could I fake marry a woman who didn’t want me? Who didn’t know that I have thought of her in damn near every scenario? Who I thought of constantly, who I had feelings for that I was too chicken shit to act on?

The last thing I want is to hurt our friendship, to throw a wrench in everything we’ve built between us.

“Well, that’s good. Better for that to happen naturally.” Mom gives me a knowing smile.

And there it was—the downside of your mom knowing everything about you.

“No, it’s better that it doesn’t happen at all.”

“And why the hell not?”

“Because Lue doesn’t need me bringing a woman around and interrupting her life.”

“Oh please, that daughter of yours would love for you to have something other than her to focus on. She’s growing up. Do you know how many times she’s turned down hanging out with her friends, so you didn’t have to be alone?”

I blink in surprise, my brows meeting in the middle. “What?”

Mom nods. “Yup. I’ve heard her on the phone, saying she can’t hang out because it’s her night in with her dad.”

I brace my hand on the counter. “I didn’t know that.”

“I know. She doesn’t want to hurt your feelings.”

“I’ve never asked her to stay home instead. I wouldn’t want her to do that.”

“She does it because she knows you’re alone, honey.”

I lick my lips and sigh. “Well, I don’t want a girlfriend anyway.”

Mom barks out a laugh. “Right! I’m so sure that’s true.”

“I don’t. They’re too much work. I need to focus on Lue and the ranch. CT wants me to start showing that horse I’m training.”

My mom looks at me in surprise. “You? Show?”

Giving her the evil glare, I say, “I can show.”

“Sure, so long as your shirt is made out of terrycloth.”

Okay, so it is true I tend to get nervous when showing horses, which is why I preferred to start with the young ones and train them up for people like Dani and CT to show themselves.

“Aren’t we supposed to conquer our fears?”

“Oh, like trying to date the woman you’ve been infatuatedwith for years?” Her retort is quick, and the smirk that follows tells me that she knows she got me.

I rub a hand over my head. “Are you always this persistent?”

“When I see my sons doing something stupid? Damn straight I am.”

And that right there is why you don’t ever try to bullshit Didi Cash.

All through dinner, I think about what Mom said about Lue ditching her friends to hang out with her dad. It makes me feel awful, and I vow to myself to do something about it.