Page 85 of Fierce-Matt

“Have you?”

“Yes. We are building trust again, but we are getting there.”

“How long has it been going on? Tell me everything. I’m so happy for you. It’s about time you aren’t dating some asshole.”

She had to laugh over her mother swearing. Nothing she heard often.

Her father could let loose with a string of swear words longer than a line to the only register opened on Black Friday.

“Yes, it is,” she said.

“How did this all start? I want the details.”

Her mother’s excitement was contagious. “It started with him butting in on my dance at Ben’s wedding back in March.”

“That was three months ago,” Amber said, her eyes wide. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me about that.”

“Less then. It was the end of March and it’s the beginning of June now. It was about a month before we saw each other again. He came into Fierce a few times when I was working.”

“He sought you out? I always knew he had a crush on you too. He just didn’t go about letting you know the right way.”

“Not even close,” she said. Funny how her mother saw what she didn’t.

But she was a kid. How was she supposed to know what to look for?

She placed some cheese and crackers on a plate with a few strawberries. It was a good dinner in her eyes.

“He isn’t like the boy I remembered. At least when I’m talking to him.”

“He is and he isn’t. The first few dates were touch and go. Four dates in, I was going to end things. It’s like he wassucha different person, I didn’t care for him. I called him boring.”

Her mother burst out laughing. “This is just making my day. I don’t see that at all.”

“He went so far in the other direction because of how he treated me years ago. Once we cleared the air, we had so much fun on dates. I found myself wishing I’d had this with him years ago. But we realized it wouldn’t have lasted. It wasn’t the right time for us.”

“No,” her mother said. “Do you want this to last now? Where do you see this? It’s been about a month, you’re saying?”

“Just about,” she said. “I’m not putting any long-term plans on it. Things are going well and it’s best to let it fall the way it’s going to. We haven’t talked about it and I won’t bring it up.”

“Does he know you’re telling me?”

“Yes,” she said. “He told his sister yesterday. I texted Phoebe this morning and apologized for not telling her I’d been on a few dates with Matt. I didn’t want her mad at me.”

“You never liked anyone to be mad or upset with you. I doubt Phoebe was.”

Her mother wasn’t wrong about not wanting people to dislike her or get upset. That was how she got walked on so much.

Anya didn’t have the same mentality now, but it would bother her if the one friend she had when she needed someone back then would disapprove now.

Phoebe had called her rather than texting back and they had a friendly chat.

Almost as if ten years hadn’t passed.

So much was coming together for her and she was waiting for a black cloud full of lightning to come crashing down around her feet.

“She wasn’t. We had a few good laughs before she had to go. Matt was going to tell his parents today if he got the opportunity. Last I knew he was in court, so I don’t know if it happened.”

She wouldn’t bother him tonight. They didn’t talk daily.