Page 23 of Make Me Trust Again (Bluebonnet Creek #3)

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

ROSE

“How is my favorite man?” Mom asks the moment we get out of the truck.

“Hey, Nana!” Kyle grins widely at her. “I’m great. How are you?”

“Good. Excited to hang out with you today. I might have a little surprise for you inside.”

“Are there cookies?”

A smile spreads over Mom’s mouth as she winks at him. “Maybe.”

“Yay!” He turns to me. “Bye, Mom!”

“I’ll see you later!”

We watch him run into the house, his backpack bouncing on his shoulders with every step he takes.

I turn to my mother. “Thanks for looking after him.”

“It’s not a problem.” Mom waves me off. “He keeps me young.”

“You’re young, Mom.”

The woman doesn’t look older than forty, although she had just entered her fifties. I can only hope that once I reach her age, I’ll look as good as she does now.

“Not as young as I used to be.” She gives me a pointed look. “I just wish the reason why I’m looking over my grandson isn’t so you can go to your mediation.”

“Mom…” I sigh, not in the mood to get into this with her.

I’m antsy as it’s from my encounter with John a few days ago.

I don’t know what to expect today, and I don’t like it one bit.

I’ve gotten accustomed to John’s moods, but lately he’s been unpredictable.

On edge. It scares me. John’s always been a prideful man, and my leaving him struck him where it hurts the most.

“Okay, okay.” She lifts her hands in the air in surrender, but I know better than to believe her. “You look tired.”

“It’s been a long few weeks,” I amend. I don’t want to tell her I got the flu on top of everything else that’s been going on. She would only worry more and insist we come home. That’s the last thing I need right now.

“You’re working too hard,” Mom admonishes. “You shouldn’t be working so hard.”

There is no missing the pointed look she shoots my way—a silent reminder of the fact that when I was with John, I didn’t need to work that hard. I didn’t need to work at all. I didn’t need her to look after my son because I was there to do it myself.

“I like working. It’s been fun learning how to make all the different types of coffees, and Becky even showed me how to make some of her cookies, which Kyle is loving. Anyway, thank you for watching him. I hope this won’t take more than a few hours.”

“Take your time. We’ll be just fine.”

Smiling at Mom, I slip into my truck. I still have some time before I need to meet my lawyer, so I decide to stop at the Reading Nook to grab a coffee.

I slept like shit last night, tossing and turning half the night as John’s threats kept spinning in my mind to the point when I finally managed to fall asleep, I was awakened by a nightmare.

To say I could use a coffee is an understatement.

Jessica is standing behind a counter when I enter the café. She spots me immediately and waves at me before returning her attention to an unfamiliar couple in front of her.

“As I was saying, you should check out the farmer’s market; they have some amazing local delicacies, and I’d definitely stop at the Shooting Stars Ranch. They’re about an hour away from here, and they’re doing these cute horseback tours with a picnic at the end for tourists.”

“Thank you so much,” the woman says, grabbing a tray with coffee and sandwiches. “That was so helpful. And we’ll definitely be stopping again before we leave.”

The guy takes the tray from her and slips one of his palms on the small of her back as they walk to one of the open tables next to the windows overlooking Main Street, leaning closer to each other as they talk.

“A barista and a tour guide? Is there something you can’t do?” I tease as I step to the counter.

“Study for this exam, apparently.” She lifts a book from behind the counter. “It was quiet in the morning for a little bit, but it seems like all the tourists and locals are up and about just now.”

“I’m so sorry, I wish I could have taken this shift, but I’m meeting my lawyer.”

“Don’t stress about it. What do you want me to get you?”

“Iced salted caramel latte, please. Extra shot of espresso.” I climb onto one of the barstools. “It’s been a long night.”

“Tell me about it.” She turns around and grabs one of the to-go cups as she starts on my order. “I don’t know why I thought taking summer classes was a good idea. I’ve been living on stress and extra shots of espresso.”

“At least you know what you wanna do.”

Jessica glances at me over her shoulder. “Did you get a degree?”

I shake my head and force out a smile. “I had Kyle my freshman year. Never got back to it. Not that I regret it, but sometimes I wonder. You know?”

“If it makes you feel better, it’s not like I knew everything when I first started college.

” She places my coffee in front of me. “My parents are both in education, so I thought I’d be a preschool teacher, but then, along the way, I changed my mind, so now I’m trying to get an associate’s degree in nursing.

Not all paths are linear; you can still get a degree if that’s what you want. ”

“I guess so.” I bite the inside of my cheek as I think over her words, trying to imagine myself going back to college and getting a degree.

In what, I have no idea. When I first started college, the only thing I wanted was to have fun, party with my friends, and be with John.

I always thought I’d figure out what I wanted to study along the way, only I never got a chance.

And almost seven years later, I’m still in the same situation.

“It’s been so long.” I shake my head, letting out a soft chuckle. “I don’t even know where to start. It never occurred to me that maybe, down the road, I might change my mind and want to get a degree. Besides, I’ve not studied anything in so long, I don’t even know if I remember how .”

“From what I’ve heard, that’s not true. You’ve been learning ASL and are helping your son with speech therapy.”

“Well, yes, but that’s different.”

“Is it?” Jessica quirks her brow. “You know firsthand how hard that is, and let’s not even start on the topic of kids like Kyle getting the help they need to adapt, especially when it comes to school.

There is a severe lack of teaching assistants in our school system, but it’s the worst in rural areas.

You know the most important part; you’d still need to have a degree to work, but… ” She shrugs. “Think about it.”

Just then, the doorbell chimes, making us both look up.

“Hey, Aiden.” Jessica smiles at the newcomer. “What brings you here?”

The dark-haired guy rubs at the back of his neck as he moves closer to the counter. “I need to get some decent coffee in me.”

“Long shift?”

“Yeah. It’s been one of those days.”

“I’ve gotcha covered.” She winks at him, our gazes meeting as she grabs a coffee cup, and explains, “Aiden and I went to the same school. He helped me when I shifted my degree to nursing, although he’s recently graduated and works as a nurse at our medical center.”

“That’s nice of him.”

“Yeah, it is.” She pours him a plain black coffee and puts it on the counter.

“Thanks.” He slides his hand into his pocket and pulls out a wallet. “How have you been doing?”

“Good. Busy. I’ve been trying to finish these last few classes over the summer?—”

A soft buzzing sound draws her attention.

“Sorry, let me just—” Jessica grabs her phone from the counter, checking the caller ID before picking it up. “Hey, what’s up?”

There is a short pause as she listens to whoever is on the other side of the line. Aiden starts to take a sip of his coffee, but pauses as Jessica’s tone lowers.

“I told you, I’m working, and then I have to finish my paper later. I can’t today.” She pulls the phone away from her face as the person starts yelling loud enough for us to hear.

“That’s what you said yesterday and the day before! Are you fucking for real, Jessica? What’s that bullshit? You’ve never been so busy before…”

“Damian…”

“Don’t you Damian me, Jessica! Are you cheating on me? Is that it?”

Jessica clenches her jaw. “I’m not doing this now. I’m at work. I’ll talk to you later when you get your head out of your ass.”

With that, she hangs up, letting out a long breath.

“You still with that douche?” Aiden pulls out a few bills and places them on the counter.

“He’s not a douche.” Jessica gives him a pointed look before rolling her eyes. “He’s just… worried.”

Something dark flashes on Aiden’s face. “More like controlling. You’re too good for a guy like that.”

“Yeah, well. It’s been a very busy few weeks with work and studying and everything.

” She takes the money and runs his order, as she explains, although I’m not sure who she’s trying to convince—herself or us.

“He’s generally not like this. I’ve just been busy, and he doesn’t like it.

Things will go back to how they used to be once I’m done with classes. ”

For her sake, I really hope she’s right because I know all too well how quickly things in a relationship can take a turn.

“I don’t want him near Kyle, Mrs. Lewis.”

“I understand that, Miss Hathaway, and I’ll try my best to lower the time he gets with him. However, you know that without a proper cause, he has a right to see his son.”

The need to scream at my lawyer’s placating words is overwhelming, but I swallow it back, running my fingers through my long hair.

I had a cause. John was a deadbeat dad who didn’t bother learning ASL in the seven years his son’s been alive. How is she expecting me to just let my son go with him when they have no way of communicating? Not that he’s ever been much interested in talking to Kyle.

I grind my teeth just as there are footsteps in the hallway.