I smiled at her question. “I’m feeling great. Really.”
“Good. You still got plans with Rae tonight?”
I nodded. “At her place, yeah. Is it still okay if you drive me over there?”
“I mean, I’m certainly not going to make you walk.”
“I’d drive myself if there was another car here for me to use. But for some reason, Dad decided to park his at the airport this time around.”
She sighed. “I know exactly why your father did it.”
I snickered. “Well, I was going to play dumb, but…”
The two of us had a small laugh at his expense, but it was a tense sort of laughter. I knew convincing the two of them to let me have another bike would be almost impossible. That was definitely a purchase I’d have to save up for on my own down the road. After I graduated and got out from underneath my father’s hawk-like eye. But having a regular car didn’t seem completely unreasonable.
Until Dad randomly started outright refusing me access to his.
It wasn’t as if I’d driven it much. I preferred my bike, mostly because I didn’t have to ask his permission to use it. But there were a few occasions where I’d needed to use his car because my bike was in the shop or something. And he’d never been hesitant to give me his keys.
Now, though, he was actively keeping his car away from me. Getting it out from underneath my claws. Like hiding his keys. Or locking it down in the extra garage we had around back.
Or driving it to the fucking airport instead of having Cecilia take him so he could park his car in long-term parking.
My stepmom sighed. “I’m working with him on it. But you know how your father is.”
I nodded. “I know. I know how he is. I know it’ll take some time to convince him that I’ll need a set of wheels again.”
“You know he won’t go for the bike, though. And neither do I.”
“Trust me, I wasn’t even dreaming of asking you guys about it.”
She cranked up the car. “Good. Because I didn’t want to fight with you about it.”
I snickered. “I don’t think we could fight if we wanted to.”
“You think?”
And when I looked over at her, I shook my head. “Nope. I know.”
She smiled at me as she backed the car out. Then we made our way out of the parking lot. She started heading toward home, getting out on the main roads and getting hooked up on every stoplight. It was frustrating, to say the least. I was ready to see Rae. Ready to hold her in my arms. Ready to give her the good news.
Ready to bend down and kiss her lips without it hurting so damn much.
“Well, let me work on your father a bit more about getting you a car. I think I know a sweet spot that’ll work.”
I chuckled. “Don’t do anything you don’t want to. That’s all I’m saying.”
She slapped my knee playfully. “Hey, now. I don’t know what kind of woman you take me to be, but I can class it up when I want to.”
“Which is why I still don’t understand how you fell for Dad.”
She sighed. “There is a side to your father you don’t see much. A kind, romantic, and very caring side of him.”
“Yeah, well. Let him know that sometimes it should come out to play with his son, too.”
“What? You want him to send you two dozen white roses and some dark chocolates?”
I burst out laughing. “You’re an absolute mess.”