Okay, so it was totally sweet that Brax wanted my mom to like him. I wasn’t sure if he knew that was the case or not. I answered, and her face popped up on the screen. It took a moment for me to remember we were lying on Brax’s bed. We looked awfully comfy, which wouldn’t help convince her on the we’re-not-boyfriends front.
“I don’t want to see you. I want to see Brax,” Mom said, and I angled the phone his way. “Hi, Brax.”
“Hello, Ms. Langley.”
She waved her hand at him. “You can call me Cecelia.” I turned the phone to the side and squeezed my head in so we could both be in the frame. “He’s very handsome,” Mom told me.
“Don’t say that. It’ll go to his head.”
“Well, it’s true.”
I shrugged. “Eh, he’s all right.”
“So, you’re going into computer science like Ty?”
I shifted uncomfortably as Brax replied, “Yes, ma’am. I mean, Ms. Langley. I mean, Cecelia.”
Okay, why was that so adorable? I rested my head on his shoulder. “He’s good at it, Ma. Better than I ever could be. He’s smart. Don’t tell him I said that.”
She smiled, and damn it, this was a mistake. I was getting her hopes up, making her think I was dating Braxton when we were just… I didn’t know what we were. But I also wanted her to know how proud of him I was. I wanted him to know it as well.
“He looks smart,” Mom replied, and damned if Brax didn’t blush. “How long have the two of you been dating?”
Guilt weighed my gut down and started to pull the truth out of me. But before I could speak, Brax said, “Um…just a couple of weeks now.”
“You should come out with Ty for spring break. I’d love to meet you in person. Ty’s never introduced us to a boyfriend before—or a girlfriend, for that matter. Not since high school.”
I lifted my head off his shoulder, and Brax gave me a panicked look I felt down to my bones. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” I told her.
Mom ignored me. Once she got an idea in her head, she was off to the races. Plus, I figured it felt good to focus on this, to pretend life was normal, and not to think about my dad. I was her only son, while my dad had three kids now. I couldn’t imagine what she was going through.
“Do you live close to your grandma?” she asked.
“She lives in an assisted-living facility not far from here. I see her every week, though, sometimes more than once. My brother and I live here together,” Brax replied.
“What do your parents do?”
Fuck. It was such an obvious question for her to ask, but I hadn’t even considered it. “Ma.” I shook my head.
“No. It’s fine,” Brax answered. “My mom left when I was young. My dad’s locked up.” There was distance in his voice, in his eyes too. Brax was waiting for my mom to judge him, for her to decide she didn’t like him or that he wasn’t good enough for me—not that we really were boyfriends. But that wasn’t her. I knew that, but he wouldn’t expect it.
“I’m so sorry to hear that. I can’t imagine that’s been easy on you. But it sounds like you have a lovely grandma and a good head on your shoulders. Family can be tough sometimes. Tyson and I understand that.” She gave him an encouraging smile, and I wasn’t sure I’d ever loved her more. My mom was badass.
“I, um…thank you.”
“It’s important to remember that we control our own lives. No one can take that away from us. It’s what I’ve tried to tell Ty since this whole…situation with his father came to light. People hurt us and do the wrong thing. None of us are perfect. Sometimes we forgive, others we don’t, but that doesn’t mean we let them take our happiness away. No one should have that much power over us.” She looked at me. “Don’t let your pain or anger dictate how you live your life. You only hurt yourself that way.”
I agreed, wondering how this day turned into Mom giving me and Brax advice while thinking we were boyfriends. “I hear you, Ma.”
“Good.”
“I should… I have to head to practice.” Brax and I said our goodbyes, and when I ended the call, I told him, “I’m sorry about all that. She means well. She’s just—”
“Great,” Brax said. “She’s great. And she loves you. That woman will one hundred percent support you changing your career goals.”
He was right. There was no doubt in my mind about that. Maybe it was just me. Maybe I was scared to go for something I really wanted, in case I wasn’t good enough to get it. “I know.” I climbed over him. “I should get to practice. You don’t really have to come to my game on Saturday. I was just giving you shit.” Brax nodded but didn’t reply, and I tried to hide my disappointment. “I’ll see you at work tonight.” I put my shoes on, pressed a quick kiss to his lips, and stood. “Boyfriend.”