Page 59 of Broken Rivalry
“Where’s the car, beautiful?” His tone is calm, almost soothing, and I cave, giving him the location of the car.
“Nothing extravagant, Ethan!” I warn him, realizing I should have said that before giving him the address. “I can’t have her come home to a new car.”
Ethan doesn’t reply, and I understand I was spot on.
“Ethan…” I trail off. “I swear you do something like that, and you and I, we’re… we won’t be doing stuff anytime soon.”
“By ‘stuff,’ are you referring to your orgasms? Multiple orgasms?”
Heat rushes to my cheeks, and I shift uncomfortably. “Y-yes that. And you won’t have yours either.”
He sighs. “Fine, just fixing.”
“Thank you.”
“For you, always. No thanks needed, beautiful.”
“I’ll bring you the car as soon as possible.”
“I don’t need it. Use it and do what you need. Okay, I have to go. Talk to you later.”
Ethan’s voice fades as I end the call, the screen of my phone dimming. I take a moment, leaning against the diner’s brick wall, letting the weight of our conversation sink in. The cool morning air is a sharp contrast to the warmth inside, and I can see the fogged-up windows of the diner, a testament to the bustling activity within.
Pushing off the wall, I reenter the diner. The bell above the door jingles faintly, and I’m immediately hit with the comforting aroma of freshly brewed coffee and sizzling bacon. I make my way back to our booth, sliding into the seat opposite Billy. He’s almost done with his Pancake Royal, a triumphant grin on his face as he tackles the last few bites with gusto.
“You weren’t kidding about being hungry,” I tease, reaching over to ruffle his hair.
He swats my hand away playfully, his mouth too full to retort. Just as he’s about to claim victory over his breakfast, my phone buzzes again. I pick it up to see Mom’s name flashing on the screen.
Taking a deep breath, I answer the call. “Hey, Mom,” my voice wavers, betraying the hope I’m trying to hide. “How did it go?”
Billy, syrup still clinging to the corners of his mouth, stops midchew, his gaze locked onto mine. The significance of the moment hangs between us, the diner’s ambient noise fading into the background.
There’s a brief pause on the other end before Mom speaks, her voice cautious. “I think… it went okay. The interviewer seemed impressed, but you never know with these things.”
“You’ve always been great at what you do, Mom. I’m sure they saw that,” I reassure her.
“Can you come pick me up?”
A wave of relief washes over me. “Of course. We’re wrapping up here. Billy’s almost done with his mountain of pancakes.”
Billy pipes up, his voice filled with excitement, “I told you I could eat it all, Pops! Mom, you should’ve seen it. It was huge!”
Mom laughs. “I bet it was. I can’t wait to hear all about it. See you soon.”
The drive to pick up Mom is a quiet one. The earlier tension has been replaced by a thick cloud of anticipation. Every traffic light and stop sign feels like an unnecessary delay, prolonging the moment of truth.
When we finally pull up to the towering glass building, Mom is waiting outside. She slides into the passenger seat, her face giving nothing away. I throw her a questioning look, searching for any hint of how the interview went. She offers a small, enigmatic smile in return, then turns her attention to Billy.
“Tell me all about these legendary pancakes,” she says, her voice light, but I can detect the underlying fatigue.
Billy, ever the chatterbox, launches into a detailed account of his breakfast adventure, complete with animated hand gestures. “And then, Mom, I had this huge dollop of whipped cream on top! It was epic!”
Mom laughs, her worries momentarily forgotten. “Sounds like quite the feast.”
Once we reach the trailer park, she instructs Billy, “Go on up, sweetie. You can play video games for an hour, okay?”
Billy’s eyes light up, and he dashes toward the entrance, leaving Mom and me alone.