Page 64 of Toxic Wishes
I was thankful Bodie was here, or this would have been an awkward drive with me in the front seat next to Colt. With Bodie talking a mile a minute, it left no room for silence or awkwardness. Bodie starts running up to the porch as I jump out of the truck since it sits up so high. It was a cozy-looking house, nothing special. I could tell it had been remodeled, and there was fresh white paint, along with new shutters painted a dark brown, or maybe it was the color of the actual wood. Even though it was simple and out in the middle of nowhere, I loved it
As we walked up to the house, The smell of manure hit your nose instantly. The house had a gorgeous porch that stretched to each end, a dream of mine. A rocking chair was on one side, and a porch swing on the other. That’s one thing that I hated about modern homes, you never saw porches in front of the homes anymore.
“Well, there he is,” an older lady says as she opens the door. Right away, I could tell she was Colt's mom. She had the same blue eyes and high cheekbones as him. Her hair was much blonder, so I’m not sure if that was natural or she dyed it, but she had a darker complexion than most women who have that blonde hair, so I’m going to take a guess and say she dyed it.
“Come and give your Grammy some sugar.” She pulls Bodie in for a hug and glances over at Colt as we walk up to the porch. She hugs him and makes a guttural sound. “I’ve missed you. And guess what I made for you?”
“What?” Bodie asks looking up at her. “Some sweet tea and fried chicken, Daddy’s favorite.”
Colt smiles as he walks up to the steps. “Hey, momma.”
“There’s my oldest baby boy.” She wraps a hand around his neck and gives him a wet kiss on the cheek.
“You two going to go riding today?”
“Yes!” Bodie shouts.
“It’s a beautiful day.” Her accent isn’t a country one, since it’s not heavy but more of the kind you would hear out in North Carolina, the sweet southern drawl kind.
She looks over at me as I stand awkwardly by the post of the steps, with my hands behind my back.
“And who’s this young lady?” She says with a warm smile.
Colt looks over at me and raises a hand. “Momma, this is a friend of Josh’s, Abigail.”
“Hi,” I brush my sweaty palm on the side of my jean shorts, holding it out to her. “Nice to meet you,” I say with a cheesy grin.
“Lovely to meet you as well Abigail,” She swats my hand away and gestures for me to come in for a hug. “We don’t do none of that formal greetin’ around here.”
Warmth spreads through my core, and for a second, I let myself relish in this moment, this feeling of coziness, family, and security. It’s the opposite of how my parents made me feel when I came home to see them—at least for the last 10 years.
“I’m Nora by the way, but call me Grammy. That’s how I’m known around here. Now how did these boys drag you along to their cowboy shenanigans?”
I laughed politely which came naturally because I didn’t know if I was nervous or not.
“Grammy, I begged Dad to ask her,” Bodie said.
Colt’s mother looks down. “I bet you did, a man of persuasion. Just like your daddy.”
She gives a loving smile to Colt. One that says, I know you, inside and out, flaws and all but I love you anyway.
“Do you plan on ridin’ those horses too Abigail?”
I felt Colts' gaze burn through me. I knew he was checking me out. I was wearing tight jean shorts and a white tank top, a blue open-buttoned plaid long-sleeved shirt, and white tennis shoes to match.
“Oh, no, I never have, so it probably would be a good idea to sit this one out.”
“Lovely, we can sip on some sweet tea and talk girl talk, which is code for gossip. I love me some good ol’ fashion gossip.”
“Momma, don’t scare her now,” Colt says.
“Boy, you know I’m teasing. You boys go on and get those horses some exercise. Lord knows they look at me like I ain’t nothing but the old bones with food.”
“Grammy, I wanted to show Abigail my horse and how he’s the coolest thing ever!”
“And you can. Why don’t you go get him ready and wear him out a bit so that when he meets Miss Abigail, he will be nice and calm? How does that sound? And by then, you’ll be hungry for some food, too.”
“Okay, Grammy.” Bodie’s boyish voice melts my heart.