Page 60 of Tasting Innocence
I grin. “Yes.”
She laughs. “Tell me what happened.”
I let out a dramatic sigh. “Okay, but don’t freak out.”
“When do I ever freak out?”
I give her a look that says, you really want me to answer that? She waves me off.
Staring into my bag of chips, I say, “Me and Dex started hanging out recently.”
Mom doesn’t respond right away, so I chance a glance up at her and watch her blink at me. Finally, she opens her mouth. “Hanging out?”
“You know.”
“Are you saying you and Dex are dating?” she asks, bewildered.
I shrug. “Kind of. It’s new and we haven’t really gone out anywhere, because we needed to talk to Zo first.”
Mom shifts in her seat and rubs a hand over her blond/gray hair. “Okay. Wow. Well, let’s come back to that, but I’m assuming Lorenzo found out tonight?”
“Yeah,” I answer softly. “But Mom, he was so mean about it. He talked so badly about Dex, and acted like he had some sort of control over my life.”
She sighs. “Do you want me to talk to him?”
“No!” I nearly yell, making her jump back. “Sorry. No, it wouldn’t help things. Dex thinks we should give him some time before trying to talk to him again.”
“Sounds like a good idea.”
“But I don’t know when I’ll be ready to talk to him again. He’s my brother, not my dad, and Dad wouldn’t even act that way. He was insane. He said Dex wasn’t family, and while I know that’s technically right, Dex looks at Zo like a brother. You know he doesn’t really have anyone at home.”
Mom’s lips draw down into a frown. “I know, baby, but consider how Lorenzo feels. If Dex is like his brother, and he’s dating you behind his back, he probably has some feelings about it.”
“But Dex isn’t like my brother. He was more friends with Zo than me. Yeah, we know each other, and have been friends, but it’s not like we spent a ton of time together. Not like them. It’s not weird, Mom.”
“I didn’t say it was,” she replies calmly. “Look, he doesn’t control who you get to date, but he probably would’ve appreciated a heads up.”
I roll my eyes. “He doesn’t think Dex is good enough for me.”
“He’ll never think anyone is good enough for you.”
“Dex is a good guy, Mom. You know that, right?”
She smiles at me. “I do know. I love Dex. He’s a sweet kid and I think if you like him, that’s great. I just don’t want it to cause any problems between you three.”
“I’ll talk to him,” I say on a sigh. “But can we talk about Dex?” I ask with a smile.
Mom pats the stool next to her with a grin on her face. “Come on. Tell me how this started.”
I open up and tell her when I started crushing on Dex, and then without going into details about kissing and touching, I tell her about the night at the cabin, and then our time at the motel and how we finally talked about how we felt.
“He’s liked me for a little while, too, Mom. Neither of us knew how the other one felt and then there’s Renzo to worry about, but we really like each other. He’s so much more than I thought. I know he gets a bad rep, and while I know he’s not perfect, he’s actually really sweet and considerate. And I feel so bad for him being alone all the time. His mom left and his dad doesn’t show any interest in his life. People think because he’s rich that he has this perfect life, but I’ve seen a glimpse behind the curtains, and he deserves so much more than he gets. I love making him smile and laugh. His eyes twinkle when we’re together, and I have constant butterflies. He’s just soo…” I sigh. “He’s great, Mom.”
She laughs. “Sounds like you’re smitten.”
“I wish Renzo could understand.”
“Give it time, baby.”