I’m too focused on adjusting my erection in my sweats to call her out on it.
“We weren’t…we were just…it’s not.” Iris grapples for a justification.
Mom holds up a hand, trying to hide her very pleased smile. “No need to explain yourself, Iris. You’re both adults.” Her eyes swing to me. “I apologize for showing up unannounced, but my son here seems to have forgotten how to answer his phone. After four days of him ignoring me, I got worried.” She pauses to shoot a glare my way.
“It’s no problem, Mrs. Kingston. I got all sweaty. I need to grab a quick shower.” Iris pinches her spandex yoga top away from her damp skin. “So I’ll let you two catch up.” She darts up the stairs, and I have to hold in my laughter. Her discomfort is adorable.
When Iris is out of sight, my mom whispers, waggling her eyebrows. “She got all sweaty, huh?”
I groan, scraping my palm down my face. “Christ, Mom! No. Please don’t.”
She laughs heartily. “Oh lighten up! I know how these things work.”
“I’d rather not hear about that,” I grumble.
Unsure what my mom might say next, I lead her into the kitchen and hopefully out of my blushing roommate’s earshot. I don’t want my mother embarrassing Iris any further. Or traumatizing me permanently with stories about her sexual history.
I sling an arm around her shoulder and drop a kiss in her blonde hair. Being off the grid has been nice, but I should have known better than to leave my Mom’s calls unanswered. “Sorry to worry you, Ma.”
She lifts the bag swinging from her arm. “Well, I brought some of my famous lasagna. Have lunch with me and you’re forgiven.”
I drop down into a chair at the breakfast nook, needing the rest after my back-to-back workout sessions. My mother rummages around the cupboards until she finds what she needs. She sets a heaping plate of lasagna in front of me before taking a seat with her own plate.
“So…you still trying to deny there’s something brewing between you and Iris?”
I shake my head fervently. “No, it’s not like that,” I promise between bites of pasta.
“Well, why not? She’s gorgeous, delightful, and she has a good head on her shoulders.”
Oh, God. She’s about to jump into another one of her talks. “Mom, no. Don’t get your hopes up here. I have no interest in her like that. And she’s not interested in me. We’re just…friends. Barely.”
My mother’s shoulders drop in resignation. “Okay, okay. I’ll step back, and mind my own business.”
Grateful that Ma is relenting, my shoulders relax. “Where’s Callie Bear today?”
The subject of her granddaughter brings an instant smile to my mother’s face. “At kiddie yoga with her Papa.”
I laugh to myself. Growing up, I never expected Dad to be the kind of man who’d end up taking his grandkid to kiddie yoga. “He adores her, doesn’t he?” I scoop up some more lasagna.
“Callie’s an easy kid to love.”
“You and dad are doing an excellent job with her.”
“We’re trying,” she says with a little shrug. “But we’re getting older. Your Dad has finally retired but my health hasn’t been great. It’s difficult for me, keeping up with her energy.”
I guess I never considered how much caring for a child must be taking out of my parents. They’re not getting any younger. I reach across the table to hold her hands. “Look—if you need anything, just let me know. I’d be happy to help you out any way I can.”
My mom shakes her head. “I just don’t understand how Gabby could just walk away from her child when she needed her most.” Eli’s wife up and left as soon as he got arrested and we’ve barely heard from her since.
“Not all mothers were wired like you, Mom.”
Her eyes remain on her plate as she pushes her lasagna around. “Eli won’t talk about her. He won’t talk about anything, actually.”
My brow jerks up in surprise. “Eli? When did you talk to Eli?”
My mother looks up and nervously licks her bottom lip. “Your father and I…we’ve been going to visit him. Once a month,” she confesses.
I tilt my head to the side as I fill in the blanks. “Cannon and Walker don’t know about this, do they?” I’m sure they don’t. They would have mentioned something to me.
“They think your father and I have a monthly standing date. So they don’t question it when we ask one of them to babysit and disappear for a few hours.”
I lean across the table to catch her eyes. “Mom, why would you hide something like this? It makes no sense.”
Her stare glazes over. “I know that you and your brothers are angry over what Eli did. Especially Walker. I didn’t want to stir up any arguments.” She pins me with a determined look. “But regardless of what Eli did, he’s still our blood and us Kingstons, we take care of each other.”
And now here’s yet another wave of guilt. I haven’t been there for my brother in a time when, undoubtedly, he needs me. “You’re right, Ma. You’re right.”
We spend a few more minutes making small talk. When we’re done eating, I thank her for lunch and walk her out, but my head is spinning as we pass through the living room.
My eyes flick toward the spot I was laying on the floor with my roommate an hour ago. It felt right, having Iris right there beside me, offering support in her own way.
Anybody else would have believed me when I said I was okay, that I didn’t need help. They would have believed my brash smile. But not Iris. She saw my truth. She accepted it. Even though it wasn’t pretty. And most importantly, she didn’t hesitate to step in and help.
Having to lay there and appear unaffected while this woman put her soft hands on my body and wiggled around in those tight ass pants. Her skin glistened, and my eyes followed more than one bead of
