I tried to subtly block her from entering the kitchen so I could corral her outside for whatever this conversation was, but she breezed past me, into the kitchen, and poured herself a cup of the coffee I’d made.
“Doesn’t mean you can’t answer your phone when your mother calls. Hello, Nora,” she said without turning around.
I glanced over at the table—Nora looked a little nervous, and Tru looked extremely interested.
“I’m taking you to lunch,” Mom said. “You can bring your radio if you must.”
“I still can’t just leave in the middle of my shift. We’ve got a debrief to do, I’ll call you when I’m off.”
Mom clucked her tongue. “Listen, the wedding’s in three days, and you know Anna will be devastated if you show up alone and ruin the place settings. I’ve spoken to Theresa’s parents, and we thought you two could go for dinner tomorrow night—she knows about the wedding, and I’m sure she’s interested in attending with you.”
“Mom,” I said, and I sounded exhausted even to my own ears. “We’ve had this conversation.”
“So you’ll ask her to the wedding?” Mom asked.
Tru snorted a laugh from the table, and then attempted to cover it with a cough.
Mom glanced over her shoulder at the noise, and then turned around. With her coffee mug in hand, she fixed her sharp blue eyes on Tru.
“Oh, pardon my rudeness,” she said, but the way she looked at Tru, with his pierced ears, pretty face, and tight clothes, made it clear she didn’t think she was the rude one. “I’m Heather, Beau’s mother.”
Tru stood up smoothly, tucked his chair in—an action that honestly didn’t seem quite like him—and walked over to where we were both standing. He offered his hand to shake.
“I’m Tanner,” he said with a bright, charming smile that crinkled his nose and revealed delicate crow’s feet at the corners of his eyes. “I’m Beau’s boyfriend, so you don’t have to worry about the wedding. He’s already asked me.”
Mom froze and nearly dropped her coffee.
Tru’s bright smile didn’t fade at all as he sidled up next to me and slipped his arm around my waist. It was an easy, familiar gesture, and the press of his lithe body against mine sent a thrill of desire through me.
Fuck.
At the table, Nora was watching wide-eyed, with an open grin on her face.
Tru turned his head toward mine and batted his eyelashes. This close it’d be easy to kiss him. I almost wondered if he was going to do that. In front of my mother. As part of the act.
“Come on,” Tru said playfully. “You didn’t tell your mom about me?”
I winced. “I…”
“Beau,” Mom said a little warningly. “You’ve been hiding a boyfriend from us?”
She was still eyeing Tru, a little judgmental, but also a little curious.
“I wasn’t hiding,” I said automatically. “It just, uh, never came up.”
At my waist, Tru’s fingers drummed happily against me. Like he was thrilled that I was going along with the game.
“Beau’s had a lot on his plate recently,” Tru said. “I, for one, have been dying to meet you. He’s told me so much. But he didn’t tell me how beautiful you were. And what a great suit that is.”
Mom flushed and patted at her hair, smoothing away all the flyaways that weren’t there. Trust Tru to figure out the way to Mom’s heart in an instant. She couldn’t resist a little bit of flattery.
“Well,” she said. “I’ve got to say, this is quite the oversight from you, Beau. And so close to the wedding date?”
“It’s been busy at work,” I said. “Time’s just gotten away from me.”
Mom clicked her tongue again. “You’d forget the date of the wedding if you didn’t have me to remind you.” She smiled coolly at Tanner. “Do you mind if I steal Beau for a chat in private?”
“Not at all,” Tru said, stepping aside with a little flourishing wave.
Mom tucked her hand into the crook of my arm and nearly dragged me into my office. She toed the door closed behind us, and then pinned me with a severe look I’d gotten very familiar with over the years.
“You have a boyfriend?” Mom asked in a low whisper. “How long has this been going on? Why didn’t you tell us? And you’re planning to bring him to Anna’s wedding? Why he hasn’t even met anyone in the family?” She huffed. “And when he looks like that? Don’t think I didn’t notice all those piercings. And the jacket. Is he one of those bikers I always see in Elkin Lake?”
She ended her tirade with her lips pressed into a thin, hard line, and she looked like she had a lot more to scold me over, but wanted to hear what I had to say for myself first. It made sense for me to deny it, and tell her that Tru was just goofing off and trying to get under my skin. It was my first impulse, too. I was used to smoothing over things with Mom, placating her fiery reactions when she was dissatisfied with me. She’d given me so much growing up—a good home, a lot of freedom, and even helped me and Nora when we needed it most. If I couldn’t make her proud, the least I could do as her son was try to keep her content.
But I was also shocked by the vitriol of her reaction. What was it about Tru that made her so annoyed? I had a feeling it wasn’t just the piercings. Was it his ratty jacket? His playful, almost effeminate mannerisms? Or—my stomach turned—the fact that he wasn’t white? The thought made me want to defend Tru, who she’d spoken to for maybe thirty seconds and was now talking about like she had him all figured out.
With someone like Tru, that wasn’t possible.
“We’ve been together a few months,” I said, and I almost couldn’t believe the words even as I said them. But seeing the shocked expression on Mom’s face made it feel like it was worth it. “I like him, and I want to introduce him to the family.”
“This is Anna’s wedding day,” Mom said curtly. “It’s not about you, and it’s not the time for you to bring someone new to meet everyone.”
Frustration flared in my chest. “Oh, but it’s okay if I do that if it’s a woman?” I asked.
Mom rolled her eyes. “You know that’s not what I meant.”
“What did you mean, then?” I asked. “If I brought Theresa, it’d be the same thing. A new face in attendance at Anna’s big day.”
“Theresa’s a lovely girl,” Mom said. “She’d fit in at the wedding. Now, Tanner…”
“What about him?” I asked with a slight scowl.
“He won’t fit in,” Mom said sharply. “The entire family will be there, not to mention plenty of our friends. It’s not a good setting for them to meet someone like Tanner. It’ll cause a stir.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. I loved Mom, but as I’d grown up, our values had diverged. My grandmother, Mom’s mother, was down to earth, and had worked as a nurse until she’d met my grandfather and married into his wealth. But Mom had been raised wealthy, and then she met my father, a lawyer, soon after she graduated high school.
She’d never had to work much in her life, and she still struggled to understand why I would choose to work when I could just live off the family wealth and a few well-decided investments for the rest of my life. Or, if I was going to work, she thought I should at least go into a field with real prestige, like practicing law, or getting a medical degree. Even though I was the chief of Elkin Lake South, I knew Mom still partially thought I was ‘slumming it’ with the working class. She certainly didn’t like the risk involved, either.