Chapter 37
CHAPTER
THIRTY-SEVEN
ANNIE
The reception area of Luca's office is silent when I enter but after a moment I can hear a hint of my mom's chatterbox voice floating out from behind the closed door of Luca's office. I rush to the door and bang on the wood with my fist to get her attention.
"What the hell?" Luca rips the door open seconds later, staring at me in bewilderment. "Seriously? You really are your mother's daughter." He shakes his head, muttering something about impatience under his breath.
I barely pay him any attention. I scan the room until my eyes land on my mom perched casually on the edge of Luca's desk. Her cheeks turn pink as she stands up and smooths a hand down her electric blue skirt. She's embarrassed enough to be caught being so familiar in her boss' office that she must forget she's supposed to be furious at me right now about the grandparents thing.
Good .
I brush past Luca into the office and fling myself into my mom's arms. I desperately need to be comforted before I have any hope of telling her what happened.
"What's wrong?" she asks, her voice high-pitched and frantic as she squeezes me so tightly I can't breathe. "What happened?"
I bury my face against her shoulder. I'm probably ruining her soft sweater with my tears but I know my mom would never say a word about that. As much as she loves her clothes, she always loves me more.
"You're freaking me out, kid. What's going on?" Her hands rub soothing circles across my back.
I manage to gather myself enough to ask, "Do you remember that professor of mine that we ran into at the gas station?" If only I told her the whole truth about him then, telling her the whole story now would be so much easier.
"The creepy professor that tried to hit on you when you wanted help to improve your work?" My mom pulls away just enough to look at me, forcing me to meet her eyes. Her eyebrows knit together with worry as she frowns, already starting to draw her own conclusions.
I nod solemnly. "He's been trying to pressure me into being physical with him by lying about how I've been doing in his class. He made me think I was in danger of failing so that he could proposition me."
"I'll kill him!" She releases me, pivoting toward the door like she intends to do so right now.
"Woah, woah." Luca stops her before she makes it very far. "There are better ways to handle this kind of thing without going to jail for assault," he warns her. His level-headed response seems to instantly cool her down. "Let your daughter get everything out and then we can make a plan," he continues. "If we need to go after the college, I can help. I want to help, okay?" He directs the last part toward me.
"We don't have to go after the college. Not yet, at least." I take a deep breath and fill in the rest of the gaps in my story the best I can. Luca seems dumbfounded when I mention Miles' involvement.
Luca shakes his head. "I swear every time I think that little shithead is hopeless, he goes and does something noble."
"Don't talk badly about your nephew after he just helped save my kid." My mom reaches out and smacks Luca's arm.
"Didn't you just tell me this morning that Miles?—"
"Lalalala!" Mom puts her fingers in her ears and turns away from him. She looks childish but her efforts are not in vain because he cuts himself off sharply.
Luca has gotten comfortable with my mom's antics. I have a gut feeling that her move to Luca's house is going to wind up being more permanent than intended. I would be surprised if they aren't already sharing a bedroom at the house. After all, Miles and I fell prey all too easily to the forced proximity trope once we were sharing a home.
My mom turns her attention squarely back to me and studies me in silence for so long that I uncomfortably shift from one foot to the other.
"Did the college say what they plan to do about the news spreading about what happened with you? Because I appreciate that the dean reassured you the professor won't step foot back on campus but we all know that people talk. Especially if this guy was as well-liked as you say. The rumors could really impact the rest of your time on campus if the narrative gets warped." My mom chews at the inside of her mouth as she gets a faraway look in her eyes.
I considered the possibility too. I shrug helplessly. "The dean said the college president's office gets to decide what statement they put out. He said he would do his best to make sure the statement doesn't harm my reputation or the other students in any way."
"I don't like that." Mom crosses her arms over her chest.
Luca shakes his head. "I don't either. The college is going to prioritize its PR over the reputation of two students. Their statement is likely going to say very little and leave a lot up to speculation. They won't name you or the other woman but that won't protect either of you for long."
I feel so helpless. "I don't think there's much we can do. People are going to talk and assume whatever they want."
"Not if we get a head start on the court of public opinion." Mom stares down at her nails as she picks at them. I can tell her brain is going a mile a minute because the energy practically radiates off of her. I'm just not exactly sure where her head is at.
"How would you do that?" Luca asks, squinting at her in confusion.
Mom purses her lips and blows out a huge burst of air that leaves her looking deflated. I can't remember the last time she seemed this reluctant to spit out words when talking is her favorite activity.
"Do you have anywhere you need to be right now, Annie?" she finally asks.
I shake my head.
"Good. Let's take a drive." She ushers me to follow her as she marches out of Luca's office and straight to her own. I watch in confusion as she pulls open a drawer to retrieve her purse and the keys to the Jeep. She throws the keys to me as she says, "You have to drive, though... just in case I start hyper-ventilating."
"Should I be worried?" Luca asks, hanging back in the doorway. "Where are you planning to go?"
My mom takes a deep breath and looks from Luca to me. "We're going home ." She shudders, and I realize she's not talking about Luca's place, the motel, or the site of her former bed and breakfast. She feigns cheerfulness as she walks backward toward the front door. "After all, no one knows how to ride the wave of public opinion quite like a Kirkpatrick."
"Are you sure you want to do this?" I ask my mom as she stares up at the house through the front windshield of the Jeep. Her hand is on the passenger side door handle but we've been sitting here for nearly five minutes and she hasn't gotten out yet.
"They know we're here," she murmurs.
Yeah... I wouldn't be surprised if my grandmother is watching us from the front windows already. "We could leave anyway," I still offer though. I prefer to stick to good manners whenever possible but I would make an exception for my mom's comfort. I can tell this choice is weighing heavily on her already. She looks two sizes smaller than normal, curling in on herself.
"No." She takes a deep breath that seems to breathe life back into her whole body. She expands back to normal size. "I want to do this. They can help you in a way no one else can right now." She looks over at me with sad eyes. "I think the time has come. Just pray to Betty White and tacos that I don't live to regret this or I might start considering a second kid so I can disappoint my parents all over again."
"Mom!"
"Sorry." She snorts a laugh. "I mean you did ask me to give you a little sister once..."
"When I was seven!" I didn't know what I was saying. My best friend at school had siblings and so I wanted them too until I got old enough to realize how messy little siblings could be. Jokingly I tell her, "Why would you ever want to start over when you did so well with me the first go around?"
Mom leans over to ruffle my hair. "I wouldn't dare. With my luck, the next kid would turn out just like me." She shudders. Even she is realistic enough to recognize that two of her would only terrorize the world.
We share a laugh that slowly fades out, leaving us sitting in the Jeep in silence.
"Okay I just need one thing and then I'll be ready." My mom looks me in the eyes with determination shining in her expression. "A lady should always paint herself for battle." She reaches for the glove compartment and rifles through the odds assortment of things inside until she withdraws dramatic red lipstick.
No wonder there's a sparkle in her eye. I'm pretty sure that lipstick is named Harlot Red . My mom might not be a teenager anymore but she can still pull off Olympic-level rebellion.
"I like it," I tell her honestly.
She looks good with a red lip, regardless of what her parents are going to think. If they turn up their nose at her over her makeup, there's no place for us here anyway.
I let her exit the Jeep first, giving her a second alone before I climb out to join her on the trek toward the front door. She drags her feet, heels catching on the stone path. If she's not careful, she's going to ruin her second favorite pair of cheetah print pumps.
Like last time, my grandmother appears in the doorway before we've even reached the door, one hand on the handle and the other clasping the pearls around her neck. She glances at me with a tentative smile before giving her attention to my mom.
"I'll bet you need a drink," she says in place of a greeting.
Mom nods enthusiastically. "Two or three, probably."
We're ushered in gracefully and guided once again to the front room with the cream couch I'm almost too afraid to sit on. My mom doesn't seem to have the same problem. She sits neatly on the sofa and crosses her ankles in a way I've never seen her do. I know she did all the etiquette stuff as a kid. That training seems to kick in as soon as she steps foot in her childhood home.
"Your father isn't here, unfortunately. He's mentoring a young lawyer at his old practice."
Mom's answering laugh sounds hollow and forced. "Of course, he couldn't just retire like a normal person."
"Oh, he is retired," my grandmother tries to correct her.
"But not like a normal person," Mom argues. "Normal people don't go back to work once they leave." She smiles toothily up at her mother as she brings a mixed drink over to her. The concoction is clear and a little bubbly. I don't know enough about alcohol to know what's in the drink but Mom downs the whole glass in one go and I'm pretty sure that's not standard.
My grandmother makes a disapproving sound from the back of her throat before turning away to retrieve a sparkling water from the mini-fridge that she returns with to hand to me.
She takes a seat across from us before nodding to Mom's empty glass. "I'll be happy to mix you a second drink if you'd like, just as soon as you let me apologize. I'd like to do so while you're sober so I know you can hear me." She smiles tightly.
"I'm going to listen to your apology on one condition." Mom reaches over to set her empty glass down on a coaster on the side table. "Annie and I need a favor."
"Anything." My grandmother leans forward toward us, eyes widening slightly.
Mom swallows so hard that I can hear her gulp clearly. "Annie has always been a Kirkpatrick... but now she needs to actually use the name. How much social capital do you have around the college?"
"At Annie's college?" My grandmother smiles mischievously. "Your father plays golf with the president and many of our friends have children or grandchildren there. So long as you aren't about to ask me to have anyone killed, I think we can arrange to handle whatever you need." She looks at me. "You're the Kirkpatrick legacy, after all."