Chapter 25 - Rosalie
ROSALIE
When I finally get done with Avery, it’s lunchtime, so I step out to my car for some privacy.
Logan called and texted while I was meeting with my boss, but my phone was in my purse on “Do Not Disturb,” so I didn’t see them until a minute ago.
I give his messages a quick scan before calling him back.
Logan: Do you have a minute to call me?
Logan: It’s been an hour, so I’m taking that as a no.
Logan: Just got off a call with my publicist. He said your boss planned to meet with you this morning, so I’m guessing that’s what you’re doing now.
I know this isn’t ideal, but it’ll be okay, Rosie.
I promise whatever happens, we’ll handle it together.
Don’t forget to breathe, and call me when you’re done.
Side note: those pictures are hot AF. I may have to use them for inspiration later…
I let out a quiet chuckle as I hit the call button. Only Logan Edwards can soothe my nerves and set me on fire in the same breath.
“Are you taking deep breaths?” he asks in lieu of a greeting.
“I’m trying.” I smile. “I’ve spent the last two hours getting grilled by Avery, so that’s easier said than done. You know I love her, but the woman’s intense when she’s in crisis management mode. It’s weird being on this side of things.”
“I bet.” Someone murmurs in the background. “Hold on a sec.” There’s complete silence on the other end, so I’m guessing he pressed the mute button. He’s only gone for about twenty seconds before he returns. “Sorry about that.” He clears his throat. “That was…uh, Ryan. He had a quick question.”
“What are we gonna do, Logan?” I groan, rubbing my temples as my brother’s name leaves his mouth. “We have to tell them before they see one of those headlines.”
“Breathe, Pip,” he reminds me. “We were going to tell them anyway. This just speeds up the timeline a little bit.”
“I know.” I sigh. “And I feel ready with my parents and stuff. I do. But Ryan…”
“I’ll tell Ryan,” Logan offers. “There’s no getting around it.
He’s going to be upset we lied to him. I sure as hell would be, if the roles were reversed.
But unless you really want to be present, I think me having a talk with him is the right thing to do.
Truthfully, it’s long overdue. I want to make sure he understands how serious this is.
How I’d go out of my way to avoid hurting you.
When Ryan walks away from our talk, he’ll undoubtedly understand how vital you are to me. ”
I smile. “You’re pretty vital to me too, Edwards.”
“I’d better be,” he jokes.
“Ass,” I tease.
A notification pings on my phone, so I pull it away from my ear to see who’s texting me.
Mom: Rosa, honey, I just saw something interesting online. CALL YOUR MOTHER.
“Fuck my life,” I mutter.
“What?” Logan asks.
“My mom just texted me.” I breathe in, and then out. “I’m pretty sure Dr. Tate is in the know.”
“Damn, that didn’t take long.”
“No, it did not.” I pinch the bridge of my nose.
“Call her. I’m going to find Ry and see if he wants to grab drinks after work. Let me know how it goes with the good doctor.”
“Oh, I will,” I grumble facetiously. “I’m sure it’ll be a super fun time.”
He laughs. “Baby, if your mom’s involved, it’ll definitely be something.”
“Don’t remind me.” I roll my eyes.
“I’m sure you’ll be fine. Call me back when you’re done if you need to.”
“Okay.” I sigh. “Bye, Logan.”
“Bye, Pip.”
I close my eyes, count to ten, and give myself a little pep talk before dialing my mom’s number.
“Hello, sweetheart,” she answers on the first ring. “It’s nice to hear from you in the middle of the day.”
“You told me to call you,” I remind her. “In shouty caps.”
“Who knew caps lock could be so effective?” She giggles. “I should’ve tried that years ago. Maybe my children would visit me more often.”
“Mother, we see you all the time,” I insist. “Well, as often as we can for two adults who work a ton of hours.”
“Well, it’s not often enough if you ask me. Same goes for Logan. Speaking of…”
“Here we go…” I mumble to myself.
“I don’t mean to pry, but… Oh, who am I kidding? Of course, I do. I’ve been waiting for this moment for years.”
I squeeze my eyes shut. “Rip off the Band-Aid, Mom. What exactly did you see online?”
“There’s no need to be so dramatic, Rosalie.”
Ha! Who does she think I got it from?
“Mother, please just spit it out.”
“Well, you know I don’t usually pay attention to those gossip sites.”
Sure you don’t.
“They’re so frustrating,” she continues. “You can’t scroll down the page to read an article without accidentally clicking on a damn ad. And sometimes, you can’t close out of the ad and go back to the article. So, you don’t even get to finish reading it, and it was all for nothing!”
“That’s why it’s called clickbait, Mother,” I inform her. “Get back to what you were saying. I feel like there was a ‘but’ coming. You don’t normally pay attention to those gossip sites, but…?”
“But I happened to come across an interesting headline with Logan’s name on it. Of course I had to read what it was about.”
“Of course.” I roll my eyes.
“And then, imagine my surprise when I see a picture of him kissing a woman who looks exactly like my daughter! But then I thought, there’s no way that could be Rosalie because if she and Logan were dating, surely she would’ve told me.”
“Uh-huh…”
I sigh and make a ‘hurry up’ motion as she continues her guilt trip.
My mom goes on and on about how we don’t keep secrets in this family, pointing out how she’s always raised us to be open and honest with each other, no matter how uncomfortable a conversation may be.
When she starts citing examples from when she gave me the talk, I can’t take it anymore.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. It’s me, Mom! That’s me kissing Logan in the picture.”
She gasps. “I knew it! Oh, honey, that’s wonderful! I’m so happy you’ve finally put that boy out of his misery. He’s had it bad for you since you were kids. He was so heartbroken when you and Julian got engaged.”
“What the hell? Was I the only person who didn’t see it?”
“Oh, come on, Rosa. You’d have to be blind to miss it.
I’m shocked it’s taken you this long to come together.
Logan’s not the only one who’s been carrying a torch all these years.
In high school, you both constantly watched each other.
Your bodies would naturally gravitate toward one another whenever you were in the same room.
Hell, you still do both of those things.
“You two have gotten better at schooling your facial expressions, but back then, you smiled at him like he hung the moon, and he gazed at you like you were a living fantasy. Do you think I didn’t know about all those nights you two spent getting frisky up in the treehouse?
I never understood why you started dating that quarterback, but I figured you had to make your own mistakes in life to learn from them, so I kept my lips sealed. ”
I blink rapidly, processing everything she just told me. “I… Wha… How… We were just talking in the treehouse.”
“Well, that’s disappointing.” She chuckles. “I knew you weren’t having sex. I would’ve put you on birth control a lot sooner if I suspected it. But I thought for sure there was at least some kissing involved.”
“Nope.” I shake my head, even though she can’t see me. “No kissing.”
“Hmm. That’s too bad. But anyway, I’m happy for you, Rosalie. You deserve someone who sees the real you and loves you for exactly who you are. So does Logan.”
Warmth spreads through my chest, filling me with a quiet reassurance.
“Thanks, Mom.”
Her voice softens. “Does he make you happy? Genuinely happy?”
It’s the easiest question I’ve ever had to answer.
“Happier than I’ve ever been in my life. More than I thought possible.”
“Then that’s all that matters.” I can tell she’s smiling.
For a brief moment, I allow myself to find comfort in her words. I take a few deep breaths, feeling my muscles relax through each exhale.
“Well, the sex matters, too,” she adds, “but based on those photos, I’m assuming you have no trouble in that department.
Is he keeping you sexually satisfied, sweetheart?
Does he pay attention to multiple erogenous zones like any self-respecting man should?
Because if not, we will be having words.
How many orgasms does he deliver on average before seeking his own? ”
My jaw drops. “Mother!”
“What? They’re valid questions. When did the sex part first happen, by the way? Ooh, I’m sure my listeners would love to hear all about how you two finally got together.”
“I am not discussing my sex life on your podcast, Mom. Ever. In fact, I’m not discussing my sex life with you at all, so get that idea out of your head right now.”
“Fine,” she huffs. “Just give me a rating. Would you say you’re highly satisfied, satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat unsatisfied, or unsatisfied?”
What does she think this is? A customer service survey?
“Boundaries, Mother. We’ve discussed this. Many, many times. You must respect them.”
“I didn’t hear a rating,” she singsongs.
Christ on a cracker, I’m going to scream.
“I’m hanging up now, Mom. You can tell Dad, but no one else until we tell Ryan. Good—”
“Wait, one last thing!”
I bang the back of my head against the headrest. “What?”
“What’s your favorite position together?”
“Oh my god. Mother, stop.”
“Any compatible kinks? What’s the freakiest thing you two have done so far?”
Is it possible to divorce your parents at age twenty-seven? If so, I want in.
“Mom, staaaaahhhhp,” I groan. “Please.”
“Okay, okay. I swear this is the last question. Does he have the equipment to keep you satisfied? Because I could tell Julian wasn’t up to par, honey.
I have a sixth sense about these things, and I don’t want that for you.
People can say size doesn’t matter all they want, but who are they kidding?
Of course, it matters! Thankfully, I’ve never had to worry about that with your father.
If anything, his size may have been a bit intimidating at first… ”
I slam my hand on the wheel, accidentally making the horn blare. “STOP.”
“Oh, Rosalie, grow up,” Mom scoffs. “If you’d let me finish, all I was trying to say was, if your brother takes after your dad, which I suspect he does based on their similar builds, he’s going to make some woman very happy one day.”
This woman is straight-up unhinged. Unhinged, I tell you!
“MOM! Logan is like a son to you, and Ryan is your actual son. And I understand Dad is your husband, but he’s my dad! Their penises should never, ever be a topic of discussion between us!”
She laughs. “Rosalie, how many times do I have to say this? Consensual sex is a beautiful part of life, and the more open we are to receiving it, the more fulfilled our lives will be. There is nothing shameful about it. If you’re not exploring all there is to offer with an open mind, you’re robbing yourself of great satisfaction.
“Besides, this is what I do for a living, and I’ve had great success with it. Sex—and sexual organs—are perfectly natural. It’s not like I was asking for pictures or measurements. Believe it or not, I do understand where the line is. But if we’re just talking? Very few topics are off-limits.”
“Well, this is one of them,” I argue. “This topic is off-limits!”
She sighs dramatically. “Fine. But you’re only hurting yourself if you’re not willing to open up, Rosa.”
“I’ll take that risk.” I scrub a hand down my face. “Can I hang up now?”
“One last thing. I promise it’s not a question.”
I clench my teeth. “What.”
“Tell Logan he has my blessing, and I’m sure your father will feel the same. I know he doesn’t need our approval, but I wanted to share.”
Despite the insanity of this conversation, I smile. “I’ll tell him.”
“Oh! And I’ll put together one of my special boxes for you two. I just got in a delightful new vibrating cock ring I think you’ll like.”
Dear. God.
One of my mother’s favorite perks of being a well-known sex therapist is the free samples.
Sex toy companies from across the globe are constantly sending her new products to try, hoping she’ll give them a marketing plug on-air.
If she really likes something, she buys it in bulk and adds it to her special boxes.
My mom still offers therapy outside of her podcast, and every new client receives a box as a welcome to her practice.
It’s sort of like a “welcome to the neighborhood” basket, but with dildos and flavored lube. According to her, they’re a big hit.
Sylvie is never, ever going to let me live this down.
“That’s really not necessary, Mother,” I grumble.
“Oh, nonsense. I insist. You know what I always say…your pleasure is my pleasure.”
Awesome. She’s officially figured out a way to include her branding tagline into everyday conversation.
Kill me now.
We say our goodbyes, and after hanging up, I think about what she said about how Logan and I acted around each other in high school.
Were we really that obvious? If so, why couldn’t we ever see it in each other?
And did my engagement truly break his heart?
Ugh, my chest hurts just thinking about it.
I’m quite familiar with that feeling because a little part of me felt it every time I saw him with a beautiful new woman on his arm.
God, all those wasted years.
I take a deep breath, resolving to make the most of every moment we have now.
Logan’s going to tell my brother about us tonight, and then we’ll be free to be together publicly.
The tabloid assholes may have tossed a wrench in our plan, but I’m confident in Avery and Nick’s ability to counteract them.
Whatever life throws at us, Logan and I are going to tackle it together.