18. Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Eighteen
Eliza
Bzz. Bzz.
I’ve been editing family portraits for hours. So the sound of my phone buzzing on the desk is a welcome distraction. I swoop it up, seeing my mom’s picture lighting up the screen.
“Hey, Mom,” I greet her.
“Hey,” she says in a bright tone. “So I was just calling because Dad and I talked about Thanksgiving this year, and we’re having a change of plans.”
“Oh?” I raise a brow, glancing up at the calendar. “I thought Granny and I were flying out the Tuesday before.”
“Well, I know, but your dad and I have decided that we’d rather come to you this year. It’s been a while since your father’s been back to his hometown, and we think it would be good to visit. Granny’s getting older too.”
I nod, a spur of excitement hitting me in the chest. I like the idea of staying right here in West Falls for the holidays. “So, we can have a huge Thanksgiving dinner here?”
“Yeah, and we were thinking of just making a road trip out of it.”
“Are you sure? It’s about an eight-hour drive—”
“I know, but it sounds like fun for us,” she adds with a laugh.
“If that’s what you consider fun,” I mutter, cringing at the thought. “I don’t think road trips are my thing. The seven-hour drive to get here from Chicago was good enough for me.”
“Yeah, but Granny says that you’re really thriving there. And I’ve been following your photography account. It looks like you’ve gotten even more clients since the last time we talked.”
It’s true. I have been thriving here, and I’m honestly falling in love with West Falls. This place is charming and the people are so warm and welcoming.
I don’t even miss Chicago.
“I have, and my schedule is filling up with last minute holiday pictures. I think I’ve started developing a good reputation around the town.”
“And you’re making friends,” Mom says, her tone shifting ever so slightly. “I saw the shoot you did with Vanessa—that’s her name, right?”
“Yeah, she’s crazy photogenic.” I beam, thinking of the shoot we did right off Main Street. “I think the fall backdrop made for some nice pictures. I swear she could be a model.”
“You know, you could be a model, too. You’ve always been photogenic.”
I roll my eyes. “Okay, Mom. I think you’re just required to say that.”
“No, I’m not.” She laughs. “So, how did you get those pictures of yourself and your boyfriend?”
“I used a tripod and a timer—”
Wait … boyfriend?
“They are so cute. Granny says Nick is a good kid. I had no idea that the two of you were together, though. But with those pictures.” She lets out a sharp breath. “It makes sense.”
My mouth grows dry. “Uh—”
“I’m really happy for you, you know. Dad says that his family is a good one. We’ve been praying for you to find someone just like him.”
I blink, my eyes staring at the white wall of my bedroom. I don’t even know what to say and it doesn’t matter, because she’s not giving me much time to say anything.
“Your dad was good friends with Nick’s dad when they were young. He said it was a shame that he passed away. He’s really looking forward to meeting Nick when we come in for Thanksgiving. We’ve been so worried about you—your dad, especially. He thought Devon ruined your outlook on love, and I told him not to worry. I knew you’d move on in time. And it looks like you found a good man.”
“Um—”
“Anyway,” Mom says with a sigh. “I just want you to know that we’re really happy for you, and I can’t wait to meet Nick.”
“Yeah,” I manage to choke out, trying to conjure up the best way to tell her that Nick and I are just friends…
“He’ll be at Thanksgiving, won’t he? Or are you going to his family’s? I bet we can work it out so that you can do both.”
“I don’t know right now,” I spit out, my eyes flickering to the doorway where Granny is now standing, giving me a funny look.
“Well, we’ll work out the details. You talk to Nick and figure out what works best for him, and then we’ll go from there. I need to get back to cleaning, but I just wanted to tell you the pictures of you two were gorgeous. I’m so proud of you.”
“Thank you.”
“Love you, Liz.”
“Love you, Mom.”
I set the phone back down on my desk, staring at it in disbelief. She thinks Nick is my boyfriend.
And I mean, it makes sense. I didn’t post any kind of caption specifying otherwise…
Why didn’t I?
“So…” Granny looks at me with a weird expression. “I take it your mom called you about the holidays. ”
I nod slowly, meeting her eyes. “Yeah, I guess they’re coming here this year.”
“And do you know why ? Hopefully, you set your parents straight about those pictures that you posted.”
I hesitate, which is all it takes for Granny to facepalm herself. “I meant to tell her,” I say quickly. “I just hated to break the news; she was literally so excited about it.”
“You need to call her back and tell her the truth.” Granny gestures to my phone on my desk.
“But then she’ll know that I’m forever alone, and then her and Dad will start worrying all over again, and pestering me about my love life…” I reason, guilt pummeling me in the chest. “I don’t want to upset them.”
“Okay, but then what are you going to do? Let them think that Nick is your boyfriend when he’s not? That’s not very fair, either.”
“But—”
“There are no ‘buts’ about it, Eliza Kate.” Her voice grows in sharpness. “You don’t want to start weaving a web of lies. Besides, beyond just your parents, what happens if this gets back to Nick? How do you think that would make him feel?”
I frown. “I’m … I’m not sure.”
In reality, I’m not sure that Nick would hate the idea of the two of us being together. He’s starting to show clinical signs of a crush—ones that I’ve been ignoring .
Granny sighs. “I’m gonna let you work this one out on your own—you’re a grown woman—but I would think wisely about calling your poor mother back and telling her the truth.”
I raise a brow. “So, does that mean there’s a chance you don’t want me to call her?”
She shakes her head. “Maybe you should think about why you didn’t tell her the truth about you and Nick just being friends in the first place.”
My mouth drops open in defense. “Um, obviously, it’s because I don’t want my parents to worry about me.”
“Mhmm.” Granny gives me a sly smile. “I still think there’s something —”
I hold up my hand and cut her off. “No, Granny. Even if there was something, I’m not looking for anything more than a friend. I don’t…” I pause, thinking of the way my stomach flips when Nick gets close. “I don’t think it’s right for me to date right now.”
“If you say so.”
“I do,” I mutter.
“Better call your mom back then. Better to make them worry about you being alone than to lie to them.”
“Okay, okay,” I mutter, letting out a sigh.
My granny taps the doorframe, giving me one last look before she leaves me alone in my room again. I pick up my phone, listening to her hums fade as she heads down the hallway.
Ugh.
I stare at the screen. What do I even say ?
Sorry mom, I was just caught off guard by you thinking Nick is my boyfriend.
I run my fingers through my hair, my mind going back to the pictures. Why did I ever post those in the first place?
Ugh, ugh, ugh.
Feeling frozen in time, I sit here, my mind spinning with possible ways to explain myself. I mean, other than my photography page, I don’t even have any social media anymore. When I left Chicago, I wanted to be as elusive as possible…
Maybe I could just pretend while they’re here.
The idea seems like a terrible one, and at first thought, it really is.
But…
Could I do it?
I mean, I could play it off like Nick is my boyfriend, and that he’s just too busy to see them while he’s here.
But then they won’t like him.
Well, that and I see Nick nearly every day, even with the ramp being complete. I chew the inside of my cheek as I reach for my phone.
I’ll just have to tell my mom the truth. That’s the answer.
I hit the call back button and put the phone to my ear. It rings and rings…
And rings.
Her voicemail message pops up and I let out a frustrated sigh, setting the phone back down. I’ll just have to wait for her to call me back .
I reach back out and open my laptop again, my photography page loading.
Can’t wait to meet Nick at Thanksgiving!
I stare open-mouthed at my mom’s comment. Ugh. This is going to be a mess—one that I need to figure out…
And pronto.