17. Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Seventeen
Carson
“Mom!” I yell, hurrying up the stairs.
I find her in the bathroom, staring at herself in the mirror.
“Mom?”
She catches me out of the corner of her eye and jumps a foot. “Carson, I didn’t see you there.”
I stand in the doorway. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault. I was just distracted.” She places her hand on my arm and leads me out of the bathroom. “What did you need?”
“I was wondering if I could borrow your binoculars?”
I follow her into her bedroom. “Yeah, sure. I think they’re up there.” She opens her closet and points to the top shelf.
I rummage around until I find what I’m looking for. “Bingo.” I pull down the small black case. I lean over and give her a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you!”
“What do you need them for?”
“I’m taking Luna to Ireland.”
Her eyes widen and her head pulls back. “To Ireland?”
“Yeah, she’s always wanted to go, and so I thought why not?”
“Carson, you don’t think it’s a little early to be going on an international trip with a girl you just met?”
“No.”
“Carson.”
“Mom.”
“When are you leaving?”
“In a few hours.”
“A few hours?”
“Mom, please. I’m going on a trip. I’ll be back in a few weeks.”
Her expression falls. “But I was hoping you and your brother would be around this week.”
“Cole will be back in a few days.”
“He isn’t going with you?”
“No. He’s on his way to Texas with Carver on club business.”
“He’s on the road without you?”
“Mom, he’s a big boy. He’s more than capable of taking care of himself.”
“But …” she grabs my sleeve.
“But nothing. He and I are not conjoined twins.” I pull away from her. “I’ve got to get going or Luna and I will miss our flight.”
She doesn’t follow me, but her faint sobs sure do.
I take a deep breath and head back up.
She’s sitting on the bed with her face buried in her hands. “Gosh darn it, Mom. I didn’t mean to make you cry.”
When she buries herself against my chest, I really feel like shit.
“Hey,” I push her back gently so I can see her face. “I’ll bring you back a souvenir. Whatever you want.”
She waves her hands in front of her face. “It’s not that. It’s just everything seems to be falling apart.”
“Mom, nothing is falling apart.”
Her tears only fall faster.
“Okay. Okay. Listen, Carver is with Cole. He’s fine. I’m going to be with Luna, so I’ll also be fine. More than fine, actually. But if it makes you feel better, I’ll call him and work everything out. When I get back in a few weeks, all will be back to normal.”
She searches my face through tear-filled eyes. “You’ll call him today.”
“Yes.”
“And you’ll be back in a few weeks?”
“Yes, I promise,” I assure her.
My mom is a big old softy. She doesn’t like it when we’re gone. Another thing she hates is when someone in the family isn’t getting along.
“Is something else going on?” I ask.
She wipes her eyes. “No. I shouldn’t complain. I mean, I’ve gotten everything I’ve ever prayed for. What more could I want?”
“Well, I don’t know. What about a wool sweater from the Aran Islands.”
A small smile lights her face. “Well, that does sound nice.”
“I should get Khloe something too. Maybe a stuffed sheep.”
This puts her in the mood I was looking for. “Oh, Carson, your sister would love that. Get RayRay one too.” She brushes the back of her hand over my cheek. “You remind me so much of your father.” The tears begin to pool again, but that’s just who she is, and I wouldn’t change a thing.
“I’m taking a play out of his book. He told me when you first met, he took you on a trip.”
“He did.”
“I know Ireland seems a bit extreme, but, Mom, this girl has traveled the whole of the United States. I want to take her somewhere new and exciting. And if I’m being honest, I want to have her all to myself for a bit.”
She laughs. “Oh, you Rebel Skull men. Always going over the top for your women.”
“Hey, you’re on the receiving end of that too.”
Her face softens. “I know,” she agrees quietly before taking a deep breath.
“You should go. Let her see who you are away from the club … and your brother.” She sits a bit taller.
“Show her the man you are, because he deserves to be seen.” She grabs my chin, tilting my head back and forth as if she’s seeing me for the first time. “When did you grow up?”
I give her a big cheesy smile. “Aw, mom, I’ll always be your little boy.”
The tears spill over her cheeks, but she remains stoic. “I hope you have the time of your life, Carson.” She gives me a kiss on the cheek and then stands, pulling me with her. “I’ll pack you some snacks. They never have good snacks on the plane,” she says, leaving me no room for argument.
“All right, Ma. I’ll stop by before we leave.” I kiss the top of her head before heading out.
“And don’t forget you promised to call your brother.”
Ugh, the woman doesn’t forget anything.
Soon after I get back to the cabin, a faint knock raps at the door.
I open it, finding Luna standing there with a book in her hands. “I’m sorry. I can’t go, but I wanted you to have this.”
She pushes it into my hands.
“Luna, I’m not going without you.”
“You have to.”
“You know I don’t.” I lean against the door. “I can get you through the flights,” I say gently, knowing that it’s not that she doesn’t want to go. She’s afraid to go.
Dad and Grandpa give me little nods of encouragement. They’ve been sitting outside her van since I announced our trip. I knew they’d have my back when it comes to her.
I thought Cole would too.
Luna tips her head back, looking up at the sky. “It’s almost an eight-hour flight from Chicago to Ireland.”
“And I’ll be right by your side every minute.”
“Carson, you barely know me.”
“I know you want to go to Ireland. I know I also want to go. What more do I need to know?”
“What if I freak out? What if you literally have to sit on me to keep me from jumping out of the plane?”
It makes me laugh. I know I shouldn’t because she really is frightened, but she’s just so darn cute.
“What if you get up in the air and fall in love with the view from the sky? What if during takeoff you realize I’m the person that doesn’t need to force you to do anything? That I don’t need to sit on you … I only need to hold your hand and stay by your side.”
She lowers her head and meets my eyes.
“My mom’s packing us some snacks for the ride.”
She shakes out her hands, trying to release some of her nervous energy. “Oh, god, I think I might throw up.”
“They have barf bags on the plane.” Her eyes narrow on me. She’s not impressed by my joke, so I try something different. I share my own insecurities with her. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous myself.”
“You’re nervous too?”
“Yeah, I’ve never left the country, and …” I look away. “And I’ve never gone anywhere without Cole.”
“We could wait for him to get back from his trip and then go?” she suggests.
For a moment, I think about taking her up on it. I would love Cole to come with us, but obviously he doesn’t want to be around me right now.
I can do this on my own.
“No. I want to do this with you.”
“I don’t want to come between the two of you.”
“You won’t.”
Again, she shakes her hands out. “This is why I’ve done life alone. I don’t have to worry about causing anyone unnecessary pain.”
She looks around us, and I know she’s wondering how the hell she got here. Honestly, I am too. My path used to be clear, but suddenly there are cracks beginning to form in the asphalt.
“I think it’s time for me to go out on an adventure of my own without my brother.” I tap the book she gave me against my palm. “I want to do this.”
It draws her attention to it. “We’re really doing this?”
My smile widens. “I think we are.”
She bounces on her toes, her nervousness giving way to excitement.
“You better go finish packing. We need to leave soon.”
“Oh, I’m already packed.”
It makes me chuckle. I point to my truck. “Go ahead and load up your stuff. I’ll just go finish up.”
She peeks around my shoulder into the cabin.
“Do you want to come in?”
“No. That’s okay. I’ll just …” She motions toward her van. “I’ve got a few things to do before we leave.”
I close the door behind me and rest my back against it.
Everything is about to change.
Cole felt it before I did.
We have to expect a few bumps in the road once in a while. Unfortunately, there are no streets paved with gold here.
But one thing my mother and father taught me is that broken roads can still lead you to beautiful places.