Chapter 26
Chapter Twenty-Six
Molly
“What are your thoughts on Freud?” I ask from the doorway of Coco’s office. She’s sitting at her desk jotting something down with a gold pen.
“I could never date a man so obsessed with everyone’s childhoods,” she replies without looking up.
I step closer and cross my arms. “He’s been dead for a hundred years, Coco.”
She finally looks up, bringing the pen to the side of her mouth. “I’ve always found the German language to be dreadfully guttural, haven’t you?”
This was clearly a mistake, so I laugh and turn to go. “I’d like to retract my question. I need to meet a client anyway.”
“Oh, goodness, you’re serious, aren’t you? Take a seat,” she commands. And, since I’m the one who invited this conversation, I do as I’m told and sink into the leather wingback chair across from her.
Coco pats her perfectly coiffed hair. “I’m sure Freud would have a field day with me and all my preferences and idiosyncrasies, but I could not care less what some old dead man thinks about me.” She points her pen at me. “And you shouldn’t either.”
“I know. I’m just . . . conflicted.”
“This is about Bobby Rhodes, I gather?”
It’s been a week since Bobby dropped the love bomb on me in his car—with his therapist! And I’ve spent way too much of the week examining my feelings and getting nowhere. When I’m with him, it’s so easy, so natural. I don’t overthink when we’re together.
It’s when I’m up in the middle of the night—that 2:36 a.m. witching hour—that my mind races with doubts. I’ve never been a leap-before-you-look person. I grew up with two parents who made it their life missions to fly by the seat of their second-hand pants, and I know the devastation that can come from that.
Spending Thanksgiving with Matty, Blake, and Luke didn’t help clear my confusion, either. Bobby was disappointed not to spend the holiday with Matty and me, but his team had away games before and after, so he was on the road. When Matty asked if I’d come with him to Blake’s for dinner, I couldn’t exactly refuse.
Watching Blake and Luke so happy together made me miss Bobby like crazy. But it also made my head spin with doubt. Blake and Luke make sense together. They’re close in age and economic status, and they have numerous interests in common. Luke even plays guitar like Blake.
Bobby and I, on the other hand? We have nothing in common, and he’s too rich and young. It would never work long term, no matter what my heart tries to tell me. Having developing L-word feelings for someone or being sexually compatible are not firm grounds to base an entire future on. Are they?
“He told me he loves me, Coco. What am I supposed to do with that?”
Her lips tip up. “Revel in it? Make him your sex slave? Say it back? Your pick.”
“It’s not that easy, and you know it.”
“It’s only as difficult as you make it, darling.”
“I don’t have the luxury of making mistakes. That’s like advising someone to go on a lavish vacation when they have no money in the bank and tons of bills to pay.”
“Love is free. And so is sex. All the best things are...except precious stones, of course. And cosmetic surgery.”
“Oh god, I’m so confused. I have no idea what I’m doing here. It was supposed to be a fun adventure, and now there are all these feelings involved. And not just Bobby’s or mine. Matthew’s too.”
“Darling, you deserve to have a man fall head over heels in love with you. And so does Matthew.” She abandons the pen and folds her hands together on the desktop. “How do you feel about Bobby? What does your gut tell you when you’re not overthinking it?”
“I’m too busy overthinking it to figure that out!” I slouch in the chair in defeat. “I have such a good time with him, and he’s so kind and generous and funny. But I have to put Matty first, and what if Bobby just thinks he loves me and figures out a month from now that it was only the novelty of it all? That a more age-appropriate woman suddenly looks more appealing?”
I huff out a frustrated breath. “And he wants to have babies, Coco. Babies .” I circle a finger over my belly. “My baby-making factory is having a going-out-of-business clearance event right now, and having a baby isn’t something you can just jump into because the window is closing.”
“Those all sound like what-ifs,” my boss replies.
“Speaking of what-ifs, what if he really does have an Oedipus complex and I find out I’m a dead ringer for his mom?! You know, part of the Oedipus complex is seeing other men as rivals and acting aggressively toward them. Did you know Bobby’s job with the Storm Chasers is picking fights with opposing players? Real fights, Coco! With punches and...and...fisticuffs!” My breathing is almost ragged now.
“Fisticuffs?! Oh my!” She clutches her pearls, and not in a metaphorical sense. She’s literally wearing a diamond and pearl necklace. But her tone drips with sarcasm.
“Coco.” I frown at her.
“I’m sorry. I couldn’t help myself. You sounded like my Grandmother June, and she’s been dead for thirty years.” She makes a shooing motion in the air before continuing. “Do you know what makes you a good realtor, Molly?”
“Learning from you?” I guess.
“Your work ethic. Your attention to detail. And your natural problem-solving abilities.”
My chest warms at her compliment. “Well, thank you.”
She forges ahead without acknowledging my thanks. “But do you know what would make you a great realtor?” Oh. Okay. “Opening up your imagination to embrace all the possibilities.” She spreads her hands in the air like she’s revealing a marquee. “Reaching for what you want and not even entertaining the option of failure.”
“You have a point, I suppose. But blind hope hasn’t ever really appealed to me.” Practicality and good planning are far more reliable.
“Not blind or simply wishing on a star. Trusting yourself and believing you can make things happen.” Coco abandons the imaginary marquee and focuses on me again. “Did you know the first property I sold was an empty, rundown, two-bedroom manufactured home that had been on the market for eighteen months? My boss gave it to me to watch it blow up in my face—an odious weasel of a man named Tony Lamont whom I recommend avoiding at all costs—but did I let it deter me?”
She answers her own question. “No. I did not. I spent a week scrubbing floors and windows and another cleaning up the lawn, planting flowers, and painting the entire inside. A third week scouring thrift shops and friends’ and relatives’ homes for mirrors, lighting, and furniture to create a vision of what the house could be.
“It wasn’t a dilapidated, unkempt hovel anymore. It was a charming starter home for a young couple. I loved that house. I put love into that house. And because I did, the people I scrounged up to view it loved it too. I got two offers within a week. I made a thousand dollars and earned three new contracts.”
“So, you’re saying if I throw caution to the wind and go all in with Bobby, two other women are going to fall in love with him three weeks from now?”
She completely ignores my snarky comment. “Look, I know you have to put Matthew first, but I’ll bet he’d tell you to take a leap and trust your heart.”
I sigh and glance at my watch. “Now I actually do have to meet a client.” I stand and send Coco a warm smile. “Thank you for the advice. I’ll keep you posted.”
As I leave her office, she, of course, has to have the last word. “And I’ll start shopping for my maid of honor dress. Can we go with emerald green? It’s my best color.”
This is the second time my client is viewing this townhome north of Tampa, so I’m hoping it’s a sign that she’s close to making a decision. That’s one reason I haven’t hurried her along as she inspects every closet for the third time.
I surreptitiously glance at my watch to see it’s past four. I want to reach for my phone to make sure Matty got off the bus and is home safe, but it can wait. The worst thing I can do right now is interrupt this client’s “process.”
“What did you say the HOA fees are?”
“$300 per month,” I reply without having to look at the listing. I’ve got the thing memorized at this point. “It will be a godsend not having to do lawn work, I promise you.” I smile.
She nods. “I’m just going to look at the primary bedroom closet one more time.”
I gesture for her to go ahead.
By the time I drop her off back at the office in Coco’s BMW, it’s past five. I pull out my phone to see I have five missed calls, four from Matty and one from Bobby. Crap! I immediately pull up the phone tracking app and am baffled to see Matty’s location is his school, not our house.
“Hey, Mom,” he answers on the second ring. “I think you forgot today was the Spanish Club event after school.”
I suck in a breath and drop my head to the steering wheel. “I was supposed to pick you up at four-thirty! I completely forgot you weren’t taking the bus home today! I’m so sorry. I’m on my way right now.” I can’t believe I forgot my kid! I scramble from the driver’s seat and lock the car before racing toward the office to drop the keys off.
“No hurry. Bobby’s here and we’re hanging out.”
“Bobby, as in Bobby Rhodes?” I send an apologetic nod to Maude as I slip past her. She frowns.
Matty laughs. “Uh, how many other Bobbies do we know?”
“Good point.” I drop the keys and reverse direction.
“I called him when I couldn’t get you, and he came over, even though school won’t let me leave with him. You gotta add him to the list, Mom.”
“Right.” I hop in my Kia and turn the key in the ignition. “Um, okay. It’s going to take me another twenty minutes to get there.”
“Like I said, no hurry.” He diverts the phone from his mouth but I’m still almost rendered deaf when he yells, “Hey, Bobby! Tell them about the Detroit game!” He hurriedly mutters, “Bye, Mom,” before hanging up.
I connect my phone to the Kia’s Bluetooth and pull from the parking lot as I place a call to Bobby.
“Hey, baby,” he answers, and I swear I can hear his sexy smile in his voice.
“I fucked up.” No use mincing words.
He barks out a laugh. “Not at all. We’re having a good time, me and the boys.” The chatter of adolescent males bleeds through the phone’s mic.
“Thank you so much for trying to pick him up. Blake must have been away from his phone like I was.”
“Um, actually, Matthew’s second call was me after he couldn’t reach you.”
“It was? He should have called his dad instead of bothering you. I’m sorry.” I wave to a guy in a red Mazda who lets me merge in front of him.
“Don’t be. I dig that he feels comfortable enough with me to reach out. Seriously.”
My breath catches at the sincerity in his tone. “Wow. I don’t...know what to say. Actually, that’s a lie. You’re too good to be true, Bobby Rhodes.”
“Flesh and blood, baby. Right here. Always.”
My heart rate skyrockets for some reason and my vision starts to blur as tears form. I have turned into such a crybaby recently. Damn perimenopause. I swipe them away because I’m currently driving a car through Tampa rush hour traffic and can’t afford to crash just because I’m all up in my feelings about a guy.
“I need to concentrate on driving before you make me cry.”
“Take your time. I’m having a little impromptu press conference with half the seventh grade. Drive safe.”
“I will.”
I do a little Lamaze breathing the rest of the way there to calm my shit, and by the time I pull into the school parking lot, I’ve returned to a semi-normal state. I laugh out loud when I see Bobby on the school steps surrounded by a dozen kids and half of their parents.
“Good god,” I mutter to myself as I park and get out. When I make my way over to the steps, Matty spots me before Bobby does and breaks through the circle to come over. Looks like my kid is anxious to get home. He’s probably starving.
But he surprises me by grabbing my arm and pulling me into the circle to Bobby’s side. “This is my mom. She’s Bobby’s girlfriend,” he announces to everyone, his man-boy chest puffing.
Oh god. What fresh hell is this?
I feel my skin turn to fire as Bobby reaches out to throw an arm around my shoulder and pull me into his side. “Hey, baby.”
All eyes are on us while Bobby’s gaze skims over my face as if inspecting every detail for signs of what I might be feeling. I’ll never understand people who crave being the center of attention. “Hey,” I manage as I will my skin to cool.
“Bobby, what is Roman LaFontaine like?” one of the dads asks.
“Roman?” Bobby’s eyes stay on me as he starts to answer, and I realize he wants me to signal I’m okay. This man is so attuned to me, it’s hard to believe sometimes. Only when I nod does he turn to the man. “He’s a little too full of himself, to be honest.” Everyone laughs. “Nah, I’m just kidding. He’s a legend, and he was a great mentor for the season we played together.”
We stand there while Bobby patiently answers questions and shakes hands with everyone. He even signs some kids’ backpacks before the crowd starts to disperse and our crew of three heads back to my car.
“That was so cool,” Matty gushes. “The kids whose parents were on time are gonna be so mad they missed it.”
Bobby and I both laugh and Matty shrugs, a huge smile spread across his cute face as he climbs in the Kia and closes the door with a quick, “Later, Bobby.”
I rest my back against the car and look up at my guy as he closes the distance between us and settles his hands on my hips. Why have I been questioning this? Bobby is the perfect boyfriend. My perfect boyfriend. He’s wearing a half smile and a look in his eyes I recognize well by now. It’s a look of pure affection. It tells me there’s nobody else in the world he’d rather be standing across from right now.
So I pull my big girl pants up and trust my heart. “Bobby Rhodes, I love you.”