Unsaid Things (Players of Marycliff University #4)

by Jerica MacMillan

  As soon as her call ended, Marissa came out from behind the counter, surprising Abby by giving her a hug. “I didn’t expect to see you until after work.” She pulled back, tucking her hair behind her ear. “Okay, so the plan is that I’ll text Gabby when I’m ready for you guys, probably around six, and she’ll drive you two over in her car. Is that okay?”

  “Yeah. That sounds great.”

  “Good. We’ll get pizza. Do you have any preference for toppings?”

  Abby shook her head. “Not really. Get whatever you want. I can pick off anything I don’t like.”

  Marissa opened her mouth to respond, but the phone rang. She turned her head to look at the desk, then glanced back at Abby. “Hold that thought.” Reaching over the desk, she picked up the phone. “Kane Automotive, can you hold one moment please?” She pushed a few buttons and set the phone down, turning to face Lance. “Mom texted me a half an hour ago. She said to tell you that if you came by that you should stop torturing Abby by giving her the most boring tour of Denton imaginable and let her take her shopping. Now, I have to get back to work.” She gave Abby a wink. “I’ll see you later.”

  Lance laughed, and Jon clapped him on the back. “Call your mom and tell her to come pick up your girlfriend. You can help Peter and me get through these cars faster.”

  “Putting me to work, Dad? You gonna pay me my usual rate?”

  Jon laughed. “Consider it your Christmas present to me and the people who’ll get their cars back.”

  Lance shook his head, but said, “Okay, fine. Let me just call Mom. I’ll meet you out there once I’m done.” Jon waved and went through the door back into the garage. Turning to Abby, Lance bent and dropped a kiss on her lips before pulling out his phone. “You okay with going shopping with my mom while I get put to work?”

  Abby shrugged, a half smile on her lips. “I guess so. It doesn’t sound like either of us has much choice in the matter.”

  Lance wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close, letting his forehead rest against hers. “We could tell them both no and do whatever we want. But I think my mom would really like to get to know you without me around. And she wants me to spend time with my dad. Things haven’t been the same between us since I left to come back to you, so it might clear the air if I do this. But if you’re not comfortable, say the word, and I’ll whisk you away to spend the afternoon with me. You’ve already been coerced into spending the evening with my sisters. I don’t want you to feel overwhelmed.”

  Abby gave him the best smile she could muster. “I’ll be fine. If you think working with your dad will help the both of you, then you should do it. I’d like to get to know your mom, anyway.”

  He seemed to buy it, since he kissed her once more and pulled back, tapping the face of his phone to call his mom. When he finished talking to her, he pulled the car keys out of his pocket and held them out to Abby. “She said you should drive back to the house, and she’ll take you out for lunch.”

  “What about you? Aren’t you getting hungry?”

  He shrugged one shoulder. “I’ll be fine. I can order something to eat here. Or steal Marissa’s lunch.”

  “Hey!” Marissa yelled. “I heard that!”

  Lance grimaced. “Nah. I probably won’t do that. It’s probably some girly salad or something. Or a dry sandwich and low-fat yogurt. I’ll have to figure something else out.”

  Abby took the keys from his hand, feeling weird driving Lance’s mom’s car, even if it was just a few miles. “Um, okay. If you’re sure.”

  “I’m sure, sweetheart. Go have fun with my mom. I’ll see you before you go hang with my sisters, okay?”

  She nodded, giving him a smile. “Okay. Sounds good.”

  He programmed his parents’ address into the GPS app on her phone before walking her out to the car, kissing her thoroughly against the car and saying goodbye. Peter catcalled from the open garage door, bringing a blush to Abby’s cheeks. Lance smiled widely, smacked her ass, and opened the car door. “See you later.”

  “Bye.”

  Once back at the house, Lance’s mom met Abby in the driveway. Driving to lunch, she insisted that Abby call her Elizabeth. “Mrs. Kane is my mother-in-law. I know my children are pretty much grown, but I’m not as old as Mrs. Kane.” She treated Abby to lunch at a local coffee shop that served delicious panini along with coffee to die for. Conversation flowed, and Abby found herself comfortable enough to share details about her life that she usually kept to herself. She told Elizabeth all about her mom’s debilitating mental illnesses, how her brother had left a few years ago, and how the burden of caring for their mom had fallen solely to her.

  Elizabeth’s brows drew closer and closer together as Abby spoke, and when Abby told her how Megan and Chris were checking on her mom while she was out of town, Elizabeth reached out and patted Abby’s hand. “Oh, bless your heart. You poor dear. That’s so much for anyone to handle, but especially a young woman who should be carefree and enjoying herself in college. I’m glad to know my son has been helping you with everything.”

  Abby nodded. “He’s been great, from the very beginning. The first time he went with me to help her was after I’d turned him down for another date. She’d texted me that she needed me right away, but wouldn’t say why, which had me worried. My car wouldn’t start, and I was freaking out. It turned out that she just needed groceries, which was important because she didn’t have any food in the house, but it wasn’t a medical emergency. Anyway, I called Lance because my roommate wasn’t picking up her phone, and he was the only one I could think to call. He left work early and drove me all the way to my mom’s house, waited for me to figure everything out, then went with me to get her groceries. I’d never had anyone help me out like that without expecting anything in return, especially after I’d refused to go out with him again.”

  Elizabeth smiled, but pulled her brows together again. “That sounds like my son. But why didn’t you want to go out with him?”

  Abby dropped her eyes and picked at her sandwich. “Oh, well. He’d already told me he was leaving at the end of the summer. And we’d already spent most of the weekend together before that. It didn’t seem like a good idea to get involved with someone who wouldn’t stick around, you know?” She left out the fact that Lance had a bit of a reputation for sleeping around. She didn’t think his mom needed to know about that. And it wasn’t true anymore, anyway.

  “So what happened? You obviously changed your mind.”

  Abby smiled. “He’s persistent when he wants to be. He took me out to dinner that night, and we spent the night together.” Her cheeks grew hot. “Just sleeping. We didn’t um, well, you know … And I made him take me home early in the morning so I wouldn’t have to face his roommates or mine.” Elizabeth chuckled, but didn’t interrupt. “He came over the next day and figured out what was wrong with my car and fixed it that weekend. I insisted on buying the parts, but he saved me a bundle on towing and labor by fixing it for me. The alternator and battery needed to be replaced.”

  “He would do that. I’m surprised he let you buy the parts, even.”

  “I wouldn’t let him.”

  “Hmm. And after that you were together?”

  Reaching for her drink, Abby nodded. “Yeah. I still knew he was supposed to leave. I didn’t ever ask him to stay. I knew the deal going in. But I couldn’t stay away from him. Not when he treated me as well as he did.” She looked away, watching the busboy clear a table. “I like to keep my distance from people, but he’s never let that stop him. He knows me better than pretty much anyone, and puts up with me and my quirks. The only thing that really bothers him is that I won’t just let him pay for everything.”

  “He’s mentioned that. Why is that?” Elizabeth sounded genuinely curious, not judgmental.

  Abby took a deep breath. “I—well, it’s a little hard to explain. I guess I’m just so used to being on my own and taking care of everything that it’s hard for me to rely on someone else. And part of me—
“ She paused, her hand coming up to tug at her lower lip, but she forced herself to stop. “This sounds horrible, and this is by no means a reflection of Lance’s character, but some part of me is still worried that he’ll leave.” She shrugged. “Everyone else has, so … yeah. If I pay for my own stuff, I can convince myself that it won’t destroy me if he leaves.” She shook her head. “Don’t say any of that to him, please. It’s not—it’s not about him at all. It’s just me and my own issues. I know that. But we’re not married, we’re not even engaged. And even though we’re living together, and I love him and I know he loves me, it just doesn’t feel right to me to let him pay for everything.”

  Elizabeth took a drink of her coffee, her face thoughtful. “So if you were engaged you might feel differently?”

  Would she? Yeah, she would. An engagement seemed more stable than just living together. Taking a bite of her panini, Abby nodded, swallowing before she spoke. “Yeah. I think so. I mean, that would be a more serious commitment it seems like.”

  “Mm. Yeah. I’d say living together is pretty committed too, though.”

  Abby tilted her head to one side. “Yeah. I mean, more so than just dating. But it’s easy to break a lease or find a new roommate.”

  “It’s easy to give back a ring and cancel wedding plans, too.”

  Abby swallowed, her mouth dry. “I guess so.”

  “Abby, it’s always easy to break a commitment if you really want to. I’ve watched the way Lance is with you. He’s not going to just wake up one day and decide to leave you. I raised him better than that. And if he’s committed enough to want to live with you, he’s in this for the long haul.”

  Sucking in a breath, Abby tried to come up with a response, but couldn’t think what to say.

  Elizabeth finished off her coffee, smiling brightly. “Now. Enough talk. Let’s go to the mall.”

  Chapter Six

  Lance watched Abby drive away, a mix of hope and trepidation sliding through him. He knew Abby would be fine with his mom. His mom was excited to get to know Abby, and it hadn’t surprised him that she’d demanded time on her own with his girlfriend. With such a short, busy trip, his mom wanted to capitalize on the time they had here. Who knew when they’d see each other again? His parents had come up to Spokane for his graduation in May. They might find time to come up again this spring or summer, but it took a lot to convince his dad that the shop would survive without him for a week, or longer if they decided to drive. And with the way things were between him and his dad right now, that might be a hard sell, even for his mom.

  A hand landing on his shoulder brought him back around. Turning, he squinted against the morning sun backlighting his dad.

  His dad held out a set of keys and lifted his chin to indicate a silver Lexus parked near the side of the garage. “Take the next oil change. Peter and Marissa are taking lunch. I’ll cover the phones while they’re gone.”

  Taking the keys, Lance raised an eyebrow. “Who’d’ve done that if I hadn’t showed up?”

  He shrugged and turned away. “They don’t usually take lunch breaks together. But since you’re here, why not? Now get to work, son.”

  Lance stared after his dad’s retreating back, then shook his head and headed for the Lexus. After pulling it into the empty bay, Marissa came up to the driver’s side and opened his door, a wide smile on her face.

  When he got out, she wrapped her arms around him in a big hug. “Thanks so much for covering for Peter so we can have lunch together. This never happens. Between this and movie night tonight with Gabby and your girlfriend, today’s shaping up to be a great day.” She pinched Lance’s cheek and jiggled it, narrowing her eyes at him. “Now, play nice with Dad while we’re gone. I know things are a little … strained between you two. See what you can do to fix it.”

  He pulled his head away from her, wincing when he managed to get his skin from between her fingers, and rubbed his face. “Thanks for the tip, sis. I’m not sure I can do anything to fix it, though. Even if I moved back today, he’d still be pissed. And that would put Peter in an awkward spot. Besides, you know as well as I do that this wasn’t ever what I wanted. There’s a reason I found a school two thousand miles away to give me a scholarship. Dad wanted me at UTD, or, worst case, in Austin. At least then I’d still be able to work in the shop part time while I went to school. He’s been mad at me for years. This is just the culmination of all of that.”

  “Oh, I know. Trust me. I’ve been here listening to him piss and moan about it the last four and a half years since you’ve been gone. He wants someone to take over the shop. To work alongside him. The fact that I’ve been here this whole time and could run this place with my eyes closed doesn’t seem to matter. He dreamed of his son being that person since we were all little kids, even though I was the one who couldn’t wait to come help him with the cars. You, he had to drag out or bribe with candy. The football made him happy. I mean, this is Texas, football’s practically our religion. But he really wanted you working on the cars with him. Not me. I’ve never been good enough.”

  The unshed tears sparkling in her eyes had Lance feeling horrible for his sister. “C’mon, Riss.” He wrapped her in a hug. “You know he loves you.”

  She nodded against his chest, pushing back and running a finger under each eye to catch the moisture before it could make her mascara run. Looking into his face, she gave him a forced smile, her lips trembling. “I know. He does. But he wanted a truckload of sons to play football and work on cars. Instead he got us. A daughter who loves cars as much as he does, but isn’t a boy. A son who plays football, but couldn’t get away from us fast enough when he had the chance.” Lance opened his mouth to interrupt, feeling the need to defend himself, but Marissa held up a hand. “I get it, Lance. I do. I don’t hold it against you. I’m happy for you. Happy that you found a place you like and a great job. I want that for you. And Abby seems like the best thing that’s happened to you.”

  Lance smiled. “She is.”

  “Good. Now let me finish. Dad would only be satisfied if both of us were wrapped up in one person with a penis. But he’s stuck with the two of us. And Gabby, who wants to be a musician.” Lance laughed when Marissa shook her head in mock horror. “The fact that she’s the baby is the only thing keeping our super-practical Dad from going ballistic on her. And Mom. You know how she holds back his outbursts better than anyone.”

  “Oh, yeah. I’m very aware of that.”

  Marissa glanced over Lance’s shoulder and forced another smile. “Well, anyway. Peter’s coming, so I’m gonna go have a nice long lunch with my boyfriend.” Her smile faded. “Seriously, though. If you can figure out any way to clear the air with Dad, it would be good. For everyone. Okay?”

  “Yeah.” He looked over her head at the window to the office. “Yeah. I’ll do my best, Riss.”

  “That’s all I’m asking.”

  Peter clapped Lance on the back. “Thanks for working on your vacation, man.”

  “Sure. No problem. Have a nice lunch.”

  “Thanks.” Peter held out a hand to Marissa. “Ready?”

  Marissa nodded and smiled, a genuine smile this time. Lance was glad to see that Peter still made his sister happy. After more than two years together, Marissa still lived in her own apartment. Would Peter propose soon? Lance didn’t understand why he hadn’t already. What was the holdup? But maybe he wasn’t the best judge. Everyone liked to tell him how fast it was to move in with his girlfriend after only a couple of months, and now he was proposing six months after they met.

  Maybe they were right. Maybe he was moving fast. He didn’t care, though. It felt right, and going with that feeling had served him well so far. He saw no reason to question it now.

  Gabby sat at the breakfast bar, staring at Abby and Elizabeth as they walked in through the laundry room, hands laden with bags, laughing. Elizabeth set her bags on the table and went to Gabby. She let her mom kiss her on the cheek and give her hug, but she kept her face impassive
.

  “Did you have fun without me?”

  Abby set her bags on the table, feeling a pang of guilt at the apparent hurt in Gabby’s tone. But it had been Elizabeth’s decision to leave her home.

  Elizabeth patted Gabby’s cheek. “Yes, we did. Now don’t pout. You and Marissa get Abby to yourself tonight. I knew your dad would ask Lance to stay at the shop, so this was my chance to get to spend some time with her alone.”

  Moving into the kitchen, Elizabeth washed her hands and pulled potatoes out of the pantry to get started on dinner. Gabby, too buoyant to stay sad for long, popped off her bar stool and came over to Abby at the table. “Did you get anything good?”

  “Of course we did!” Elizabeth called from the kitchen.

  They both chuckled, and Abby started opening her bags. “Most of it is your mom’s, but she insisted on buying me a few things. Clothes and a new purse, since mine’s ancient and falling apart.”

  “Ooh! Let me see!”

  Abby pulled her new purse out of the bag, still not quite believing that Elizabeth had gotten it for her. “We’ll call it an early Christmas present,” she’d said, leaning in close at the store. Abby realized that Elizabeth must’ve noticed the worn edges and malfunctioning zipper on her current one and steered them toward that section of Dillard’s, one of the big department stores in the area. No matter how much she protested that Elizabeth didn’t need to buy her a bag, Elizabeth had been adamant. Abby could see where Lance’s tendency to insist on his own way came from. The woman seemed to always get what she wanted, one way or another. It was hard to tell her no once she’d decided something. And she’d decided Abby needed the crossbody bag she’d immediately been drawn to, made of buttery-soft brown leather. It had been love at first sight, but the price tag was way higher than Abby could afford. Not that that mattered to anyone in the Kane family. Even after their conversation at lunch, Elizabeth would not be dissuaded. It was the Christmas present line that clinched it. How could she say no?