Overachiever (Slumming It Book 2)
Page 17
This is exactly what she feared. That being in a relationship and not following her plan would screw things up. She hasn’t done anything wrong, but I doubt she’ll see it that way.
“Everything was going so good. I didn’t see it coming. I don’t even understand how Mom found out. I told her what I was doing this summer but not that I left early.”
Oh no. Maybe I really have ruined her life. “Shit,” I mumble, and she blinks up at me. “Rem, I’m so sorry. I didn’t know what your mom was like, and when I came to her house looking for you, she asked how I knew you. It was a fair enough question since I was a stranger at her door looking for her daughter. I explained that you’d left the job early, and I wanted to check on you.”
“It’s not your fault. This was bound to happen eventually. I couldn’t keep them happy forever.”
There’s nothing I want more than to be able to fix this for her, but I can’t. I barely have the money to keep myself in school, fed and clothed. Now that I know Graham is moving, I’ll have to put back even more for rent. It breaks my heart to even think the next words, much less say them, but I have to.
“Rem, would your Dad reconsider and pay your tuition if we weren’t together?” Her eyes lock on mine, and I run my hand through her hair. “I love you, but I want you to be happy, and I know you need to finish school.”
Before I can finish, she shakes her head sharply. “No. Even if it would make a difference, I wouldn’t do it. I love you. I’ll finish school. It’ll just take a little longer. Serena said there’s a job opening at Glitties that starts in a couple of weeks. She’s friends with the manager, and she’s sure they’ll hire me. I’ll work, save, and go back next year.”
My gaze rakes over her, picturing her in the tiny shorts and crop top that Glitties waitresses wear.
Rolling her eyes, she slaps my chest. “I know what you’re thinking.”
“That you’ll be hot as hell?”
“I’ll be working in the kitchen. No skimpy outfit.”
“Damn. Do you think you could sneak one home, though?”
Her smile is what I was hoping for, even though it’s brief. “I’ll do my best.”
“You always do your best.” I pull her back into my arms. “I’m sorry. I wish I could help.”
“You are helping,” she says, holding me tighter. “You’ve helped me realize a lot of things. I’m upset and disappointed, but I still have a plan. A new plan, with you.”
“Do you want to hear something funny about Marty to cheer you up?”
“Definitely.”
“Have you ever heard of a rainbow fish?”
Remee tries to be upbeat on the three hour drive to my parent’s place in Ohio, but her smiles and laughter are strained. I hope the next few days will be a good distraction for her. It’s never boring at home.
When we get close to my hometown, she glances over at me. “Tell me more about your family.”
“Wondering what you’re getting yourself into?”
“I’m a little concerned I’m walking into a house full of Owens.” This time her grin is genuine.
“A house full of me would be heaven, and you know it. My parents have been together twenty-five years. Mom was a teacher when I was younger, but she’s a stay at home mom now. Dad owns a small grocery store in town.” I squeeze her knee. “Just a warning, Mom is going to fawn all over you, and Dad is going to pepper you with terrible jokes. It’s who they are.”
“They sound amazing.”
“Let’s see, my oldest brother is Joel, he’s twenty-four. He’s bringing his girlfriend. Carter is a year older than me and works as an electrician a few towns away. Asher is seventeen, a senior in high school, and a total pain in the ass. Kevin is eight and Tyler is seven. They’re obsessed with video games.”
“Six boys. Did your mom keep trying for a girl?”
“With the first four of us, maybe.” Gravel crackles under the wheels of the car when I turn onto our long driveway. “Kevin and Tyler were adopted from foster care as toddlers. They’re only blood siblings to each other, but we’re all family.”
Remee licks her lips nervously when I park beside Carter’s car. “Do you think they’ll like me?”
God, she’s cute. “They’re going to love you. This place can be a madhouse so let me know if it gets overwhelming, and we’ll sneak away for a bit.”
The front door whips open, and Mom rushes out onto the porch. “There you are! Are you going to sit your fool self in the truck all day or come give me a hug?”
Remee tosses a smile my way, and we get out of the truck. She trails behind me a little while we climb the steps onto the porch, and Mom grabs me in a hug. “I missed you, Smarty.”
“Missed you too.” Remee steps up beside me as Mom lets me go. “This is my girlfriend, Remee.”
Mom beams at her. “Well, you’re the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen.”
Remee’s cheeks turn pink. “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Wright.”
Mom pulls her into a hug and chides, “None of that. I’m Rose. Or you can call me mom like everyone else in the house.”
“Okay,” Remee agrees.
“Everyone is out back. Your Dad’s barbecuing.”
I grab Remee’s hand to lead her around to the backyard, and Mom calls out to her. “You make yourself at home, honey. And if any of these boys give you trouble, send them to me and I’ll thump them one.”
We step into the backyard where everyone is gathered. “Your Mom is so sweet…Smarty.” I want to kiss that little smirk off her face.
“Where do you think I get it from?” If she gets a chance to answer, I don’t hear it over the oof sound that forces its way out of my mouth when my body hits the ground. The laugh in my ear is a familiar one, and I twist, throwing Asher aside.
He leaps to his feet. “Instant takedown! Still the reigning champion! The crowd goes wild!” Cupping his hands around his face, he mimics the roar of a crowd. “Ahhhh.”
Damn, look who grew and filled out since I saw him last. He’s as tall as me. He stands too close during his little celebration, though, and I reach out, grab his ankle and yank, dropping him back down to the ground with me where I pin him.
“Get him!” he calls, grinning, and I turn in time to see Kevin throw a water balloon in our direction. Eight year olds suck at throwing. At least he does, because it soars past me and slaps Remee in the side of the head, soaking her hair and face.
The sight of her shock, and his horror at having water bombed a stranger makes it impossible not to laugh. I wanted her to meet my family. This is not a surprising introduction. She may as well see what she’s stepped into.
“Oh! I’m sorry!” Kevin cries, slapping his hand over his mouth.
Remee glances toward me, water dripping from her chin, then turns to him. “You’re Kevin, right?”
He nods, and she smiles. “I’m Remee, and you.” She pauses to grab two water balloons from the huge plastic tub of them nearby. “Are in deep trouble.”
A smile springs to his face, and he shrieks, running away. Remee chases him, drawing everyone’s attention. They start cheering her on to get him. The first one she throws misses, and he jeers at her, then adds insult by stopping to do a little dance. That’s when she nails him in the forehead with the second one. Laughter and applause sound all around us, and she makes her way back to where I’m standing with Asher and Carter.
“She’s going to fit in well,” Carter says, just before she gets in earshot.
It was the best first impression ever.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Remee
Being introduced to Owen’s family while dripping wet and sweaty wasn’t in my plan, but the poor kid looked so terrified when the balloon hit me that I didn’t hesitate. I can remember that awful feeling as a kid of making a mistake, especially in front of other people, and not knowing what to do. At least I didn’t bust my ass in front of everyone.
The day went great, actually. Owen’s the clo
wn of the group, no doubt, but his brothers and dad are funny too. He warned me about it being a madhouse and he wasn’t kidding, but I love it. It’s so relaxed and fun, with no one arguing or judging. The younger kids have their friends around, and Rose treats them like her own. It’s such a good atmosphere.
Their home is a beautiful, sprawling farmhouse surrounded by fields, with a tree line in the distance. It’s not fancy, but warm with a lived-in appearance. After spending most of our day in the backyard with his family, we gather around two long picnic tables outside to eat as the sun lowers in the sky.
“It’s not going to be this warm for much longer. We have to take advantage of it,” Rose says, sitting down between her two youngest boys.
“Ugh, we have to go back to school soon,” Kevin groans.
“I like school,” Tyler volunteers, before chomping into a chicken leg. He beams at me. “Do you go to school?”
“I do. And I like school too.”
Multiple conversations take place at once as everyone tries to catch up. It’s obvious how much they all love spending time together, and I wonder what it would’ve been like to grow up in a home like this. Chaotic, definitely, but never lonely.
After dinner, I help his mother clean up despite her objections, then Owen shows me to his room where we’re staying. “Your mom keeps your bedroom the same?” I remark, grinning at the walls covered in space paraphernalia and posters.
“She didn’t change Joel’s room until he’d been moved out over four years. And then only because Kevin and Tyler didn’t want to share a room anymore.” He flops down on the full size bed. “She wants us to know we can come back.”
“She’s amazing. Really, your whole family is great.” It makes me realize there’s one thing we haven’t talked about. It’s early in our relationship, but it worries me he might want different things in the future than I do. It stays on my mind until we go to bed, and I bring it up as we lie in the darkness of his childhood bedroom.
“Do you want kids? You know, in the future?” My fingers fidget with his chest hair when he remains quiet a few moments. “There’s no wrong answer.”
“I don’t know. I love my family, but I also want to travel. Kids require an immense sacrifice of personal freedom I’m not sure I’ll be willing to give. I’ve always thought that if I get older and decide I want children, I’ll foster or adopt like my parents did.” He runs his hand down my arm. “What about you?”
“It was part of my plan, but now I’m not sure. It’s not that I necessarily wanted to be a mother, just that it’s what you’re supposed to do. School, career, marriage, kids. I don’t really think that way anymore.”
“Why are you thinking about it now?”
“You come from a big family. I just wanted to make sure you didn’t want a bunch of kids. That we’re compatible, you know, long term.”
He rolls over on top of me and kisses my neck. “Long term, huh? This is forever, Rem. You’re the one. There’s not a doubt in my mind, and the day you realize it too, I’m going to put my grandma’s ring on your finger.”
My breath catches in my throat at the thought, but not in the panicky way I expected. It’s far too early of course, and he’s talking about later on. Still, it’s a beautiful thought. A hopeful one.
“We have to beat these other bastards to it, though, because there’s only one ring.”
“You’re crazy,” I giggle. He drags his lips up my jaw and caresses my breast. “And I’m not fucking you in your parents’ house. Someone will hear.”
“Backyard?”
“Yeah, that’d make a great impression.” He makes a pouty face when I look up at him, and why does he have to be so damned cute?
“If you can be quiet, I’ll blow you.”
His eyes widen, and he rolls over on his back, stripping his underwear off simultaneously. With a huge grin, he tucks his hands behind his head. “You may service me now.”
God help me, I love this man. Maybe I love him a little too hard since I have to stop twice because of the noises he’s making. By the time I make him come, he’s resorted to putting a pillow over his head, and I can’t help the satisfied smile on my face when I toss it aside.
“Always an overachiever,” he says.
“I love making you lose control.”
He pulls me into his arms. “I’m always out of control around you.”
It’s late when his phone buzzes, but neither of us are asleep. He checks it and grins over at me in the light of the screen. “Want to get high?”
“What? Now?”
“Yeah,” he laughs. “Joel and Carter are waiting for us outside.”
Why not? We quickly get dressed and creep out into the dim hallway. Owen holds my hand while we quietly make our way through the house and out the back door without waking his parents or younger brothers.
The cool night air feels amazing on my skin, and the moonlight pouring over the surrounding fields seem to make them glow. “Where are we going?”
“You don’t have to whisper,” Owen says, leading me across the field. “They’re waiting at the creek.” The look on his face is pure joy. “We always used to sneak out to smoke or drink by the creek. It’s been forever since we’ve done it.”
Voices reach my ears when we step through a line of trees, and the sound of flowing water grows. In a tiny clearing beside the creek, Joel and Carter sit on a couple of five gallon buckets they’ve flipped over. A stack of buckets sit next to a nearby tree, and Owen grabs two for us to join them.
“About fucking time,” Carter says, firing up a joint in his hand.
Owen takes it when it’s handed to him. “I thought you quit.”
Carter smiles at him, then glances at Joel. “I did. He’s a bad influence. Talked me into it for old time’s sake. You should’ve seen it, he was nearly in tears. He was being such a pussy, I had no choice.”
“Pfft. Says the guy who cried at the end of Hamilton,” Joel scoffs. Joel looks a lot like Owen, but a little shorter and heavier. Carter must’ve got some recessive gene because he’s taller than any of the others, including their father.
“I did not.”
“Please, you were weeping like a teased vagina.”
“Lina didn’t want to come?” Owen asks, handing over the joint.
Lina has been the only other woman in this sea of testosterone today. As Joel’s long time girlfriend, she was thrilled to meet me and have another woman near her age around.
Joel shakes his head. “Ah no, she isn’t smoking right now.”
It only takes a couple of trips around the circle for all of us to be stoned. They have strong weed here. That doesn’t stop Owen from noticing something is up with his brother.
“Are you guys okay?”
Joel’s lips press together before he replies, “She’s pregnant.”
The only sound for about thirty seconds is the rushing water until Owen finally speaks up. “Were you trying?”
Joel’s incredulous laugh says it all. “It was an accident. We’ve always used a condom. Had one break. We should’ve gotten a morning after pill.”
Carter says what we’re probably all thinking. “Have you guys considered…the other options? I mean, if this isn’t what you want.”
“We talked about it. We want kids, we just didn’t plan it yet. We’re in a position to take care of it. We’re going to make it work. I’m just freaking out.”
“I would be too,” Owen says. “Have you told Mom?”
Joel shakes his head. “No, we plan to tomorrow. Lina wanted to wait until she was three months along. That’s today.”
“Oh, Mom is going to lose it! A grandkid!” Carter exclaims. “She’ll be buying baby clothes an hour after you tell her.”
Owen leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “I don’t know whether to say congratulations or I’m sorry,” he confesses. “How are you feeling about it?”
Joel runs a hand through his hair. “Let’s go with congratulations. Once I
stop feeling like I might throw up, I’m sure I’ll be more excited.”
Owen gets up and hugs his brother. “Congratulations.”
A lump grows in my throat as I watch Carter do the same. It was so simple. He told them what was going on, and they supported him. No judgment. No admonishment for not planning better. Just love.
I’ve stayed quiet during this family moment, but I congratulate him as well.
Joel lights another joint, and we’re about halfway through it when we start walking back toward the house. I’m not sure about them, but I’m so stoned all I can do is look around and take in the moonlit scene. Everything is beautiful.
Carter is also gazing at the sky. “Do you think there’s sex after you die?”
Yeah, he’s just as high as me.
“Depends on your mortician,” Joel says.
“Oh my god. Gross!” I cry, covering my mouth. Owen isn’t the only funny one in his family.
As we reach the edge of the backyard, Owen blurts, “I’m starving.” As soon as he says it, I am too. Munchies are brutal.
“Let’s raid the kitchen,” Carter suggests. “I want some ice cream.”
“Keep the news just between us until we tell Mom,” Joel reminds us.
Owen slings his arm around my neck, and I hold his hand. “Dude, if it’s a boy, you should name him Odysseus. Because he made it through the Trojan wall.”
“Shh,” Joel shushes us. “We don’t want to wake anyone.”
We creep in through the back door and down the hall to the kitchen. Owen cuts both of us a slice of cherry pie, and we sit at the table to eat while his brothers get their food.
Here’s the thing, high people aren’t quiet. Especially when Carter opens the freezer over the fridge and a chunk of meat falls onto his foot. “Ow,” he hisses. He bends to pick it up, stands up, and hits his head on the open freezer door. “Ah! Fuck!”
We may have been able to control the volume of our laughter over that first hit, but we all lose it at the second. Which is probably why their Dad comes in to see what’s going on. Alan Wright is a stocky guy in his late fifties with a quick smile and easygoing attitude.