Free Then You Happened by Sandi Lynn Page A

my arm in his. He looked at me strangely.
    “Mother, this is Cameron. He’s the escort I rented for the week. He’ll be staying in the guest house. He’s here to fulfill my needs.”
    The horrified look on her face was priceless. Rosa was holding back the laughter and Cameron’s eyes grew wide as he looked over at me.
    “Oh. I see. It’s nice to meet you, Cameron. I’m Delia, Sierra’s mother.”
    She looked at me with that stuck-up look she always had on her face. “I didn’t know you did things like that.”
    “There’s a lot of things you don’t know I do.” I winked and then took a drink of my tequila.
    Cameron was at a loss for words, but I think he got the hint when I squeezed his arm.
    “We’re just about to sit down for dinner. Would you care to join us?” I asked.
    She cleared her throat and sat down at the table. “No, thank you. I’m going to make this quick, since you’re obviously busy.” She glared at Cameron. “I have my doubts that Ava is going to make it into the final round for Miss Teenage California. She isn’t focusing and I think it’s because of a boy.”
    I reached my hand across the table and touched her arm. “Oh my God, a boy! No way!”
    “This is no time for jokes, Sierra. I’m serious. I want you to have a talk with her. Tell her that boys are no good and they just will get sick of you and throw you away, like Ryan did to you. You have experience. Share it will her.”
    Ouch . That really stung. Cameron looked at me and then looked down. I picked up my glass of tequila and finished it off. Rosa turned her head and looked at me with sadness in her eyes. She walked over and grabbed my glass from the table and refilled it. I was at a loss for words because what my mother said stabbed me so deep in the heart that I felt it ache all over again.
    “I’ll talk to her,” I said as I took another drink.
    “Thank you. I knew I could count on you. Now, I must go. I’ll speak to you later darling. Ta ta, Rosa. It was nice meeting you, Cameron, I think.”
    She le ft and Rosa set our plates of food on the table. There was complete silence in the kitchen. I couldn’t even bring myself to look at him. I was humiliated. Suddenly, Rosa spoke up.
    “Go on; eat your pasta. I’m going to go home now. I’ll see you both in the morning. Sierra, don’t give what that woman said a second thought. Brush it off, girl. You know how she is.”
    I forced a small smile as Rosa left. “Now you know why I drink,” I said as I held up my glass.
    “Water?” Cameron asked in confusion.
    I handed him the glass and he sniffed it. “Oh, that’s not water.”
    “I’ve had to live with that shit all my life.”
    I realized what I’d just said and stopped. I wasn’t about to revisit my past with Delia and I certainly wasn’t going to share it with Cameron.
    “I’m sorry, Sierra,” he said.
    “You have no reason to be sorry and I don’t want to talk about it anymore. You better eat your dinner before it gets cold. Do you drink alcohol?”
    “Yeah.” He laughed.
    “Let me guess. You’re a beer kind of guy.”
    “A majority of the time, yes. But I do like my hard liquor too.”
    “Like?”
    “Vodka.” He smiled.
    “Grey Goose?”
    “Yep. Grey Goose is great.”
    I got up from the table and walked over to the cabinet next to the sink. I took out a bottle of Grey Goose and a small glass. I held both up as I walked back over to the table. He flashed me his bright smile and I swear to God I started dripping, and not from my armpits. I poured some vodka in the glass and handed it to him.
    “Cheers.” I smiled as held up my glass and threw back the tequila.
    We started eating the dinner Rosa made for us. Cameron sat across from me and he seemed to really enjoy Rosa’s pasta.
    “This is so good. I haven’t had a home-cooked meal in a very long time.”
    “You’ll get one every night now. Rosa is a superior cook.”
    He looked across the table at me and smiled. “Can I ask you