Free Breathless by Heather C. Hudak

butcher. They were laughing at something random, and I couldn’t help but notice how she touched his arm playfully. Was my mom flirting? Just a few years ago, such an interaction would likely have sent me into a tantrum right there in the middle of the store, but today, I just smiled. Over the past two days, my mood had lightened considerably, and while we still needed to make major adjustments to our jilted relationship, I was starting to see her in a new light. She deserved happiness. I couldn’t expect her to sit around and pine over her lost love while I forged a new friendship—and hopefully more, I was quickly realizing—with Chaseyn.
     
    Mid-sentence, my mom straightened to perfect posture and said a stern goodbye to the man with whom, just a moment ago, she had engaged in a friendly chat. “Kevin” was embroidered in bright red letters over the breast pocket of his white coveralls. It was a good, solid name; the name of a hard-working man who garnered respect, I imagined. His smile dropped at her dramatic change in behavior. Suddenly, I realized the problem. It was me. She had seen me coming in her peripheral vision.
     
    “ Mom,” I said, trying to sound overly happy, approving. “Who’s your friend?”
     
    Earlier, she had worked hard to seek answers from me about Chaseyn. Now, it was my turn to repay the favor. Her back turned to the counter, and she rolled her eyes at me. I winked in response.
     
    “ Lia, this is Kevin. Kevin, this is my daughter,” she said reluctantly.
     
    “ Lia! It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Your mom has told me so much about you,” he said, extending his hand to take mine in a firm grasp.
     
    What had appeared to be an innocent exchange between two strangers quickly turned into an uncomfortable situation. If he had heard about me, it indicated that my mom and Kevin had spoken before. I wondered what else they may have done before—dinner. A movie, perhaps? Was that why she had been out late so many nights recently? Had she been lying to me about working double shifts? I was sad at the thought that she felt she needed to hide her happiness from me. At the same time, I knew I would no longer be on house arrest. If she had been lying to me, she had no right to keep me confined.
     
    She looked at me and shrugged.
     
    “ Kevin, would you like to join us for dinner,” I asked shamelessly. Two could play at this game. I gave my mom another wink, turned on my heel, and walked away. She had plenty of explaining to do later, but for now, I would leave them alone to discuss the details.
     
    My mom was both giddy and furious on the way home. On the one hand, she was relieved that I was more open to her having a relationship than I was when she was with Brad. She was incredibly excited about the opportunity for Kevin and I to get to know each other. She rambled on about what to wear and how little time she had to prepare herself and the meal. My mom was pretty. Much prettier than most women her age, and Kevin wasn’t shabby either. I tried to convince her that she would look fabulous in a paper bag, and judging by the way Kevin looked at her, he would be satisfied just being in her presence. It was refreshing to see her so uninhibited. Cleverly, or so I thought, I offered to make the secret sauce, but she was paying more attention than I had realized and shot down the idea before I was even finished saying the words.
     
    I tried to throw some heat in her direction, asking her why she lied to me and kept their relationship a secret. She flashed me an apologetic look and simply said that she couldn’t stand to put me through another episode like she did with Brad. She wanted to scope out the situation first to be sure Kevin was one of the good guys. She also admitted that she was more than a little bit concerned about how I might react. I wanted to be mad, but I knew she was right to have these feelings. We had such a fun day that I decided not to put a wrench in things