Bitter Sweet Heart (Lies, Hearts & Truths #2)(91)

Mom purses her lips.

I cross my arms. “I’m not apologizing for swearing. I’m a grown-ass man.”

“Grown-ass men don’t sleep with other men’s wives!” she shouts.

“Yes, they do! All the damn time.”

“Just because someone else is doing it doesn’t mean you should too,” she fires back.

I suppress an eye roll. “She handed him divorce papers in August, and they’d already been separated for a year. He’s refusing to sign. They’re only still married because he’s a delusional jackass.”

Mom pinches the bridge of her nose. “Do you have mommy issues? Did I screw you up that badly?”

“No, Mom, I don’t have mommy issues. And you didn’t screw me up.”

“I just can’t believe you’re sleeping with your professor.”

So far, my dad hasn’t said much. I don’t know if that’s good or bad. “Was. Past tense. We hooked up in the summer—”

“You hooked up with her in the summer? How in the world did that even happen? You were twenty years old!”

I wish my mom would stop yelling. It’s giving me a headache. I’m also worried she’s going to stress herself out to the point where she either has a panic attack or breaks out in hives.

“It was a hookup, Mom. I didn’t know she was going to be my professor until she started teaching my class.”

“But, but . . .” She flails her hands around. “Are you telling me you didn’t even know each other and you slept together? How did she not know you were a college student?”

“Well, Mom, hookups are usually about chemistry and not conversation, so the fact that I was a college student didn’t come up. And neither did the fact that she was a professor. I’d also like to point out that you and Dad were supposed to be a freaking one-night stand, except Dad is tenacious as fuck, apparently.”

“What?” Dad frowns. “That’s not true. Your mother had an early flight to catch. And she left her glasses behind, which is the universal sign for I want a repeat.”

“I actually couldn’t find my glasses, and I was trying to get out of there before you woke up,” Mom says. “Maverick, stop trying to divert the conversation. Isn’t it against the law or the rules or whatever to sleep with your professor?”

“It’s not against the law to have sex, even with your professor. And we didn’t start sleeping together again until I wasn’t her student anymore.”

“Well, that’s reassuring.” Her voice drips sarcasm. “I don’t understand what the two of you could possibly have in common.”

“We both read Psychology Today. We like walks on the beach, pi?a coladas, and getting caught—”

“What if she’s just using you for—for sex!”

“Seriously, Mom? You think this would be the first time I’ve been used for sex? Half the girls who come to my games are just looking to hook up with a hockey player because they want the notoriety that comes with sleeping with someone who may or may not be headed for the NHL. And I’m the son of this guy.” I thumb over at my dad. “He did all those freaking condom endorsements, and I look exactly like him when he was my age. Girls hope if I look like him, I’m packing like him too. At least until reality hits. Then sometimes they cry, or scream, or run away.”

Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating about the tears, but I’m trying to make a point here, and I have had a couple of potential partners back out.

“You did ask if I had some kind of disorder,” Dad says to Mom.

This conversation is so fucking weird. We pull into the driveway. My sister’s car is there, but River’s isn’t. I’m guessing he’s at Josiah’s for the night.

“Look, I’m a student for two more weeks, and her contract with the university ends this semester because she’s a visiting professor.”

“And then what? Are you going to openly date her?” Mom sounds aghast at the prospect.

“I don’t know. Maybe? Maybe not. She’s the one who has something to lose, not me. So it really depends on what she wants.”

I hate the turn this conversation has taken. I don’t want to think about what happens after contract talks. Nashville is far—farther than I’d like. And who knows if they’ll decide I need time on the farm team first. And Clover’s moving to Pearl Bay once the lease is up on the house in Chicago. If I was sticking around here, that would be fantastic, but I have no idea where I’ll be next year.

“Would you feel differently if it was six months from now and I was an NHL player, and she wasn’t associated with the college?” I ask.

Mom sighs. “But it’s not different. It’s right now. We’re worried about you. Is this why you were so . . . morose over the Christmas holidays? Did you leave early so you could be with her?”

I don’t see the point in lying. “Yeah, that’s exactly why I left early.” I reach for the door handle. I’m relieved the dinner plan went out the window after Gabriel showed up. My mom losing her shit on me in the truck is one thing, in a public restaurant is another. “I gotta put in some hours on the books tonight since exams start next week.”

“Son.” My dad puts his hand on my arm to stop me from getting out of the truck.