Good Girls Don't Date Rock Stars(36)

However he reacted to Charlie’s existence, she hoped if Travis backed out on his idea to make their marriage work, Charlie wouldn’t have to know. If Travis found out about him and didn’t pony up . . . well, she would protect her son. She always had.

She shook her head and wished, not for the first time, she could just take off and run, but she’d been doing that forever. Running and hiding. From bullies, from her dad, and, finally, from Travis and the truth.

The only time she’d ever stood her ground on anything was during that last fight with her father. She’d come home from Phoenix but waited another month to tell her parents about her pregnancy. Her mom had been quiet, sitting on the couch with her hands clasped in her lap, while her dad had exploded.

“You little fool, how could you let this happen? Of all the things you’ve been, stupid was never one of them. You’re supposed to be so smart, and yet here you are, about to make the biggest mistake of your life,” he’d yelled a foot from her face.

She hadn’t been able to stop sobbing and had looked toward her mom. “Mommy . . . please . . .”

“Don’t try to bring your mother onto your side; she’s as appalled as I am. If you think I’m going to let you live here for free after a stunt like this, you are out of your goddamn mind!”

Those were her father’s parting words to her and the last time they’d ever spoken. After that, Gemma had packed a bag, ignoring her parents’ raised voices as they started in on each other. She’d left for Gracie’s that night and stayed for a week, applying everywhere in town until Miss Addie had offered her a job and a place to stay in the empty studio above the bookshop.

Her father hadn’t spoken to her for the next five years. Her mother occasionally called or stopped by with groceries and a little money, but there was never a word from him. So many times Gemma had tried to bridge the gap between them, but he wouldn’t budge. When he’d died, she’d been so angry at him for never meeting his grandson, she almost hadn’t gone to his service. It was Michael who had convinced her that she needed to go for her own sake, not her father’s.

In his will, her father had left each of his children a small inheritance, even her, but she hadn’t touched it. It hadn’t felt right to spend his money, so she’d deposited it into Charlie’s college fund. One winter, when Gemma almost had her electricity shut off, her mother asked where her inheritance had gone. She’d simply said she didn’t want his money. Her mother had tried to make excuses for him, even after his death, that he was just set in his ways and never liked to be proven wrong. That had resulted in a huge eruption from Gemma, as she unloaded 23 years of frustration on her mother for all the times she’d sat back and let him rip into her. She’d stood there and taken Gemma’s venting until she was done. Only then had she given her any kind of explanation.

“Someday, when you get married, you’ll realize that it’s important to support your spouse in public, and that all dissension should be handled in private, even in regard to your children. As long as he never struck you, anything I disagreed with could wait until we were alone, and I could let him have it, and I did, often.” Patting Gemma’s hand, she’d said, “But I’m sorry you felt like I wasn’t on your side, because it’s not true. I always defended you; he was just set in his ways, and I couldn’t budge him.”

Despite her assurances, Gemma still hadn’t fully forgiven her mother. Especially after she’d left Rock Canyon for Boise, her excuse being that she didn’t want to live in that big house by herself. Gemma still didn’t believe her. All three of her siblings lived in and around Boise, and that had been the reason, and no other. Gemma might have been the baby, but she must have proven her independence too well.


Ms. Addie had died a few months later, and Gemma had been heartbroken at the loss of her friend and mentor. What had touched her more than anything was Ms. Addie’s generosity toward Gemma and Charlie in her will, leaving her the shop, the building, and all of her inventory. With the building paid for, Gemma had been able to save for the first time, and when her mother had offered her the house, she’d jumped at the chance to buy it.

She’d been blessed in so many ways, but now she was back in the hot seat, having to handle things she’d rather avoid.

It’s time to pull up my big girl panties and deal.

Gemma would get past this, making it through the confession and the aftermath.

A knock sounded at the door, and with a deep breath and a brave face, Gemma went to open it.

Travis stood on the other side with a wide grin. “You ready to go?”

“I hope so.”





Chapter Ten




* * *





“ARE YOU TAKING me to a biker bar?” Gemma asked as she stared at the two guys in front of the bar they’d arrived at off Highway 30, dressed in leather from head to toe.

“Karaoke,” he said, grinning.

“If you wanted karaoke, why didn’t we go to Hank’s?” Instead of driving 45 minutes away . . .

“I thought you’d prefer a little privacy, so I decided to take you somewhere no one knows your name,” he said, and she smiled.

“That was really considerate of you,” she said, wondering why she was so surprised. Travis used to do sweet things for her all the time when they were teenagers, little things to make her comfortable or happy.