Full Coverage: Boys of Fall (15 page)

Teresa shook her head and moved to the refrigerator, and Nolan knew she was about to make him a sandwich. He didn’t even think about trying to stop her. He was certainly old enough to make his own sandwich, but somehow Teresa’s always tasted better.

He wasn’t sure he could ever look at another burrito as long as he lived.

But instead of sandwich ingredients, Teresa took eggs, butter and milk out.

Maybe she was going to make him an omelet. That would work too.

“I’m just saying that a
month
is a really long time,” Teresa said, pulling the canisters of flour and sugar from the cupboard.

So not an omelet. Maybe more pie. He could be okay with that.

“I know a month is a long time, Mom.” It had been a month since he’d seen Randi too. A horrible month. Thirty days of fighting, on a nearly hourly basis, the urge to drive to Quinn, fall at Randi’s feet and beg her to just let him sit in her shop and watch her work and talk to her.

He knew very well how fucking long that was. He was going crazy. But he had to do this right.

“I can’t believe you let her drive herself back to Quinn. After telling her that she was the reason your book ended up sucking.”

Nolan loved and hated his mother’s hair salon. There wasn’t a single secret about anything in Quinn because of that place. When it came to finding out news about his old friends, and yes, Randi, he’d loved it. But damn, having his own stupid mistakes spread all over town was irritating. Clearly Randi had confided in her friends. Who had confided in other friends, who had told someone else, who had told someone else.

“Mom,” Nolan said firmly. “I did not tell her the book sucked because of her. The book didn’t—doesn’t—suck, for one thing. And it wasn’t her fault. It was me. I was the one that got sidetracked. And I know a month is a long time. Too long. Okay? But I had to do it. I had to finish the book. It was…she was…I didn’t have a choice.”

Teresa broke eggs into a bowl and added the sugar and butter. “You could have forgotten the book. You could have told your editor to shove it. You could have chosen
her
over your work.”

Nolan opened his mouth, but she turned on the mixer, the whirring of the beaters too loud to be heard.

He waited until she’d stopped it to say, “Are you telling me that you think I should have given up my book deal, paid back my huge advance, turned my back on the career that has made you incredibly proud, that is everything you wanted for me, so that I could come back and stay here with Randi?”

Teresa got the baking soda, salt and other ingredients out of the cupboard and started measuring things into the bowl. But she did answer. “Yes.”

Nolan frowned at her back. “What the hell are you talking about?”

Teresa stirred the contents of her bowl for a few seconds. “I’m talking about…” Teresa took a breath and shook her head. “I’m talking about maybe I was wrong.”

Nolan blinked. He didn’t think he’d ever heard his mother say the words I, was, and wrong, together in a row.

“What’s going on?” He narrowed his eyes. “Are you okay? Are you sick? Do you have a fever?”

Teresa set her spoon down and turned. “No, I’m not okay, Nolan. My son hasn’t returned a call to me in a month. The only contact I’ve had is an email once a week that said “I’m working. I’m fine” and then the email with your book attached. You walked away from a girl who, by all counts, is miserable without you. You walked away from a girl that you’re in love with, presumably making you equally miserable. You became a hermit for a month to write a book that you hate. Then I walk in here to find you looking like hell and that you’ve eaten the pie I need for later this afternoon. So no, I’m not okay.”

Nolan processed all of that. She was right on pretty much every count. “I don’t hate the book,” he said. “It turned out great. And I’m not
equally
miserable. I’m way
more
miserable than she could possibly be.”

But the rest was true. He’d become a hermit. He’d walked away from Randi—or at least he’d let
her
drive away from
him
. He hadn’t talked to his mom, or anyone else, for a month. And he did look like hell. He
felt
like hell.

Teresa nodded. “Good.”

“Good?”

“If you weren’t more miserable than she is, I would worry that you’re more like your dad than I thought.”

Being like his dad was the ultimate cut down from Teresa. Nolan frowned at her. “You were thinking I was like dad?”

“I worried for a little while,” she admitted. “He was able to walk away and forget everything here.”

Nolan swallowed. “What made you stop worrying?”

“I remembered how you looked at her at the Valentine’s Day dance,” Teresa said.

Nolan shifted his weight. “How did I look at her?”

“Like you never wanted to be anywhere else.”

That hit Nolan hard in the chest. He knew how his mother felt about this. But it was time to make her understand. He was home. In Quinn. To stay. “You’re right,” he said. “I never want to be anywhere but with Randi.”

Teresa nodded. “Your dad never looked at me like that.”

Nolan felt his heart squeeze. “I…I’m sorry, Mom.”

She shrugged. “That’s harder to find than you think.”

Nolan nodded. “That’s why I want to be sure to hang on to it.”

“Good.” She gave him a sincere smile. “And now it will be okay. You’re finally back and you’re not leaving again.”

Nolan frowned. “You’re
glad
that I’m back here in Quinn and not leaving?”

Teresa nodded. “Yes.”

“They have great medications now that can help with multiple personalities, you know.”

“Nolan?”

“What?”

“Be nice or I won’t help you win Randi back.”

“You’re going to have to tell me what changed your mind about all of this,” he said. He was happy for her change of heart, of course, but he was also very curious about it. “But first tell me how you’re going to help me win her back.”

Teresa gave him a grin, unlike any he’d ever seen from his mother before. “I have an idea.”

“Great. I’m all ears.”

“Well, tell me where you most want to propose to her.”

Nolan felt his eyebrows shoot up. “Propose?”

“You
are
going to propose to her, right?”

“Well…”

“Nolan.”

“Yes. I was thinking about proposing.” He paused. “You’re going to
help me
propose to Randi?”

Teresa straightened. “Randi is a wonderful person and you should grab her and marry her and never let her go.”

“You know when I say Randi, I mean Miranda Doyle? The cute mechanic. The one that you said wasn’t good enough for me a few weeks ago.”

Teresa frowned at him. “I’m starting to wonder if
you’re
good enough for
her
, frankly.”

“Is that right?” Nolan was thrilled, of course. But this was interesting, to say the least.

“It is right. And let me tell you something else, Nolan Phillip Winters,” Teresa said. “If you’re going to live in this town and just sit around and write books and columns, then you’re going to need to give some money to community projects or volunteer for some committees or something. You need to give back. We’re all a part of the people and things that come out of this town.”

Nolan was definitely going to get this story later. But right now, he needed to find Randi. He crossed to his mother and pulled her into his arms. “I love you, Mom. And I would like to have a doctor give you a full psychological workup. But I will give money and time to whatever you ask me to. Now will you please tell me your idea for how I can get Randi back?”

He thought he heard a sniff, but he had to be wrong. Teresa Winters didn’t cry.

“Yes. Let me finish these cookies and I’ll tell you all about it.” But she squeezed him before letting him go.

“Cookies?” He moved back to the table and sat down to the last three bites of pie.

“Someone ate the pie I made.” Teresa got busy with her cookie dough again.

“Why do you need to have sweets?”

“Because I have friends coming over for coffee later.”

Nolan swallowed his bite of pie hard. “You…do?”

“Yes.”

“You and Monica were going to eat a whole pie?” As far as Nolan knew, Monica Williams was the only friend Teresa had.

“I have more friends.”

“Since when?”

“Since about a month ago.”

He wanted to ask her how. He loved his mother, but he knew she wasn’t the most popular woman in town. Instead he asked, “Why?”

“Because someone helped me see that being a part of something can be pretty great, and once I started looking around, I realized I
am
a part of things here. And I decided to try to enjoy it instead of resenting it.”

“I…um. Wow.”

She looked over her shoulder at him. “It’s amazing what you miss when you don’t call or visit for so long, huh?”

Apparently.

“We have some catching up to do,” he admitted. “But we have a lot of time now. I’m here to stay.”

Teresa beamed at him. “Let’s talk about how to get Randi to say yes. You’re going to need something big. Because it’s been a
month
.”

Nolan sighed. “Yes, Mom, I know.”

* * *

“
F
uck this
.”

Randi looked around the hood of the car she was working on to see Lela standing there, hands on her hips.

“Are you okay?” Randi asked.

“No. I’m kinda pissed, actually.” Lela walked straight to Randi, took her hand and pulled her toward the door to the waiting area.

Now what? Coach had left about three hours ago and Randi had been thinking about their conversation ever since. It was past closing and everyone was gone, making this the best place to think.

“What’s up?” Randi asked, following her friend.

“Girls’ Night. And you’re coming. But there are some rules tonight.”

“Rules?”

Lela stopped by the small office where she knew Randi kept her personal belongings while she worked.

“Yes. Go in, change your clothes and meet me out here in ten minutes. We’re going to Pitchers and we’re getting tequila, and you’re not going to cry, you’re not going to leave early and we are, by God, making this a
great
night with lots of fun so that you can get back to liking tequila. And your life.”

Randi appreciated the gesture. “I just—”

“I’m not asking,” Lela told her with a firm look. “All the girls are there. Let’s go.”

Randi looked back at the car she hadn’t even really been working on, then at her friend. The women at Pitchers had been here for her for so long and, more importantly, would continue to be here for her. They were going to grow old together. Sure, Lela and Annabelle and Sadie and Paige and the others were madly in love. But they were still going to be having girls’ nights when they were eighty. They would be there with emergency chocolate anytime she called. They were going to be sharing her blanket, and her spiked cider, at football games until they were too old to climb into the bleachers. And then they were going to line their lawn chairs up by the fence like the old ladies did now. They deserved her time and attention and energy. She wanted tequila to make her think of her friends, not Nolan.

“Yeah, okay. Let’s do it. We’re going to make tequila fun again,” Randi decided. She pulled the ponytail holder out of her hair as she headed into the office. “Let me grab a clean shirt and my boots.” She always kept extra clothes and shoes in the office for just such an occasion. These occasions actually came up quite a bit.

She changed quickly and soon they were walking through the door to Pitchers.

The place was packed and Randi took a deep breath. This was home. Every single inch of this place was familiar and filled with memories. The people here were
her
people. The music was her music. And she wouldn’t trade this for any party in New York or even Paris. This was where she belonged.

The feeling of comfort washed over her and she happily followed Lela to their table, where Lacey, Paige and the rest of their gang were already sitting. Sadie arrived with a tray full of shot glasses the moment Randi’s butt hit the chair.

“Glad to see you,” she said with a wink.

“Here’s to making tequila fun again,” Lela said, lifting her glass.

Randi joined in the toast and shot back the drink. It burned in its old familiar way and she found herself smiling. Did it make her miss Nolan? Sure. But would she have skipped over the tequila body shots if she’d known how things were going to go? No way.

“Another,” Randi said, and all the girls cheered.

They followed up with beer and girl talk and laughing and thirty minutes later, Randi was feeling a lot more like her old self. Comfortable. Happy. Where she belonged.

That feeling lasted another three seconds.

“Randi.”

Randi watched her friends’ eyes widen just before she turned. Slowly. With butterflies swooping in her stomach.

Teresa Winters was behind her.

“Um, hi, Teresa.”

“Hi.” The older woman gave her a big smile. “I have something for you. I was going to bring it to the shop but someone stopped by the house and I didn’t get a chance to get there before you left.”