Dare Me Not | 18+ ✔

35. Rebound Girl (Parker)

  I'm not coming to work today, but this is not how I expect to see it when I wake up on my free Friday morning. Mom and Emma are sitting at my breakfast table, talking like besties while enjoying their teas. Did she really let a stranger in without even asking my permission? What on earth is she thinking?

Okay, Emma is not a complete stranger, but still, Mom should've asked before she invited her in.

"Oh, hi. Good morning," Emma greets me when she sees me.

Mom turns around since her back is facing me, with no guilty look on her face. "Good morning, sweetie. I thought you would sleep longer since we made it late last night."

"I hope we didn't wake you up," Emma adds, as though she reads the room better. "I came to deliver the buds, and Anna had some questions about flowers."

"Oh, uh." At this point, I realize how I must look right now: pillow face, Medusa's hair, and an oversized shirt with nothing but my boxer underneath. On the other hand, the two women are already in their perfect looks, like two princesses having a tea party. "I'm going to wash myself," I say before turning around and heading to my bathroom.

"I'll get your coffee ready!" That's the last thing Mom says as I close the bathroom door.

Sitting on the toilet, my mind runs a mile in a second. What the fuck is going on? Mom was quite nervous yesterday around Emma and now she's opened up so fast? Did she not know that Emma is not a friend? But to be fair, she also doesn't know my weird situation with Xander's ex. She must think Emma is in my circle, considering I've been working with Xander for the past months. And no, my mom doesn't know they broke up.

Mom has always adored Hunt since the day my dad introduced him to her fifteen years ago. My dad was fascinated by Xander's capability in handling tasks, even though he was just an intern back then. Meanwhile, my mom saw him as a fine young man who needed to find a perfect woman to match his qualities. I remember I got sick of hearing his name being mentioned at some point. To me, Xander was just an arrogant young man who thought too highly of himself.

I groan and turn on the shower. If Emma is still there when I'm done, I will need to have a serious talk with Mom about bringing someone in. Not that I'm going to tell her who she can befriend, but this is my place, and she should respect that. But what am I going to tell her? That Emma is a bitch because I always hate her guts, or that she saw my walk of shame that morning when I left Xander's house? Well, bitch it is.

And, of course, the bitch is still there when I'm done washing myself, but at least, she's already standing with her bag strap slinging across her body. Unlike during the formal events where I often bumped into her earlier, today she's in her casual outfit: a flowy blue blouse and a pair of slim-fit jeans. Blue must be her favorite color.

"I thought you fell asleep in the bathroom," Mom says in a teasing tone. "Too bad you've missed our fun chat, but well, another time, then. Emma needs to be at her mom's for lunch."

Emma flashes me her elegant smile. "I had a great time with your mom. She's fun," she says, giving my mom a playful glance as if they are besties already.

"She can be fun if she wants, yeah," I reply, probably a bit too harshly, but I don't care. I'm not liking this. If she likes the pretend game, I'm not giving her that, and I'm going to make it clear where we stand. "Since I'm properly dressed, I'll walk you out."

If she's surprised by my reaction, she doesn't show it. Instead, she gives my mom a quick hug — yes, a quick fucking hug — before wishing her a good day. I'm so close to losing my mind. I take my word back. I'm going to tell Mom not to befriend Emily West. Not in a million years.