Darcy was usually able to talk to her mom about anything, but sex wasn’t one of the topics she brought up freely. Feeling a tad awkward, she chose her words carefully. “I’m thinking of doing something potentially stupid.”
Carol sighed. “Is this another tattoo conversation? Because I already told you, I don’t care if you get one. Just make sure it’s not a butterfly at the small of your back. I was at the supermarket the other day and there was a woman about your age with one of those. I saw it when she bent over to get something from the bottom shelf. Oh, and her thong was peeking out of her jeans. It was horrifying.”
Darcy burst out laughing. “Don’t worry, I’m not planning to get a tramp stamp.”
“Is that what they’re called? That’s not a very nice term.”
“No, it’s not, but most of the slang these days isn’t very nice.” She bit her lip. “I’m considering having a casual…affair, I guess? Yeah, a casual affair.”
Carol’s eyes grew serious. “Well. You’ve gone out on casual dates before, no?”
“Dates, sure. But even if it’s just a first date, I still go into it entertaining the possibility that it could lead to something more. With this, I know for a fact that it won’t.”
“Why do you say that?”
She paused, thinking about Reed’s rough-around-the-edges personality. He’d already admitted to being impulsive, and she knew from AJ that he’d never had a serious relationship in his life.
“He’s not really my type,” Darcy admitted. “He’s sort of a bad boy. Has a wild reputation, doesn’t take things very seriously.”
“Sounds a bit like your father.”
She frowned, realizing her mother wasn’t too far off base. Her dad was definitely impulsive, sweeping into her life a couple of times a year with his magnetic, larger-than-life personality. Darcy didn’t think she’d ever had a meaningful conversation with the man.
“Is that why you and Dad got divorced?” she asked tentatively. “Because he was a bad boy?”
As usual, Carol’s visible hesitation sparked her curiosity. Twenty-five years since the divorce, and Darcy still knew only the bare minimum of details about what led to it. Her mother had always insisted the marriage simply “hadn’t worked out.”
Today, however, Darcy found herself coaxing for more information. “I don’t even know if you left Dad, or vice versa.”
Carol released out a tired breath. “In the end, it was my decision. But your father didn’t exactly challenge it.”
With that, Carol refocused her attention on the lasagna, heaping two generous portions on their plates, then heating the first dish in the microwave. She kept her back to her daughter, but Darcy saw the tension lining her mother’s slender shoulders.
“This wasn’t something I ever wanted you to know,” Carol said suddenly, “but I think it might be time you did.”
The ominous remark made her gulp. Darcy put down her knife and watched as her mother slowly turned around to face her.
“Your father cheated on me.”
Darcy’s jaw fell open. “He did?”
“Oh, yes. He cheated quite a lot, in fact.”
Waves of anger on her mother’s behalf rippled through her chest. “I can’t believe it.”
Carol quickly held up a hand. “No, this is precisely what I didn’t want to happen. I never wanted you to think less of him, or hate him. Stu hasn’t been the greatest father, I’m the first to admit that, but he does love you, sweetie.”
Yeah, he loved her enough to see her twice a year, three times tops. And he’d forgotten to call her on her birthday for the past four years in a row. He’d apologized for that, though, claiming he lost track of time when he was on the road. As a long haul trucker, Darcy’s father spent ninety percent of his time driving across the country and doing God knew what in his spare time.
Scratch that—she supposed she now knew exactly what he did in his spare time.
“I can’t believe you never told me. And why aren’t you angry, damn it? You never, ever seem angry when you talk about him.”
“That’s because I’m not.” Carol’s features became drawn. “I’m sad. And I blame myself, partly.”
“For him cheating on you?” Indignation boomed in her voice.
“Sweetie, I knew what kind of man he was when I married him. I thought I could change him, and trust me, that’s the worse mentality to have going into a relationship. You can’t change people,” Carol said sadly. “They are who they are, and yes, sometimes they do change for the better, but not because someone else made them. They have to decide to change for themselves, and your dad wasn’t interested in doing that. He liked his freedom. He liked being on the road all the time. He told me that when we got married, and I lied and pretended to be okay with it because I was certain I could tame my bad boy.”
Darcy bit her lip. “But you couldn’t.”
“No, and in the end, he resented me for trying to force him to settle down, and he broke my heart, just like I always knew he would.” Carol moved closer and touched Darcy’s cheek. “So my advice to you is, if you know that this man of yours isn’t long-term material, then you need to make it clear going in. He needs to know what you want out of this affair before you start it.”
“I kinda already made it clear.”
“Kinda won’t cut it, Darce,” her mother said sternly. “There’s no point in starting something you know will result in heartbreak. If you don’t see a future with him, make sure he knows it. Sex can be fun, sex is fun, but it’s not fair to lead him on, and you shouldn’t get involved with him if secretly you have expectations about it leading to something more when you know it can’t.”
“I don’t have any expectations.” She felt herself blush. “I just want a little excitement for once in my life.”
“And there’s nothing wrong with that.” Carol smiled. “If you want a casual affair, then have one. Just be honest about it from the start.”
The microwave beeped, cutting off the discussion that had become more serious than Darcy had intended.
“All right,” her mother said brightly. “Now finish up that salad before the lasagna gets cold.”
…
Reed found AJ in the walk-in cooler behind the bar, unloading a pallet of beer cases. Leaning his shoulder against the doorframe, Reed cleared his throat and said, “You have a minute?”
AJ’s blond head lifted. “Sure. What’s up?”
Reed stepped inside and closed the door, instantly enveloped by the chilly temperature in the cooler.
He’d come to work early just to have this conversation, since AJ had been too busy to meet up the previous night. Which meant that Reed’s second workshop at Darcy’s school earlier today had been pure torture. He’d promised himself he wouldn’t touch her until he spoke to his friend, and by some miracle he’d managed to keep his hands off the woman.
“I need to tell you something,” Reed started. Then he stopped. He took a breath, gathering his courage as AJ’s green eyes watched him expectantly. “I did something pretty bad. Something you’re not going to like.”