Even with their eldest son.
When we got inside, Mr. Lawson led me into the kitchen where Mrs. Lawson cheered as she rushed over to me and pulled me into one of her signature hugs. I smiled, reveling in the fact that she smelled like frosting. She was always gentle and kind to me, loving me like I missed from my own mother.
By the time she pulled away, she had convinced me to stay for dinner. I tried to tell her that I wasn't hungry, but Mrs. Lawson wasn’t having it. Instead, she had a plate down from the cupboard and was pulling open the fridge as she waved away my words.
“Nonsense, Cooper. We have plenty of food ever since Trenton left. If you don’t eat some, I’ll just throw it away in a week.”
“I’ll eat some more—”
“You’re pre-diabetic,” Mrs. Lawson said as she gave Mr. Lawson the stink eye.
I chuckled as I glanced around. I could hear George and Veronica tousling in the living room and contemplated going in there, but then changed my mind. I was here to see Eve and I was pretty sure I’d get too distracted if I went in there.
As if sensing my hesitation, Mrs. Lawson paused while she was dishing out lasagna and studied me. “Are you here for a reason, Coop?” she asked as she wiped the edge of the tupperware container with her finger and then licked it. She washed her hands after setting the spoon inside of the sink and by the time she turned off the water, I’d worked up enough courage to tell them that I was there to see Eve.
“Yeah, I was going to take Eve to a party,” I said slowly, praying that she’d told her parents that she was going.
“A party?” Mr. Lawson asked. He’d settled down at the table with a mug of coffee and was mid-sip as he spoke up.
I nodded. “Just some Oakwood kids. She wanted to go so she could meet more people.” My heart was pounding now as I began to realize that her parents did not know that she was going.
Mr. Lawson looked worried, but Mrs. Lawson was nodding vigorously as if she were trying to signal to Mr. Lawson to back off. “I think that’s a great idea. And you’re going too, that makes me feel better.” I saw the side glance she shot Mr. Lawson, but he seemed to calm when her last sentence lingered in the air.
Instead of fighting, he settled back in his chair and raised his mug to his lips. I let out my breath slowly as the landmine I’d just stepped on seemed to defuse.
“Head on upstairs. She was in her room last time I saw her,” Mrs. Lawson said as she nodded in the direction of the stairs on the other side of the room.
I ducked my head and made my way in the direction she motioned. Once I got to the stairs, I took them two at a time. I didn’t want Mr. Lawson to suddenly change his mind and for Eve to blame me for not going—I didn’t need to face her wrath more than I already had. Plus, I knew if they said no, she would find a way to get there and the thought of Alex helping her break her family’s rules made my blood boil.
When I got to the second floor, I slowed my pace. Trenton’s room was on the left and Eve’s was on the right. I could see that her light was on through the small crack in the door. I moved to press my back against the wall. Call me crazy, but I just wasn’t ready to see her quite yet. It felt as if I needed to prepare myself to see her. To speak to her.
I wasn’t sure when it had happened or how, but when Eve was around it was impossible to stay sane. That hard won focus, the control I was so proud of—it was all undone whenever she was around.
Things were changing in our relationship. I flinched as I remembered the anger in her eyes the other night at the academy. I’d probably ruined any chance of us being close when I’d allowed my heart to take over instead of my mind.
I was acting in ways that I’d never done before and I wasn’t sure how to stop it. Especially when it seemed like the only cure for my agitation was the one person I needed to stay away from.
Falling for her broke the promise I’d made to my best friend and I wasn’t ready to fail him just yet.
I took a deep breath and steeled myself against the onslaught of feelings and desire I just knew would bombard me at the first sight of her.
That was what always happened these days when I saw her. One minute I was calm, cool, in control. Then Eve walked into my line of sight and I was a goner.
I inched closer to her room and as I neared the open door, a voice stopped me in my tracks. It sounded like Trenton.
He was home?
I furrowed my brow as I leaned in to peek through the crack. Eve had her back to me as she sat at her desk with her computer open. Her knees were drawn up and she was twisting in her chair. Every few seconds I caught a glimpse of her screen and the grainy video of Trenton.
“I’m sorry, Eve. That sucks,” he said.
Eve nodded as she raked her fingers through her hair. “It really sucks. I worked so hard to qualify to go to the academy and now it’s like it doesn’t even matter.” She blew out her breath as she tipped her head back and closed her eyes. “It’s like, why did I even try?”
Trenton chuckled. “You’re a hard worker. I’m sure you’ll find a way back to ballet, and in the meantime I know you’ll make Oakwood work. How are you liking my old stomping grounds?”
Eve raised her head to look at the screen once more. “It’s okay, I guess. I’m heading to a party tonight to make some friends. Everyone just knows me as Trenton’s kid sister or Cooper’s…” Her voice drifted off and my ears perked as I waited for her to continue. But she never finished.
Instead, Trenton spoke. “Be careful. Parties in high school can get crazy.” I could hear the protective hint to his voice.
I knew what he was trying to say even if she didn’t. She’d been so focused on ballet these last few years, so incredibly focused on her ambitions with dance and trying to maintain her scholarship at the academy, she hadn’t had anything close to a typical high school experience.
The girl had no idea what happened at the kind of parties Holly threw.
Trenton knew it. I knew it. That was exactly why he’d put me in charge of looking out for her.
Eve sighed as she stared at the screen. “Yeah, yeah. I’ll be fine, dad,” she said.
“I mean it. You can’t trust any guys at these parties, Eve. Most of them drink.” I could hear the agitation grow in Trenton’s voice. He had the same fears that I did.
“You’re sounding like Cooper,” Eve whispered as she reached out to fiddle with the notebook that was next to her on her desk.
I stiffened at the mention of my name again, guilt gnawing at me. I shouldn’t be here eavesdropping like this, and yet when she said my name, I found myself leaning in closer.
“Cooper, huh?” Trenton said, amusement and satisfaction clear in his voice. “Well, I did ask him to keep an eye on you. Sounds like he’s keeping his promise.”
“I knew it,” Eve groaned. “You’re the reason that I now have a permanent bodyguard on my tail.”
Trenton laughed. “Hey, Coop’s a great guy. Better him than Dad.”
Eve gave a short laugh. “True.” Then she sighed. “Can I ask you a question?”
Trenton sounded as if he were talking to someone for a moment before he responded. “Shoot. I’ve got like a minute left, so make it quick.”