“Silas DomhnallMcInroy.”
“Shit,” I let slip out under mybreath.
“Oh shit is right. You have a girlfriend and she’s staying in myhouse.”
“It’s his house, Iolana. Back off the boy,” I hear my dadsay.
“His house, my foot. Okay, out with it,” she says, even though she’s not done mumble-ranting. “Have to hear it from the boy’scousin.”
“Wait. Mason toldyou?”
“He was thefirstperson to tell me. We were with your uncle when Mason was doingthe
right thing and calling his parents first. And then I got an email from Lucy thismorning.”
“Lucy Pringle emailed you to tell you aboutEbie?”
“Are you going to tell me about her?! Where did you meet this girl? It sounds serious ifshe’s
coming to visit the farm likethis.”
“Mom. Mom. Hold on. Why are you pissed right now?” I askher.
“Because!” Holy fuck. She’s crying. I sigh and pull off my baseball hat, then rub my forehead. I don’t need this right now. I don’t need the reminder that my parents could trust me with our family business, their home, or land, but somehow I’m so fucked up on a personal level that the fact that I have a girlfriend—,a fake fucking girlfriend who isn’t even mine— sends her over an emotionalledge.
“Mom.”
“Give me the phone,” I hear my dad say, but my mom husheshim.
“I’m fine. This is your first girlfriend,and—”
“I know how old I am, mom, and I know how pathetic this allsounds.”
“Honey, no one is calling you pathetic. I’mjust—”
“Scott’s never had a girlfriend either,” I say. The girls he’s fucked on the way up don’tcount.
“Scott’s—different.”
“Right. It’s always different withScott.”
“Her name’sEbie?”
“Yes. It’s a nickname. It’s short for Elizabeth,” I say. I have to give her some bit oftruth.
“And you met heronline?”
“Yeah. I signed up on a dating site last year, but it took me a while to link up with her.” Another half truth. I did try a few dating apps, but nothing pannedout.
“How much longer is she staying intown?”
“A few more days. She’s on vacation and we left it open just in case she decided she didn’t like me when she met me inperson.”
“Of course she likes you. You’re wonderful. I want to talk toher.”
“She’s at the cannery right now. Maya and Ginny are teaching her how to make blueberryjam.”
“Oh that’s great. Tomorrow then. I want to talk to her. I want to see her. You two FaceTime me as soon you getup.”