Chapter 32: Mother in law

Ashley's POV

I pulled away from Tristan, staring back at the empty space where Madison was. I still couldn't believe she was gone and just like that. She wasn't the type to give up so easily so what had Tristan done? From the way she walked away, it didn't look like she was ever coming back.

I thought I'd be barging in there and exposing Madison right in front of Tristan, even if it meant exposing myself, but there he was, completely fine without me.

"So why don't I take you home?" Tristan repeated. "You know, I think that it's time that I finally meet your family. We are having a baby after all." He smiled.

I tried to mask my concern.

Not this again. After everything I'd been through, and Madison finally leaving, my family meeting him was the last thing I wanted. I couldn't have him meet my family. I wasn't even sure if he'd still be talking to me a week from now.

I hoped it would never happen.

What I needed was to tell him the truth so I can finally get myself out of this situation. This has gone on for long enough.

Maybe I should use this opportunity to come clean. But no, after the way Madison left, I needed to give him a day to cool off. I still couldn't help but wonder what had happened.

"No, that's not a good idea," I finally answered.

"Why not?" He insisted.

I sighed. What was the best way to tell someone you didn't want him to meet my family because I was lying about being pregnant and I didn't want the whole thing to blow up in my face?

"You are a ball of sweetness. My mother will use that and tear you apart. I haven't even told her I'm pregnant yet." I lied.

"Come on, I'm tougher than I look." He insisted.

"How would it sound if we just showed up at your house and said, 'Hi mom, this is the guy I'm making out with in the passageway at work, and oh, I'm also having his baby.'?" I asked in a deeper voice, my failed attempt at mimicking him.

He wrapped his arms around my waist, drawing me into his arms. "When you put it like that," he whispered. "Maybe we should start dating." He leaned in even further, his lips smiling against him.

He leaned into my neck, slowly trailing kisses down my neck, then up again to my jawline.

I moaned, my hands travelling to his neck.

What was I doing? I needed to think straight.

I regained my senses, pushing away from Tristan and taking a step back. "No, I will not let you trick me into anything with your charm." I held my hand out between us.

"I wouldn't do anything unless you wanted me to," He stepped forward, closing the gap between us.

I took another step back, glaring at him not to make another move. I didn't trust myself around him.

I wasn't scared of my mother's reaction. She could think whatever she wanted to. It was letting him in even further that scared me. I have grown attached to him. Letting him go would feel even harder if my family felt attached to him too. This lie was starting to feel a little bit more real every day. It was easier this way.

I'd have to tell him the truth a lot sooner. I couldn't keep postponing this.

Tristan sighed defeated. "Fine," He whispered. "At least let me drop you off at home." He suggested.

I couldn't say no to that. It was getting late.

I nodded with a smile.

I finally relaxed, letting my guard down.

He took my hand in his as we walked out of the hotel. We didn't bump into any familiar faces.

We used the back entrance where his car was packed.

He opened the car door, gesturing for me to step in. I did so, then settled myself into the comfortable seats.

My phone vibrated in my pocket. I looked at it, quickly reading my text from mom.

'Hi honey, are you going to be working till late? That way we don't have to be worried about you.' Her text read.

My shift ended nearly two hours ago. I stayed behind after work, contemplating what I'd do with Madison. Layla had suddenly disappeared and her calls were unattended.

'I just had to pick up an extra hour, I'll be home soon.' I texted back.

I sighed and slipped my phone back into my pocket. At least the lies will soon end.

"Are you okay?" Tristan asked as we climbed into the driver's seat.

"Yes," I smiled, putting my seatbelt on.

The engine roared as we pulled out of the driveway.

Thanks to improved traffic, it didn't take too long until we were in my neighborhood.

The car came to a stop. I had arrived at my destination.

Tristan turned to face me as I unbuckled my seatbelt. "I don't want to keep dropping you off the corner like this. It feels wrong and sneaky," he said.

"I know," I agreed.

He bent forward, capturing my lips with his.

Our lips were in sync, the kiss becoming more passionate and intense by the second.

"I have to go," I moaned against his lips.

"Don't," he whispered back.

His lips were back on mine again. I should stay away from him. My common sense and Tristan could not coexist in the same room.

I pulled away from him breathing heavily, trying to gather all my senses. "If I don't leave now, I'll never leave. It's getting late and you should drive home safely." I answered.

I reached my hand for the door as Tristan stared at me disappointed.

I emerged from the car, stepping onto the street. The weather today seemed more friendly.

I turned around for the final time, waving Tristan goodbye who waved back at me from his driver's seat.

"Ashley!" I heard a loud yell behind me.

I froze. I knew that voice.

I turned around to see my mother's angry face. She appeared out of thin air. Her hand shook, as she stared at me murderously.

Was she spying on me? But no, she probably just came from her friend's house, a block away from ours.

"I knew you were lying to me," she exclaimed.

How was I going to get out of this one?

"Is this what working extra hours looks like?" she continued.

In my own little fantasy world, Tristan would have driven away and I would have had something to say to stop my mother from overreacting. But no, Tristan noticed. He stepped out of his car, running between my mother and I.

"Good evening ma'am." Tristan greeted.

"You," she pointed at Tristan, disregarding his greeting. "I'm sure this is all your fault," she concluded.

The next thing that happened took me by surprise. It was also something that I should have seen coming.

He pulled Tristan by the collar to lower his head so she could match his weight.

She hit him at the back of his head, several times then throw some punches at his shoulder.

Poor Tristan didn't do much to defend himself. He tried to block her punches, but failed. He was barely resisting.

If I hadn't seen the seriousness of this situation, I would have started laughing.

At first, I was too stunned to respond. I snapped out of my thoughts, gathering my words. "Mom, stop it," I yelled.

That seemed to return some sense into her. She finally stopped as she shot daggers at the two of us. "I want to see both of you at home." She pointed at us.

She turned away in disgust, marching back home.

"Are you okay?" I asked turning to Tristan.

"How is she so strong?" He questioned rubbing his arm.

If he could still speak that meant he was fine.

"Are you?" He looked at me.

"I'm fine but you are about to be dead. Why didn't you just turn around and go back home?" I asked. "And now she is about to murder you. You should just go back home now before it's too late." I warned.

"Come on, I had to face her sooner or later, right? She didn't hurt anything, just my ego." He joked. "You know, if she wants, she can borrow some of my mom's meds. I'm sure she needs them." He continued.

"Watch it," I warned. "Don't forget I'm her daughter. I have a little bit of her in me. I might just beat you up as well." I joked.

"We should probably follow her before she comes back with a pan." He joked.

We slowly walked up to my house.

"She'll probably show up with a broom first, which will probably hurt more because it won't just knock you out at once," I answered.

"Are you sure you don't need therapy? I'd hate to know what else she has done to you." He teased.

"You'd end up bankrupt if you decided to take me to therapy," I answered as we stepped into the yard. "You'll be fine, at least you have health insurance." I patted him on the back for reassurance.

The front door had been left wide open.

I could only hear the sound of our footsteps as I welcomed Tristan into the house.

Mom was in the living room tapping her feet impatiently.

My mom was far more deadly when she was quiet.

Tristan and I sat down across from her. The room became increasingly silent.

I wasn't worried about me, but rather about Tristan.

Mom looked up, preparing herself for her speech.

She sighed, her anger finally contained. "Look here Ashley, I don't expect you to be a saint. You can even date twenty of him at the same time if you want to. I just don't like being lied to. I've been worried sick wondering if something had happened to you, all the while you were with this one." Mom scolded.

"And you," she turned to Tristan. "Do you always drive around dropping girls off at the corner in your employer's car?" she continued.

This was not going well.

Tristan stuttered as he struggled to form a coherent sentence. "T-That was not my intention at all ma'am." He answered. He has always projected confidence. I've never seen him like this.

"Guys with good intentions don't drop off girls by the corner. They have the decency of showing up at their door and meeting her parents." Mom snapped again.

This was a bit of my fault.

Mom shook her head in disapproval as she continued her interrogation.

Mom sighed as she tried to regain her calm. "So, who is he and what does he do?" she asked.

"This is Tristan," I answered. "He is my..."

"I'm her boss," he answered.

Mom now looked horrified, her murderous look returning.

"Is this the reason for the sudden promotion and the extra off days?" Mom concluded. "I now know all the extra hours at work and the reason for you not showing up at home the other day were all lies." She shook her head in disapproval. This was the moment when every parent realized that their parenting had in fact failed. "Were you expecting anything in return when you gave her that promotion?" she questioned.

"Not at all, ma'am," Tristan interjected. "Ashley is one of the most hard-working employees that we have. She deserves that and so much more," he quickly responded. "Just like you I'm sure, I've heard about your wonderful cakes."

Something she couldn't retort to, she couldn't say no to a compliment.

"I'll have you know, I'm not doing too bad," Mom answered, shrugging off his compliment.

"Don't be too modest. I've been begging Ashley to bring me one of your cakes but she refused to. I think that now I finally have a chance of getting it from you." Tristan smiled.

I guess I wasn't the only liar around. It was surely working on my mom. She seemed to have softened a little towards him.

"Of course, Ashley would do that," Mom shot me a look. "I do have something you can try fresh out of the oven." She smiled. She rose from the couch and left for the kitchen.

I waited until she was out of sight to speak. "Are you really going to throw me under the bus?" I whispered punching him lightly in the shoulder.

"She wasn't looking at you like she already had a grave dug up for you in the backyard." He answered. "It was you or me," he teased.

I would have thrown him another punch, but mom returned, holding a single plate of her famous chocolate cake.

She handed the cake to him and then returned to her seat.

Tristan smiled, then began to dig in.

"It's really good," Tristan said between bites. "I think it would be even better if you added a little more buttermilk and cocoa powder," Tristan commented.

Just when I thought he was doing so well. He does this. I wanted to turn away and crawl into a corner where no one would ever be able to find me.

Knowing my mother, maybe he did deserve to be in a body bag and dumped somewhere no one would ever find him.

I noticed my mom's eye twitch as her anger resurfaced. "You know something about cooking?" My mom muttered. She made it sound like a treat. As good of a cook, as she was, she never accepted any criticism regarding it.

"Yes actually," Tristan answered. "After business school, I wanted to learn as much as I could about the industry from experience, which included working with some chefs." He answered.

"Oh," my mom smiled. "I think you are right. I always felt like it was missing something. I have a new recipe I'm working on. Maybe you should come back another day. My children know nothing about cooking." She laughed.

That transpired differently than I expected.

"I sure will," Tristan answered. "I'm sure there are plenty of things I can learn from you." He added.

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" Mom suggested. "I was just about to prepare the food."

"I'd love nothing more," Tristan answered.

That, ladies and gentlemen, was the start of Tristan and my mother's newly formed friendship.

Minutes later, Tristan donned an apron, the two of them cooking and laughing together. I never knew suggesting experimenting with spices and recipes could be this funny.

I felt like a third wheel around them. Neither of them noticed when I slipped out of the kitchen to watch some TV in the living room.

That's when I saw Katy peeking from upstairs. She walked downstairs, her footsteps barely audible.

"Is anyone dead yet?" she asked.

I pointed to the kitchen where my mom and Tristan were both laughing.

Katy looked disappointed. "I was really hoping that I'd upgrade to a bigger room." She joked.

Katy cozied up right next to me. Of all the space on the couch, she couldn't leave me alone. "He seems really nice, mom just doesn't warm up to everyone. You should start working on having that baby." Katy whispered.

And have to explain why the child was born a whole month late. Lying was not going to get me out of this one. I sighed leaning my head back.

The TV didn't seem that interesting. Not when I was on edge that Tristan could just say one wrong thing and everything would blow up in my face.

I stepped away from Katy and walked to the kitchen.

Mom and Tristan were at the stove. Tristan mixed the contents of the pan while mom dished out some instructions. "You should steer it in circles, that way the butter melts perfectly into the mixture," Mom instructed.

Mom turned, noticing my presence. "He cooks really well. You should learn from him," she said. "This one is never going to cook for you." She laughed pointing with her spoon.

She looked like she couldn't be any happier. Usually, when she asks Katy and I to help her cook, we walk away and pretend we have other things to do, she had finally gotten the apprentice that she has always wanted.

She took some plates from the cupboard and stepped out to prepare the table.

"I thought you said you hated cooking. You don't have to do this." I whispered to Tristan who was steering the pot.

"I really want to," he answered loudly. "I think that I actually enjoy cooking for the first time." He answered.

What had my mother done to him?

Katy walked into the kitchen, approaching Tristan and me. "I'm really glad that you are still alive. I had already prepared a body bag and a cover-up story for your death. But you proved me wrong." He approached Tristan. "I'm Katy by the way, I'm going to be your boss one day." She reached her hand out.

"Sounds like I'll finally have some competition," he said as he shook her hand.

"Is there any chance we can exchange my sister for you?" Katy smiled. "We don't usually get people like you around here. It's just that my family is so poor that my sister can't even afford to buy me a dress," her smile dropped as she turned to stare at the floor.

"Katy!" I cut her off. "I'm sure mom is calling you to help her set the table," I shot her a glare.

I should have known she would try to use every opportunity she could get.

"Fine," Katy sighed. She retreated, walking out of the kitchen.

"She'll do great in business," Tristan pointed out. "Why won't you buy your sister a dress? After all that money that your boss pays you." He laughed.

"Don't encourage her. My mother dropped her at birth," I answered.

Minutes later, the food was ready, I helped mom make the finishing touches on the dinner table.

"Tell me, am I finding him in a body bag or not?" I joked.

"He is alright," mom answered.

I knew that was the best answer I was ever going to get.

Tristan and Katy joined us as we all step around the table.

We spent dinner mostly talking about Tristan, my mother occasionally throwing comments to embarrass me.

"I think I should get going. Dinner was lovely," Tristan announced.

"You are leaving already?" Mom asked dropping her fork.

"I really should get going, it's getting late," Tristan said.

"Well, I have something for you," Mom announced pushing out of her chair.

She walked out, leaving for the kitchen.

She came back a minute later, holding a lunch box.

"I have some dessert for you." She handed him the lunch box.

"Thank you," Tristan answered.

We pushed out of our chairs, walking Tristan out.

"You should come over more often. It was lovely having you here." Mom pulled him into a hug.

It was like she was saying goodbye to the son she had always wanted.

"Of course, I will," Tristan smiled hugging her back. "We are practically family now. Ashley and I are having a baby together after all." He announced.

At first, I hadn't registered but my brain finally did. I knew then that I was in big trouble.

Mom pulled away, staring at both Tristan and me, dumbfounded.

My face flashed red. Katy turned away, as she walked away slowly out of the room.

"What?" Mom muttered confused.

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A/N: Thank you so much for reading. I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

Please comment down your thoughts. Do you like the story so far?