Read Online Other Side of the Wall by Jennifer Peel - Free Book Online Page A

family can be a little much,”
he whispered.
    “Scott,
I grew up in the south, this will be nothing.”
    “Thanks,
Ava.”
    His
mom spouted out instructions on what everyone should grab and we made the short
trek to my house. When I let everyone in, his mom took a quick look around.
“Now this is a home.” She looked between me and Scott. “Could you please help
my son, maybe direct him to a furniture store.”
    “I
would love to,” I said.
    I
also had some other decorating ideas for his house, which included taking down
all the pictures of Jenna. That sounded so terrible, but every time I was over
there, I felt like she was ever present and that I could never live up to her. I
was beginning to dislike her very much.
    Scott
looked down at me. “It’s a date.”
    I
wondered if he meant to say that. We never called our outings dates, but I
wasn’t going to correct him.
    Scott
followed me into the kitchen to retrieve dishes and silverware. He kept
repeating his thanks. I kept telling him it wasn’t a big deal, in fact I was
happy to do it. I liked his mom, she was a hoot. She would have made a fine
southern momma if she had a different accent. She had the big hair and
everything else going for her.
    I
had a gray farm style table with bone colored high back chairs that sat eight,
but this was the first time I came close to having a full table. Peter’s family
never ate in our home; we always had to go to his mother’s house. That’s ok; so
far I liked Scott’s family much better. His parents each took an end and I
ended up between Scott and Nick. I didn’t mind being sandwiched in between
those two men. Double the pleasure, double the fun , I thought.
    Nick
was less reserved than his brother. He was a little loud, like his mom, and fun
like her too. Nick was a plumber, like his Dad. They owned their own shop
called Langston and Sons Plumbing. I teased Scott that maybe he didn’t get the
memo on his chosen career path.
     “Nah,
Scotty was always too busy with his nose in a book or studying something with
his microscope,” Nick said.
    I
looked at Scott. “Scotty?”
    He
looked over at Nick like he should be quiet now, but Nick didn’t take the hint,
or he deliberately ignored it.
    His
mom jumped in and said how proud they all were of Scott. He was the first
person in their family to graduate from college, and for him to receive his
doctorate was just icing on the cake.
    She
grinned at me. “You must be pretty smart too, to be a nurse and all.”
    “She’s
not just a nurse – she has an advanced degree.” Scott said proudly.
    I
was touched and caught off guard by his addition.
    “Well,”
his mom said. “Smart and beautiful.”
    Nick
caught my attention. “What do you think of dating younger men?”
    I
chuckled. “How young?”
    He
grinned impishly. “Like twenty seven.”
    I
smiled. “Aren’t you twenty seven?”
    “You
know… I am,” he said wickedly.
    Scott
abruptly got up. “I need some more to drink. Ava, do you want some more water?”
    I
looked up at him. He didn’t look happy. “Um, sure. Thank you.”
    As
he walked past Nick, he unexpectedly smacked him in the back of the head. “Don’t
even think about it.”
    Nick
rubbed the back of his head, but he still had a smile on his face when he
looked over to me and winked.
    Their
mom pointed her finger in their direction. “Scotty, don’t hit your brother, and
Nicky, you watch yourself.”
    She
looked back to me. “Sorry, Ava. It’s like I raised wolves.”
    I
just smiled.
    Scott
finally joined me again as he brought me some more ice water. I thanked him,
and he looked at me sincerely. “You’re welcome.”
    I
loved his sincerity. Nick was fun and all, but I could tell he didn’t have
Scott’s sincerity, and I would take sincerity any day. The meal was great. It
had all the perfect elements: good food, great conversation, and even better
company. I kept looking at Scott. I had missed him this past weekend. I also
kept having the