SCARLETT PARKER
Seven Years Ago
"Are you nervous?" Seth asked, following me around the aisles in the petrol station.
I scoffed and picked out a bag of chips to go with my sour chewy candies. "Why would I be nervous?"
"Because you've never met the mom of a guy you were dating before," he plainly stated, to which I gave him a warning look.
"First of all, Harry and I aren't dating. We're fucking and hanging out. Second of all, I think we're all aware that I don't give a fuck what anyone thinks about me anyway."
"Is that why you're wearing those shorts?"
I laughed and looked down at my less-than-modest outfit. Half of my ass might be out, but at least my cleavage is covered in my cropped T-shirt. It's all about balance. "Like I said, it doesn't matter if she likes me anyway."
He dropped the topic as we both paid for our snacks and cigarettes to last us the rest of the drive to Manchester, but I guess it wasn't completely honest of me to say that I wasn't a little nervous. I meant it when I said it doesn't necessarily matter if she liked me or not since Harry and I weren't an official couple, but I wondered what he would think if his mother told him to stop seeing me. He had spoken very highly of her in the past, so I'm sure he would trust her more than anyone or anything else.
And while I could say that Harry and I weren't dating, that didn't stop him from holding my hand for the last hour and a half that we were in the car. We had only been sleeping with each other for two months now, but he was always doing little things like that. When we were watching a movie, he'd brush his thumb over my knuckles or trace shapes on my skin. He opened every single door for me, he'd make sure I was in front of him when we were leaving a crowded club, and he was always respectful when it came to any type of intimacy between us.
That being said, I wasn't exactly anxious to be saying goodbye to him anytime soon, and as we pulled up to his house, I couldn't help but think that I should have worn jeans and a top that didn't show my bare midriff.
"Finally," Harry sighed as he parked and killed the engine.
I let go of his hand, staring at the humble home on a humble street as we stepped out of the car. It was a hell of a lot smaller than Amber and Frank's home, but that wasn't saying anything if you considered the fact that they practically lived in a museum. For some reason, I found myself relieved that it wasn't anything close to a mansion.
"Oh, I can take my bag," I reached out to Harry as he led the way to the front door.
"No, I've got it," he shrugged and adjusted the strap on his shoulder while carrying his own small weekend bag.
I shared a quick look with Seth as Harry opened the door to let us into the house, and I knew he was smirking because he could tell that I was more scared than I was letting on. And then we heard a sweet accent, followed by a sweeter-looking woman.
"Hi, Mum," Harry chuckled as she reached up to embrace him, and my first thought was that she was absolutely stunning. Her hair was dark past her shoulders, her skin appeared to be tan like Harry's was in the summer, and her sparkly blue eyes crinkled at the outer corners as she smiled a contagious grin.
"So, these are my friends Seth and Scarlett that I've told you about," he gestured to us.
"The twins!" She quietly exclaimed. "How are you, darlings?"
