Read The Consequences of Forever (1) for Free Online Page A

to get Nora involved in the Great Adam Debate. I already knew that she’d side with Hannah and Scott, naming every possible flaw Adam had. He was too old for me, too experienced, came from too wealthy a family, drove too fast in a car he had been given, not earned with his own money or hard work. Every time she started on this tirade I was tempted to point out that my father hardly fit the part of the ideal man in her own words, but I didn’t want to rock the boat any further.
                  “Are you the only one done?” She asked, reaching for my tray.
                  I nodded. I was always the first one done, whenever Hannah and I were tasked with something to do around Bella Vista. Unlike Hannah, I hated to drag my feet, no matter how much I might hate the task at hand.
                  “Good. Come in to the kitchen for a second, I want to get you started on the vegetable tray.”
                  I followed her silently into the kitchen, leaving Hannah and Scott to start a conversation full of whispers.
                  Erin was leaning over a giant pot of marinara sauce, a look of concentration on her face. She was a petite woman, shorter than me, with Scott’s curly black hair. She was nice enough, but had a tendency to be a little too nosy. She’d seemed to like me a lot when Scott and I were dating, but I’d always felt a little awkward around her since.
                  “Lainey!” She exclaimed when she noticed I was in the kitchen. She stopped what she was doing and walked over to me, enveloping me into a hug. “It’s so nice to see you again. It’s been too long.”
                  I forced a smile as Nora beamed. “It’s nice to see you, too,” I said, quickly extracting myself from her arms and turning back to Nota. “What do you want me to do with the vegetable tray?”
                  Nora walked over to where she had already chopped up and bagged different vegetables and gathered them together in one larger bag. “Just arrange them on a tray and then mix the dip together; I put all the ingredients with the carrots,” she explained.
                  I started gathering all the bags and was getting ready to head back to the dining room, when Erin started talking again. “So how is that new boyfriend of yours?” She asked, shooting me a smile that looked nothing but kind. Nora’s face hardened slightly, and she turned back to whatever she had been working on previously.
                  “He’s good,” I said, forcing another smile.
                  Erin nodded thoughtfully. “You know, Scott mentions you all the time still,” she continued. “Don’t tell him I told you, of course, but he does.”
                  “Oh.” I should have known that things could have gotten more awkward. They always could.
                  “I’m just letting you know, in case, well, with Adam going away to college next year and all. He is going away to college, right?”
                  I nodded. Nora had already asked me the same question half a million times. For whatever reason, she seemed to believe Adam had no motive in life, no intention to be anything more than the teenaged boy that was corrupting her stepdaughter.
                  “Do you know where to?” Erin persisted.
    I shook my head. Words seemed unnecessary at this point. Anything I said would probably go unheard, anyway.
                  Erin looked sympathetic. “Well, unless he’s planning on going to Haven Community, and I’m not sure the Montgomery’s would allow that, it looks like you two might be in for a long distance relationship. Simon and I had to do that for a bit, back when he was in med school, and let me tell you, it was one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do! Well, that and childbirth, but hopefully that last one is still