She gave him a reassuring smile. “You have nothing to apologize for. I left of my own free will.”
The elevator pinged their arrival on the top floor, which opened up into the hotel’s biggest, most luxurious penthouse. Normally, Raevynn would be seized with anxiety over what she’d done and her mother’s reaction, but she felt oddly calm as she walked across the marbled foyer while her mother came toward her from the living room.
“It’s about time you got here,” she said irritably. “I can’t believe you left me hanging for three days, not knowing where you were—” Joyce’s approach and words abruptly stopped at the same time as she gasped, her eyes widening as she took in Raevynn’s short locks with undisguised horror.
“What have you done with your hair?” she nearly shrieked.
“I cut it,” Raevynn said with a shrug. “Like I’ve wanted to do for a while now.” She set her bag on the couch while Glen veered toward the kitchen, giving the two of them privacy but still remaining nearby.
Her mother’s hand fluttered up to the collar of her silk blouse. “Jesus, Raevynn. You run off with someone you barely know, and you cut your hair until you’re nearly bald!” she exaggerated. “Are you having a mental breakdown? Because if you are, we can get you some meds—"
“Mother, I’m fine,” she said, cutting her off, her own irritation increasing. “And I didn’t run off with someone I barely knew. I left with Collin Donovan, as you well know, who is someone I’ve always trusted. And still do.”
Her mother’s Juvédermed lips pursed at the mention of his name, but she didn’t address Collin at all, her concern far more superficial. “I suppose we can get a wig commissioned for you to wear in public until your hair grows back. Jesus, we’re going to lose so much in hair product endorsements.”
Raevynn’s jaw dropped at her mother’s absurd suggestion, along with what she was most worried about. Money. Which had always been far more important to Joyce than to Raevynn—which was evident in the designer labels she bought, the cosmetic procedures she didn’t hesitate to schedule for herself, the high-end jewelry she wore, and other luxurious items she purchased on a whim.
“I’m not wearing a wig,” Raevynn said, her tone firm and inflexible. “As for future product endorsements, if a company doesn’t like the current length of my hair for their shampoo or conditioner line, so be it. And while we’re having this conversation, here are a few other things I’m not going to do.”
Her mother’s eyes narrowed, but Raevynn didn’t miss the shadow of worry in their depths. Joyce clearly did not like this new assertive side to her daughter.
“I’m not signing the contract for another world tour.”
Her mother sucked in a sharp intake of breath. “You can’t be serious. That’s millions in revenue.”
“The money doesn’t matter to me, and I’m very serious.” Raevynn crossed her arms over her chest. “Touring the world for nine months out of a year isn’t what I want or enjoy any longer. And it’s not something I have to do to be a successful singer and songwriter. I want . . . I need room in my life for more than just touring and performing. I want room in my life for Collin.”
“What has that boy done to you?” she asked incredulously. “Did he get inside your head and convince you this is what you have to do? To be with him?”
“No, he didn’t get inside my head. And he’s a grown man, Mother. Not a boy any longer that you can blackmail or manipulate.” Raevynn blatantly called her mother out on the past and what she’d done, but didn’t wait for the denials and excuses she knew her mother would issue, given the chance. “And what Collin gave me was the time and space and opportunity to think clearly for the first time in seven years without anyone else influencing my decisions. I’ve been feeling this way for a long time now. I just never had the freedom to step away from the spotlight and reassess my life, my career, and my future. Until now.”
Anger mottled her mother’s complexion, and it was clear she knew her control on Raevynn was unraveling with very little left for her to hold on to. “So, you’re going to give all this up for him?” she asked bitterly as she waved a hand around the penthouse, indicating the luxury surrounding them.
“No, I’m only giving up the things that don’t make me happy,” she said, though she didn’t expect her mother to understand when the other woman was too immersed in the commercial side of Raevynn’s career. “Not for Collin. I’m doing it for me.”
Joyce’s chin lifted furiously. “You’re going to regret this.”
“No, I don’t think I am.” What she’d regret more was losing Collin for good, and that wasn’t an option. “One more thing. I’m firing you as my manager.”
Her mother’s eyes nearly bugged out of their sockets. “What?” Her voice rose to a high-pitched shrill. “You can’t do that!”
“I can. And I just did,” she said, her tone gentle but without any room for compromise. “I know you don’t see it right now, but I made that decision because I love you as my mother. And that’s what you need to be for me. A loving parent. Not my manager who is in control of every aspect of my life and career. You’ve been that since I was a toddler in beauty pageants. Twenty-four years of focusing solely on me. Dictating my choices, my level of happiness, and who I should and shouldn’t be with. I think it’s time we both figure out what makes us the happiest.”
Her mother’s panic was palpable, a mixture of dismay and anger as Joyce glared at Raevynn. Without a doubt, Raevynn knew that she and her mother would have a lot more to discuss, and it would take months if not years for them to form a new type of relationship, but for right now, she’d addressed all the important things that mattered the most to her. Everything else they’d have to work out, one issue at a time. Raevynn had finally stood up for herself, and now she felt free and liberated and in charge of her own destiny.
Now that she’d said her piece, she had one more loose end to tie up. She picked up her bag and turned toward Glen, who wore a holy shit kind of look on his handsome face as he seemingly digested everything that had just happened.
“Would you mind taking me somewhere, Glen?” she asked him.
He grinned at her, that shock in his gaze warming to something akin to pride. “Of course not.” He started toward the elevator with Raevynn following behind.
“Where are y
ou going?” her mother demanded.
Raevynn didn’t owe her mother an explanation or an account of her whereabouts any longer. But she still turned around and smiled at Joyce, because she wanted her mother to know where, and with who, her heart belonged.
“I’m going to be with the man who makes me the happiest.”