“I’m taking it from your silence that everything in those images reflects reality. I mean, for a moment, I wondered if Cathy was just being her usual self and trying to stir up trouble, but then I really looked. I saw how happy you look, and I know that expression because I’ve seen it on my own face when I’ve been…” She pauses as though finishing the sentence in the way I think she intended to, with the words “in love” is too much for her. “Tell me you aren’t fooling around with Randolph’s sons. Tell me this is just Cathy capturing some innocent affection.”
But I can’t.
This is a nightmare. I never wanted her to find out like this. We’re so new to this thing, and heaping family drama into the mix isn’t going to do anything to help an already complex situation. It’s been at the back of my mind that she wouldn’t be happy, but I didn’t need to worry about it because she’s so far away. I remember how judgmental Mom was when Maggie got with her foster brothers. She couldn’t see how it could be a good situation for any of them, even though Maggie’s men were happy to take on a child who wasn’t their own. They rescued Maggie in a way, but even that wasn’t enough to please my mom.
And now I’m being pictured with five men, and to make it worse, they aren’t just unconnected strangers. They’re Randolph’s sons.
“I’m not fooling around with them, Mom,” I say. “It’s more than that.”
“Oh, please,” she says. “You can’t be serious. You absolutely can’t tell me this. I’ve only just found the love of my life after dedicating over twenty years to you, and you’re happy to ruin everything for me. Randolph will be furious. He’ll break off the engagement. He’ll make you move out.” Her voice trembles at the end. “It’s going to ruin everything.”
“I didn’t mean for it to happen,” I say.
“You didn’t mean to fall into bed with five men who are practically your brothers.”
“They’re not, Mom. They were strangers to me up until a few weeks ago. We didn’t mean for it to happen, but it’s not just fooling around. It’s more than that.”
“Oh please,” she snarls again. “What do you know about more? You’ve seen your friend make bad choices, and you want to fall down the same rabbit hole. Well, I won’t have it, Cora. It’s selfish and cruel to risk my happiness in this way. I want you to stop what you’re doing.”
Mark edges closer, and I can tell he’s trying to listen to Mom’s muffled tones by the way he has his head angled.
He raises his eyebrows again, but I can’t tell him what’s going on. I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what to say. I take a step back, I flop and sit at the edge of the bed flopping , dragging a sheet to cover some of my nakedness. My face is hot with a mix of shame and frustration.
I want to scream at her that I’m a grown woman, and if it wasn’t for her, I would never have found myself in this situation. I want to yell that despite having a deceptive ass for a father, the men in those pictures she saw are good and kind and are supporting me in every aspect of my life. It’s not just about sex. It’s about so much more.
But Mom doesn’t want to hear that.
And I’m not sure that Mark does either. If he hears that mom isn’t happy with the situation, it’ll put him in a difficult situation too. The Carlton boys are already keeping this from their father but knowing how angry my mom is and ignoring it would make it so much worse.
Is Mark ready to hear that my feelings for them are already running deep? Relationships are complicated enough when just two people are involved, but with five men to gauge, I have no idea where everyone’s heads are at.
“I can’t talk now, Mom,” I say softly, my stomach dropping twenty stories and my heart aching.
“You don’t need to talk,” she says. “There’s nothing else to say. Either break it off, or I’ll be forced to tell Randolph, and then we’ll both end up homeless.”
The call clicks off then, and I lower the phone into my lap.
“What happened?” Mark asks. When he sits close to me and rests his hand on my knee, I flinch. Before he has a chance to take his hand away, I grip it in mine.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” I say. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry,” he says. “That’s your choice, honey. But I’m here if and when you want to.”
“Thanks.” Taking a deep breath, I roll my shoulders and let out a long sigh. I have no idea what I’m going to do, but for now, I’ve got to focus on fulfilling the orders from last night and dealing with Cathy.