"What is wrong with you?" I whispered horrified by the unbridled meanness coming out of my mother's mouth. I knew she'd been unhappy, but I didn't know to what extent. "How can you talk to us like this?"
"How can I talk to you like this?" she laughed. "Oh that's a good one, Leah. How can I talk to you like this? After all of the crap I put up with, and you wonder why I'm angry? You children sucked the life out of me. You ruined my chances of ever having an acting career—or any career, really—and now you want to know why I'm angry and resentful."
"Mama, stop . . ." I said as I realized that Riley was still sitting on the floor in the entryway. "Please don't do this."
"You started it, Leah," she said narrowing her eyes before she grabbed the glass sitting in front of her and took a big swig. "You and that useless sister of yours. At least you stuck around to try and clean up her mess."
"Mama! Enough!" I shouted. "That's enough!"
"And that one," she said pointing at Riley who now had her head pressed against her knees. "She's headed down the same exact road as her mother. Might as well just toss her out into the streets right now. She's going to wind up there sooner or later. Might as well save time."
"MAMA! SHUT THE HELL UP!" I screamed as I turned and ran to Riley. I pulled her up off of the floor and gathered her in my arms before walking her upstairs to her bedroom. I whispered quietly as we walked, "She's not in her right mind. She's drunk, and she doesn't know what she's saying. Don’t believe a word she says, Riley. Do you hear me?"
Riley nodded, but didn't say a word. I could see the storm building inside her. She was just like her mother in that way, and I was thankful that I recognized what was going on. I sat Riley down on the bed, closed her door, and returned to kneel in front of her.
"Riley, this is not your life," I said as I took her hands in mine and gripped them tightly. "This is not how it's going to be forever. I'm going to get Gram some help, and you and I are going to have some peace around here. Do you understand?"
Riley nodded again, but remained mute.
"Your mother was a good person, and she did everything she could to keep you safe," I said as I looked up at her. The tears began to drip down her cheeks as I reminded her of how much Molly had loved her and how hard she'd fought. "You know this, right? You're not a bad person, Riley."
"Yes, I am!" she wailed. The declaration surprised me, and I hopped up off of the floor and sat next to her on the bed wrapping my arms around her. "I'm a bad person, Leah! Gram isn't lying. I got kicked out of school."
"What do you mean?" I asked. Riley got up off of the bed and walked over to her backpack. She unzipped it and removed a sheet of paper from the pack and handed it to me.
"I got suspended," she said flatly.
I took the letter from her and read over it. She'd been suspended for fighting and would not be allowed to return to class for a week. I looked down at her, feeling helpless and very alone. I saw that she had collapsed into a pile on the floor. I moved off of the bed and sat down next to her, rubbing her back as she cried.
"Riley, we'll figure it out," I said. "I'm not going to leave you. We'll figure this out, together. You hear me?"
All I got in response was a small nod of her head, but that was enough to steel my nerves. As I sat on the floor waiting for the sobs to subside, I mapped the next steps that I would take.
Riley would not be the one to pay the price for my mother's pain.
Chapter Nineteen
Jack
When I got home from work, I pulled on my running gear and went out to clear my mind. I couldn't stop thinking about Leah's lips on mine, and how badly I'd wanted to do more than just kiss her. I'd been chastising myself for not taking advantage of her forwardness, but there was something in me that knew better than to do that.
The question was: why had I held back?
I'd never been shy about sex with anyone, Sloan especially, but she was a whole different matter. I'd always enjoyed sex anywhere and everywhere I'd wanted it, so not following my desire this afternoon—especially after Sloan had gotten me worked up—was confusing. As I ran, I told myself that the reason I'd held back was because I didn't know what Leah wanted and I didn't want to risk any kind of accusations of impropriety.
"I want out of this damn business," I exhaled as I ran. "I don't need to get tied up in a problematic office romance."
Satisfied with my rationalization, I turned and headed back towards home. On the way back, I tried to come up with a way to keep Sloan at a distance. I didn't mind serving her needs every now and again, but it was going to become problematic if she started pushing the boundaries. I could draw all the boundaries I wanted, but when it came down to it, she was still an attractive woman who turned me on, and even I had limits. I came up with a solution that I thought would work and, as I ran up the front drive, I felt satisfied that I'd solved the two most pressing issues.
As I rounded the drive, I saw Sloan's car parked in front of the house and groaned inwardly. I'd been looking forward to meeting up with Brittany, one of the attractive you
ng women who'd accompanied me to the Mediterranean, at a club in Brooklyn. I figured it would kill two birds with one stone by getting me out of the house for a night of fun and relaxation and, hopefully, release some sexual tension. Sloan threw a wrench in the plan.
"What are you doing here?" I blurted out as I entered the sitting room, still sweaty from my run.
"Well, hello, darling," my mother smiled. "Look who stopped by to visit!"
"I see. What are you doing here, Sloan?" I repeated as I stared pointedly at her.