Page 75

He frowned. He clearly didn’t like the idea of me leaving on my own. I didn’t want to wait around for a chaperone, though. This was family business, not clan business.

“All right,” Stephan said finally, with a sigh. “But you’ll call if you need anything? Anything at all?”

“I will. I promise.”

I pulledup the gravel driveway of my mother’s small cabin tucked into the woods. At least only her car was there, and not some random man’s. I knocked on the door, and when there was no answer, I pushed it open and stepped inside. “Mom? I’m here.”

Mom hustled down the stairs. She looked frazzled, dressed in jeans and a big hoodie that I’d never seen before—maybe one of those random men’s. There were dark circles under her eyes. “There you are! Finally!”

I glanced toward the kitchen. It was a mess of wine bottles, and the coffeemaker looked like it hadn’t been touched since I left. I wanted a cup of coffee, but I was a little afraid of what might be growing in it. “What’s so urgent that you wanted to see me today?”

Mom sighed. “It’s about your father.”

My heart sank. How stupid was I? It had been ridiculous to think she might have wanted toapologize.Once again, I’d set myself up for disappointment. My mother didn’t care when she hurt me. Sometimes I wondered if she even noticed.

She sat down on the couch and waved me over to join her. Hesitantly, I perched on the edge of the cushion at the other end. I definitely wasn’t about to get comfortable with her. “What about Dad?”

We didn’t really talk about Dad, not since he’d passed away two years ago. The heart attack had been sudden, and it had been hard on Dylan and me both. Mom hadn’t exactly been a pillar of support, and I wasn’t eager to relive those hard months right after his death.

“So,” Mom said with an eager glint in her eye. “I got a call from a lawyer recently. It was about the estate.”

I raised my eyebrows. “The estate? Mom, I’m the executor of the estate. You know that. And you know most of it is in a trust fund for Dylan.” The wheels began to turn in my mind. “Who was this lawyer? Why did they reach out to you? Is this another ambulance chaser?”

Mom pursed her lips slightly and cut her gaze to the side. It was an expression I knew well. She was hiding something.

“Mom, how do youreallyknow this lawyer?”

“Fine.” She huffed. “I’ve been seeing him, and it came up in conversation.”

“Dad’swillcame up in conversation with your date?”

“Well, he thought it was strange that your father left everything to you when he and I were legally married.”

I crossed my arms and met her gaze. I raised my eyebrows slightly and let the silence draw out between us.

She lasted a grand fifteen seconds—that was about as much silence as she could ever stand. “I’m just curious,” she said loudly. Defensively. And was thatboozeI smelled on her breath? This early? “I know your father had a large estate, and I don’t see what one single woman could do with all of it. Plus, I know the trust fund was set up so you could gain access when Dylan had his first shift, so…”

My stomach roiled. “You want access to his trust fund?”

“I’m just curious,” she said sharply, “as to how much money I can expect to see from the fund.”

“Expect?” I echoed. “You’re expecting money? Regularly?”

“It’s only fair.”

The nausea and disappointment morphed into anger. “Why, exactly, would that befair, Mom?”

“Because I’m your mother! Half of that estate is rightfully mine!”

“You were barely a mother to me,” I shot back. “You weren’t around at all when I was a kid. Dad was the one who raised me. Dad helped raise Dylan, too. The only reason he never divorced you was to ensure you didn’t try to get custody for exactly this reason—the money.”

Mom’s jaw dropped. “How dare you?—”

“Stop it,” I said. “I’ve had enough. I’ve put up with so much from you. The absence, the drinking, the men… But you’ve gone too far. I’m sick of it.”

“Harley—”

I got up. “You never gave a shit about me or Dylan. Not really. You only care about the money. You only ever cared about yourself. If you thought you could invite me over here to bully me into giving up money that belongs to Dylan…” I scoffed and rolled my eyes. “I’m not a kid anymore, Mom.”