Page 20 of Single Mom’s Undoing (Lucky Lady Reverse Harems #1)

I freeze on my knees in the soft grass. Her heels click across the stone plates of the alleyway as she comes closer. Slowly, I turn my head to look at her. The years of substance abuse have not been kind, though she might still be able to pull herself back together if she got into rehab soon.

Wearing grey pants and a white shirt, Margot looks like she’s lost a lot of weight. She’s all skin and bones. Her blonde hair is pulled into a tight ponytail, her eyes hidden behind large black sunglass. The angry twist of her lips is directed at me.

“I could ask you the same question,” I reply, my voice low, almost a growl. “This is my family’s resting place, not yours.”

“You don’t belong here. Hell, you don’t belong anywhere in this town. When did you get back?”

It’s then that I notice the bouquet of fresh daisies in her hand. I stare at it for a moment, then glance back at the ones growing on my brother’s grave. “You planted these,” I conclude. “Didn’t you?”

“They were Stephan’s favorite because they were my favorite; still are.

Each time we met, he’d bring me one or three or a whole bunch.

He always made sure I had a daisy in my hair,” she says, then shakes her head as if coming out of a distant memory.

“I’ll ask again. What are you doing here, Clara? ”

She doesn’t know I’ve been back for over a month now.

“I’ve got some personal matters to deal with,” I calmly reply. “Allow me to ask you again, as well, Margot. What are you doing here?”

Margot takes off her glasses, revealing anger and bitterness in her eyes. I know some of it is directed at me, though, for no good reason. “I loved him. Whatever you said to him, Clara…he’s not here anymore because of you.”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” I hiss, the words rolling off my tongue before I can stop them. In the span of a split second, I lose my self-control and jump to my feet, ready to claw her eyes out. “ You’re the one who got him killed!”

Margot’s eyes go wide, glistening with confusion. “Stephan took his own life. You pushed him to it. Made him choose between his sister and his lover,” she says.

There’s doubt in her voice, like she’s unsure of the truth behind what she just said.

Margot hasn’t got a clue. For so long, I thought she was involved, but the shock she’s displaying, the baffled look on her face…

she was never a good liar. I can see right through her.

She’s not faking her reaction. I’m briefly reminded that it’s one of the reasons why Stephan was so in love with her.

Despite her flaws, Margot was a bad liar.

In Stephan’s book, it was the mark of a decent woman.

“You’ve got this all wrong,” I tell her. “Trust me, Stephan didn’t drive off that bridge because of me. If anything, you bear more of the responsibility than you’re willing to admit. Leading him on, making promises you failed to keep, over and over.”

“It was complicated!” she snaps, raising her voice, “more complicated than you’ll ever fucking understand! And don’t you dare judge me! I loved Stephan. I loved him so much that I still visit his grave every other day, making sure he always has daises to keep him smiling.”

Tears roll down her cheeks.

“Momma!” Matty cries out from the bench. “Code blue!”

“Shit,” I hiss, grabbing his inhaler from my purse, then rushing to my son’s side to help him through an attack.

Margot stills, having just noticed Matty on the bench. She remains quiet, watching as I coach Matty through the drill, gently stroking his hair and listening for his breathing until it returns to a semblance of normal.

“It’s okay, baby, you’re okay,” I tell him.

“Who’s that?” Matty points at Margot.

Margot sucks in a deep breath. “What’s wrong with him?” she asks.

“There’s nothing wrong with him,” I snap. “He just has a heart condition. I suggest you leave. We’re done arguing about who belongs here anyway, and I’m too damn tired to fight.”

Margot takes a step closer, not taking her eyes off my boy.

Shivers run down my spine as I worry that she might notice the resemblance, that she might ask the same questions that Carter asked.

I hated lying to him. I don’t want to have to lie to her, too.

There’s already so much pain, grief, and resentment between us.

Dammit, I should’ve asked Jodie to stay with Matty.

“Are you my mommy’s friend?” Matty asks Margot.

She smiles softly. “We used to be friends.”

“In another life,” I quickly add. Before she and my brother got involved and dragged Bill Lockwood and Margot’s husband into the mess. Before Bill and Emmanuel killed my brother. “We haven’t seen each other in a long time. Matty, this is Margot.”

“Nice to meet you, Matty,” she replies, remarkably calm and composed all of a sudden. At least she’s respectful of the child’s presence. Yet when she looks at me, I still see it. The spite. The anger. “He’s got a heart condition, you said?”

“He was born with an underdeveloped valve, and it can affect his lungs. We’re handling it.”

“He needs surgery,” she surmises.

I nod. “And soon, he’ll get it. Stephan left us money in a trust fund. I had no idea until his lawyer called me. It’s why I came back, Margot. And I would really appreciate it if you would just leave us alone.”

Margot sighs heavily, then walks away without another word.

I don’t know what she’s thinking or what she’s up to, but I do know that this encounter will make my stay in Blackthorn Falls even more difficult. With Bill in town, it’s only a matter of time before the threat returns to my door and I’m forced to do the unthinkable.

“Momma, I’m hungry,” Matty says, handing me back the inhaler .

I kiss his tiny, warm hands and check his pulse. “Let’s make sure you’re fit for travel, little man.”

“I think I’m okay. It wasn’t that bad.” My heart swells as he tries to stay upbeat about it.

Truth be told, Matty’s gotten more used to his asthma attacks than I ever will. I plant a kiss on the top of his head and put the inhaler back into my purse.

“You’re right, you only needed a few puffs of the good stuff this time to turn pink from blue,” I giggle, making light of an otherwise unpleasant situation because it’s how we’ve learned to cope together.

“Alright, then, let’s go get something to eat.

There’s a waffle place not far from here that I know you’re going to love. ”

“Waffles? With syrup? Yes!”

He’s as excited as I knew he’d be.

“All kinds of syrup. And ice cream on top. You’ve earned a scoop,” I reply with a wink, then glance back at Stephan’s grave.

I wish my brother could be here to see Matty, to understand why I chose to run away that night instead of doing everything in my power to avenge his death and get the justice he deserves.

I’ve yet to forgive myself, so how can I ask Stephan to forgive me?