Chapter 24
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Ientered my room, exhausted from last night and today.
I couldn’t believe Rowan and I had sex. Twice.
I hadn’t planned on being with him like that so soon, but it had just sort of happened.
Thankfully, I’d gone on the pill. Flopping onto my bed, I thought about everything we’d done.
My face warmed. I had no idea it would be so good.
Now that I wasn’t with him, my body craved him.
It also craved a hot shower. My hair was a mess from swimming in the lake and my activities after.
I stood, heading toward my bathroom, when I spotted my mini fridge.
Shit. I didn’t take my fake insulin this morning.
I remember putting a vial in my travel case and putting that in my bag, so I know I had it with me.
But when Rowan had woken me up, I’d been so excited to start my day with him, I’d completely forgotten to take it. I’d never done that before.
Without thinking, I picked up my phone and called my mom.
“You’re late,” she said, enunciating each word like a sharp knife she was ready to stab me with. “What’s your excuse this time?”
“Hi, Mom,” I said, ignoring her snotty tone. “It’s nice to hear your voice.” I wasn’t that late calling her.
“We need to talk.”
Of course we did. She probably planned on lecturing me about responsibility and my lack of it. “First, I have an emergency,” I said, wanting to discuss my insulin before she went off on me.
“What is it?” she asked, concern lacing her voice.
“I swear this has never happened before,” I said. “It was a total accident.” And I was not irresponsible.
“What is it, Laney? You’re scaring me.”
“This morning, I had my vial, but I forgot to actually inject it into my body.”
I heard a sharp intake of breath. “Before you utter another word, take it now.”
I put her on speaker and set my phone down. “Okay.” I went to my fridge and pulled out a vial. I lifted my shirt, placed the tip where it needed to go, and pressed the button, inserting the fake insulin into my body. “Done.” I put the syringe in my special container with the other used ones.
“Don’t you have an alarm on your phone?” she asked.
“Yes, and I had the vial with me. I just got sidetracked. I’m sorry.” I sat on the edge of my bed, rubbing my forehead, slightly lightheaded.
“How do you feel?”
If I was to ever question her about what I was taking, now was the perfect time. The problem was that I never challenged my mom. She was my mom. I loved her. I fidgeted with Rowan’s baseball cap, torn about what to do.
“Laney?”
“I feel fine,” I finally answered, too scared to broach the subject with her.
“You don’t feel dizzy or…different?”
“No. I feel perfectly normal.” The only time I’d felt strange today had been when Rowan and I were having sex by the lake.
It had almost felt like there was a chain that had been attached to the both of us, linking us together.
Not that it made any sense at all, but the feeling had been intense.
As if I were fusing with him somehow. Then he’d told me he was falling in love with me.
“That’s good,” Mom said. “If you feel off at all, call me immediately so I can assess you.”
“Will do. What about my next dose? Do I take it at the regular time, or is it too soon?”
“I’m not certain. I’ll look into it when we get off the phone and get back to you. My instinct is to say yes, take it as usual, but I want to double check to be sure.”
I took my phone off speaker and held it to my ear. “Mom?”
“Yes?”
“Can I ask you something?” I thought about how to phrase it.
Is my insulin really insulin? Why don’t I ever go to the doctor’s office?
Am I actually diabetic? None of those questions felt right.
However, I needed to know what was going on with me.
I needed to know what I was. I deserved to hear the truth from my mother, especially since she was the one keeping it from me.
Then there was the issue with my dad not being my dad.
That one didn’t bother me as much because Noah had raised me.
As far as I was concerned, he was my father in all ways that counted.
Regardless, the truth would be nice. Somehow, I felt like my parents had a good reason for keeping me in the dark on that one.
My mom sighed. “Honey, before you ask me anything, we need to talk. I had a visitor today.”
“Did the compliance team return?” I hadn’t told her about my run-in with the strange guy.
“No. A man named Caleb Ward came to see me at my house today.”
The room went unnaturally quiet, and my heart rate increased. “What?” I must have heard her incorrectly. There was no way Rowan’s dad knew my mom’s name or where she lived. It made no sense. And there was zero reason for him to go and see her.
“Caleb informed me that you are dating his son.”
I couldn’t tell from my mom’s voice how she took the news.
“We just started dating,” I explained, not wanting her to be upset that I hadn’t shared this with her.
“I planned on telling you about him when there was something worth telling.” Rubbing my forehead, I recalled Rowan saying his dad was probably at his house to talk to him about our relationship.
I couldn’t believe Caleb felt so strongly about his son not dating me that he’d go all the way to Hartford to see my mom. This was insane.
“After speaking with Caleb, he and I both agree that the two of you should not be dating.” Her words sounded final, leaving no room for discussion. She intended for this to be the end of the conversation because I never argued with her.
Only, I wasn’t the same person I was when she dropped me off at college.
Steeling my resolve, I said, “I’d like to know why you don’t want me to see Rowan.
” I at least wanted to try to act like an adult by giving her a chance to state her reasons.
Maybe she had some valid points. I didn’t think she would, but she was my mother, and I should at least hear her out.
“The two of you come from very different backgrounds,” Mom said. “Rowan is not a suitable match for you.”
“How so?” I asked, challenging her. Since she knew what I was half of, she probably knew what Rowan was. It was time for her to come clean and tell me the truth. Maybe then I’d understand why no one wanted us together.
“When Rowan graduates, he will be working for his dad on his family’s farm.
” She said the word farm as if it were a bad word or the plague, making her opinion on the matter entirely clear.
He was beneath me. “His life is already laid out for him. You need to make your own path in life. When you graduate, you’ll return to Hartford where you will work for me. ”
A laugh escaped me at the irony of the situation. It sounded like my life was the same as his. Both of us on predetermined paths chosen by our parents. “Mom, we’re only dating. I doubt it’ll last that long. We’re just getting to know each other and having some fun. That’s all.”
“There’s no point in dating someone if it’s not going anywhere,” she insisted.
“I thought that was the point of dating. To learn who I am and am not compatible with. How will I ever know what I want and what works for me if I never date anyone?” My voice had gotten louder as I talked, my agitation showing.
I needed to calm down so I could have valid arguments and points.
Otherwise, my mom wouldn’t take me seriously.
“You just have to trust me on this one,” Mom said.
“I’m still not clear why you think you can tell me who I can and can’t date.” I was twenty, almost twenty-one, an adult.
“He’s not right for you,” she said, as if that explained everything. “I don’t want you anywhere near Rowan Ward. Are we clear?”
“No, we’re not.”
“I mean it, Laney. He’s dangerous.”
“He’s not dangerous.” He’d never hurt me. Maybe this was about her getting pregnant with me in college. Since Noah wasn’t my biological father, maybe my real dad had dumped my mom after she told him she was pregnant. She could be worried something like that would happen to me.
“You don’t understand,” Mom said, lowering her voice to a whisper as if about to reveal a secret. “He’s different from us. You can’t be with him.”
“How is he different?” My heart pounded in my chest, and my hands shook. This was it. My mom was finally going to tell me the truth. I was finally going to know what the non-human part of me was.
“He’s not the same as you,” she whispered.
“Laney?” my dad said, surprising me. He never talked to me during these daily phone calls. The only time I ever spoke to him was on the weekends.
“Hi, Dad.”
“You know I don’t like to get involved in your personal life with regards to your friends. I believe you’re an adult and can make your own choices. You’ve always shown us you’re more than capable of taking care of yourself and being mature and responsible.”
“Thank you.” My heart warmed from his kind words.
“But I met Caleb. After speaking with him, I understand why he doesn’t want you with Rowan, and I have to agree with him.”
“That’s not your choice to make,” I replied. “It’s not Caleb’s choice either. That is for me and Rowan to figure out.” If they truly didn’t want us together, then they were going to have to tell me the truth.
“I understand what you’re saying,” Noah said. “Under normal circumstances, I’d agree. But Rowan isn’t normal. He’s dangerous, and he isn’t good for you.”
“Dad, he’s not a bad person. We’re just dating, and we’re not that serious yet.” Tears filled my eyes. This was the first guy I’d ever connected with and cared about. Everyone was ruining it. It wasn’t fair.
“When you’re young, things can get serious very quickly. Your mom and I don’t want you to be put in a situation you’re not equipped to handle.”
“But Dad,” my voice cracked. “I really like him.” The thought of not being with him was too much to even consider.