Chapter Forty
Annie
When we arrive home after the shambles at the park, Dad heads straight online. It doesn’t take long before he finds them, the photographs already circulating, plastered across sites with quotes from Loretta.
‘I’m Annie’s birth mother, and we’re getting along famously.’
A chill runs through me as Dad reads it aloud.
Why would she talk to the paparazzi without even asking me if I wanted this out there? I wasn’t ready for the world to know. Hell, I didn’t want them to know at all. Now everyone will see it. Compare me to her. Pick me apart piece by piece.
“I can’t believe she did this,” Mum says, pacing the kitchen like a caged animal.
“It’s everywhere,” Dad murmurs, scrolling through his iPad, his jaw tight.
Aston wraps his arm around my shoulders, pulling me into his side. “Are you okay?”
I shake my head, my thoughts scrambling to make sense of it.
“I can’t believe she would do this. I mean…
maybe she didn’t know? Maybe she doesn’t understand how the press works yet.
Maybe she just went along with it because she didn’t know how to handle them…
right?” I glance at Mum, searching for something, anything, to support that statement.
Mum scoffs, sharp and immediate. “Annie, I know you want to think the best of her, but she knew exactly what she was doing. She wants the world to know you’re hers, and that rings alarm bells for me.
Ever since she showed up, those alarm bells haven’t stopped.
I don’t trust her, Annie, and neither should you.
You’re too forgiving.” She stops pacing just long enough to face me.
“All I know is she’s not setting foot inside this house again. ”
“Dee,” Dad says carefully. “We have to give her the benefit of the doubt until we hear her side. Yes, it looks planned, but there’s still a chance it wasn’t. And if Annie wants to see her again, we can’t stop her.”
“Like hell we can’t!” Mum snaps.
I look up at her, really look this time. Her face is flushed, her breathing uneven, her whole body tight with anger. She’s not just upset… she’s furious.
“I agree with Dee,” Aston says, his tone calmer but no less firm.
“Something about this doesn’t sit right.
When the cameras came out, she wasn’t even surprised, Lennox.
She knew they were there.” My stomach twists.
“I know she’s your biological mother,” he continues.
“But maybe she’s only here now because of what you have…
fame, money, status. Maybe she sees an opportunity.
” He pauses, then adds, more quietly, “And I noticed something else… her eyes. That glazed look. I don’t think she’s as sober as she says she is. ”
“What do you mean?” I ask, my voice tightening.
Dad exhales slowly. “I think Aston’s right. The last couple of times I’ve seen her, there were signs. Dilated pupils, slight tremor in her hands. You probably didn’t notice it, but I did.”
I shake my head, refusing to let it land. “No… no, that’s not right. I didn’t see any of that.”
“You should have told me, Colt,” Mum says, running a hand through her hair.
“I didn’t want to make things worse,” he replies.
“So that’s it?” I look around at all of them. “You all think the same thing? That she’s using again? That she sold me out to the paparazzi for attention or money?” Even Ella, quiet in the corner, gives a small, reluctant nod.
A sharp laugh escapes me, hollow and disbelieving. “Wow. What about innocent until proven guilty? What about believing that maybe she just… wants me?” I push back from the table and stand. “What if she actually loves me?”
“Lennox,” Aston says gently, stepping closer.
“The signs are there. She’s a user and an abuser, and I don’t want you getting hurt because of it.
I can already see where this could lead, and I won’t watch you spiral again.
You deserve better than that. You deserve someone who can actually give you what you need, and someone like Loretta—”
I tense, cutting him off with a glare. “Someone like Loretta?” My voice sharpens. “What does that mean? Because she’s trash?”
“That’s not what I—”
“Well, I’m half made from her,” I fire back. “So if she’s trash, what does that make me?” My chest tightens, but I don’t stop. “And if you think people like her aren’t worth anything, then maybe you should rethink being with someone who is half of that.”
“That’s not what I meant, Annie, and you know it.”
“Whatever.” I shake my head, heat rising fast. “If Loretta isn’t good enough for you, maybe I’m not either.”
“Annie—”
I don’t wait.
I storm out of the kitchen before he can finish.
“Annie!” Aston calls after me.
“Let her go,” Dad says. “She needs a minute. It’s been a big day.”
I barely hear the rest as I push into the living room, my thoughts colliding. I know what it looks like. I know every sign is pointing to the same conclusion. But she is my birth mother. If anyone should give her the benefit of the doubt, it should be me… right?
My hand moves before I can second-guess it. I pull my phone from my pocket and dial her number.
It rings twice.
“Annie?” she answers, her voice soft, almost cautious.
“Yeah. It’s me.” I hesitate for half a second, then force the question out. “Did you know they’d be there?”
“No. Of course not, honey.”
I swallow. “Then why did you talk to them? I didn’t want this public.” Silence stretches between us. “Loretta?” I press.
She exhales slowly. “Is that because you’re ashamed of me?”
My brows pull together. Maybe she’s just as unsure about all this as I am.
“No,” I say, softer now. “I just wanted this to stay between us. There are already enough rumors about me as it is. I don’t need the paparazzi chasing me over this… or chasing you. They’re relentless, Loretta. You can’t trust them.”
Another pause.
Then she sighs. “Okay… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have spoken to them.
I see that now. But Annie… I’m proud of you.
When I had the chance to tell the world you were mine…
” Her voice warms. “I won’t lie, I was excited.
You mean so much to me. I just wanted people to know I brought someone so incredible into the world. ”
Her words settle over me, easing some of the tension in my chest. “Do you think you could come over?” I ask. “Everyone’s pretty angry. I think they need to hear your side.”
“Of course, honey. I’ll leave now.”
I nod, even though she can’t see me, and end the call without saying goodbye. Ella walks in a moment later and drops down beside me on the couch. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” I rest my phone in my lap. “I just spoke to her. She’s coming over to explain.”
Ella’s eyebrows shoot up, and she bites her lip. “Do you think that’s a good idea? Mum might actually strangle her.”
A small breath leaves me. “I know Mum’s angry. But maybe it’s not as simple as she thinks. Maybe Loretta really does just want to be part of my life.”
“I don’t know, Annie. Just be careful, okay?
I love you, and I only want you to be happy.
If that means having her in your life, then I’m all for it.
But if she makes things harder for you, then maybe you need to let her go,” Ella says.
I nod slowly, taking that in. “You were pretty harsh on Aston before,” she adds gently. “He’s worried about you, you know.”
I roll my eyes, but there’s no real heat behind it. “Maybe he should think before he opens his mouth. If Loretta is trash to him, then what does that make me? And if that’s how he sees it, then I don’t know where that leaves us.” Even as I say it, something tightens painfully in my chest.
“Annie,” Ella says, her voice soft but firm. “He loves you. That’s painfully obvious. He doesn’t see you as trash. None of us do. We just don’t want to see you get hurt. That’s all.”
I nod again, quieter this time. I don’t want to be used. But I need to hear everything before I make that call. “I know,” I murmur. “Maybe I was a bit harsh.”
Ella gives a small nod. “Just make sure he knows where you stand. Right now, he’s probably freaking out that you’re going to walk away.”
My chest constricts again at that. I wouldn’t leave him. I hate being away from him. We’re fine… I just need to remind him of that.
“Okay. I’ll talk to him,” I say, before the buzzer sounds at the gate.
“But I’ll get the door first.”
Ella nods, and we walk out together. She peels off toward the kitchen while I head for the front door, pressing the button to open the gate. I wait, watching as Loretta’s car rolls slowly down the drive.
Loretta steps out of the car with a bright smile, walking toward me like nothing is wrong. “Hey,” she says.
“Hi,” I reply, my tone guarded.
She doesn’t hesitate, stepping forward and wrapping her arms around me before I can react.
“I’m so sorry, Annie,” she says quickly. “I never meant to hurt you by talking to those photographers. I hope you can understand why I did it.” She pulls back, searching my face.
My brow furrows. “You knew they were there, didn’t you?”
Her shoulders drop slightly, her gaze falling to the ground.
There it is.
“Why did you do it?” I ask, my voice tightening as I feel anger starting to build.
She looks back up at me. “Honestly?” I nod once.
“I am sorry,” she says. “If I’d known it would upset you, I wouldn’t have said anything.
But you have to understand, Annie… my life is nothing like yours.
” She hesitates, then pushes on. “I’m struggling.
I can barely keep my house because I can’t make rent.
I can’t get a job, not looking like this, and the bills just keep piling up.
” Something in my stomach drops. “I know I have no right to ask…” she continues quickly, “… but if you could loan me some money, it would help so much. I’ll pay you back, of course.
I just… I want to stay here. I want to be close to my daughter—”
“Are you serious?” I cut in, my voice rising. Heat floods through me, sharp and immediate.