25. Chapter Twenty-Five
“You were amazing, Evie,” Shayna coos.
“The best dancer up there,” Mallory agrees.
“And that solo…” Alyssa mimics her mind being blown. “Wow.”
Evie beams under their praise before turning to me. I pull the bouquet out from behind my back.
“Are those for me?” When I nod, another smile blossoms on her face. “They’re beautiful.”
“Not as beautiful as your dancing tonight.”
“Thanks, Ms. Kelsey.” She hugs me, holding on tight while my friends head to Daisy Mae.
I squeeze her right back. “I’m always here for you, Evie girl.”
She turns to Tyler. “You said something about ice cream?”
He laughs. “I should’ve known you’d never forget about sweets.” Tyler’s eyes find mine. “Do you want to join us?”
I consider abandoning my friends because ice cream coupled with a wonderful man and the cutest five-year-old is a tempting option. But I need to put our tradition first.
“It’s girls' night.” I gesture back to my roommates.
“I knew it was probably too much to hope for.” He looks at the ground, shuffling his feet.
I shoot him a sympathetic smile. “I hope you two have the best time.”
“Thanks.” He nods his head toward my friends. “And tell them all thanks again for coming, please. It means a lot to Evie and me.” Tyler kisses me on the cheek, and I wave goodbye before meeting my friends in the car.
“You had one job, Kels.” Alyssa groans.
I stare at her. “Do you want to tell me what that job is?”
“You didn’t kiss him goodbye.” She pretends to faint. “Now we’re going to have to watch a romcom at home to make up for my lack of romance.”
“Does that mean you finally decided not to see Peter anymore?” I say, my voice filled with hope.
“Yeah. Surprise, surprise, he still doesn’t want to get married.” She runs her fingers through her blonde curls. “And don’t think I didn’t know it was you who messaged Austin to come over and cheer me up after.”
I shrug, feigning nonchalance. “I have no clue what you mean.”
“Mm-hmm.” She shoots me a disbelieving look.
Shayna glances at me in the rearview mirror before turning onto the road. “But seriously, why didn’t you kiss him goodbye?”
“I’m not going to kiss him in front of Evie when we haven’t talked about what we are.” Not to mention that I already kissed him twice inside…but my besties don’t have to know everything .
She nods in understanding. “That makes sense.”
I pull my phone out of my belt bag and gasp when I see the missed notification at the top.
“What is it?” Mallory asks, immediately sensing the change in my demeanor.
“I have a missed call from my mom.”
The collective intake of breath in the car is audible. They all know how rare it is for her to call me.
“What does she want?” Mallory wrinkles her nose.
“I don’t know. She didn’t leave a voicemail.”
“Maybe it was just a butt dial.” Shayna sounds hesitant, though still the most optimistic of us.
“Yeah.” My mind trails off, though I try to keep it from straying too deep into my childhood memories. If I let myself sit in those for too long, the sadness can feel overwhelming.
I’m quiet for the rest of the drive, only chiming in when necessary so my friends don’t worry about me. But when Shayna parks in front of our house, my stomach drops. I can hardly believe my eyes. I close them shut before slowly blinking them open, feeling like they’re playing a trick on me.
“Is that—” Alyssa gestures to our porch.
I nod, my mouth dry. “Yep, that’s my mom.”
“How does she even know where we live?” Mallory’s tone is bitter. “She hasn’t bothered to visit the past two years. So, why is she showing up now?”
“I’m about to go find out.” I take a steadying breath and get out of the car, walking slowly to the porch.
My mother stands when she sees me, holding her arms out wide. “Sweetheart, it’s so good to see you.”
“What are you doing here, Mom?” I ask, keeping my distance.
“Now, where’s the Southern hospitality I taught you?” She laughs. “Aren’t you going to invite me in?”
I cross my arms, trying to hold myself together. “Are you going to tell me why you’re at my house?”
“Can’t a mother just want to see her only daughter’s home?”
“At seven on a random Friday night without calling me first?”
“I did call. You didn’t answer.”
“I was at an event.” I internally chide myself. I don’t need to justify why I didn’t answer her call. Thankfully, I’m given a moment to breathe when my friends exit the car and join us.
“Hi, Mrs. Anderson.” Shayna’s smile is bright, but I know her well enough to tell it’s forced.
“Hello, girls. It’s been a while.” My mother runs a hand through her box-dyed hair. “And it’s Ms. McGrath now.” Apparently, she’s reverted to using her maiden name since we last spoke.
“It sure has.” Mallory glares at her.
My mother doesn’t seem affected in the slightest, obviously lacking the wherewithal to know she isn’t welcome. “Well, can I see your house?”
“I’ll show you the living room.” I step past my friends and unlock the door, ushering my mom in. All my friends follow with pitying glances that almost do me in. They move to the kitchen, where I’m sure they’ll be eavesdropping while I show my mom the living room.
“Wow, this is nice.” My mother looks around. “Very Victorian, and I like your decorating style.”
“Alyssa’s a pro at that.” I pick at the threads on the knit blanket lying across the back of the couch. “Did you need something, Mom?”
She smooths her hands along her jacket. “I only need a place to stay for a little while. My boyfriend broke up with me, so I don’t have anywhere to go.”
I bite the inside of my lip. Of course, she isn’t here to see me. It’s just because she needs something now that she’s spent all her divorce money and got broken up with for the umpteenth time.
“Do you have a boyfriend?”
I’m shocked she asked me a personal question, trying to pretend to be the kind of mother she never was.
“Kind of.” I don’t want to get into the complicated answer to that question with her.
“Do yourself a favor and end things now. All men leave, Kelsey. It’s what they do. So, save yourself and get out before you end up heartbroken.”
My stomach twists, and I’m hit with a wave of nausea. Her words stir up all the insecurities I’ve felt around dating my entire life. The insecurities I have when it comes to relationships because of her and my dad.
“So, where can I sleep?” she asks.
“We don’t have a guest room.”
“I’ll sleep on the couch, then.” She sits down. “Can you get me some water? I was waiting outside for an hour after my Uber dropped me off.”
I walk to the kitchen without another word. I’m not at all surprised to find my friends standing there, obviously listening to our conversation.
Alyssa shoves a glass of water in my hand, barely half-full, and Mallory shoves a wad of cash into my other hand.
“What’s this for?”
“Give it to your mom and tell her to get a hotel room for the night. After that, she’s on her own,” Mallory says with fierce determination. From the look in her eyes, I know she’d rather march right over to my mother and give her a piece of her mind. “She doesn’t get to do this to you. She doesn’t get to just walk in when it’s convenient for her and drag you back down with her.”
Shayna pats Mallory’s back. “She’s right. It’s unfair to you.”
I take a deep breath before walking back into the living room. I set the water on the coffee table in front of my mother and hand her the cash.
“I don’t understand,” she says, looking at me with a pinched expression.
“It’s for you to get a hotel room. You can get a good night’s sleep and then figure out what you’re going to do next, but you can’t stay here.” My chest feels lighter saying the words I’ve wanted to for so long but have never been courageous enough to until now.
“Well, I guess I’ve just been a terrible mother to you, huh? Kicking your own mother out…” She huffs, standing without even taking a sip of the drink. “Don’t come crying to me when your little boyfriend inevitably breaks your heart.”
Without so much as a goodbye, she stalks out of the room.
When I hear the front door slam shut, I crumble onto the couch, feeling numb. My friends come rushing in. Alyssa holds my hand while Shayna runs her hands down my hair in calming strokes. Mallory sits at my feet, looking like she’s holding back some strong words about my mother.
I let my guard fall, and tears stream down my face. Mallory grabs a tissue from the coffee table and hands it to me. I dab under my eyes.
“Do you want to talk about it?” Alyssa asks once the tears have slowed.
I shrug. “What is there to talk about? Y’all heard everything she said.”
“But none of it is true.” Shayna wipes a rogue tear from my cheek. “You’re different from your mom, Kels. And Tyler is different than all the men she dates.”
Alyssa nods. “He’s an in-it-for-the-long-haul kind of guy.”
“I know I’m not my mom, and thank goodness for that because I never want to be like her.” I scoff. “But Tyler’s not my boyfriend, and I don’t need him.”
“Kels.” Alyssa squeezes my hand. “You’ve been the happiest version of yourself this week that I’ve ever seen.”
Mallory sighs. “She’s right. You’ve been humming and smiling constantly. It was honestly a little nauseating.” Alyssa whacks her arm. “Ouch, what was that for?” Mallory rubs the red spot. “I was agreeing with you.”
“Calling being happy nauseating isn’t helping.”
“I was saying seeing her in love is nauseating. Of course, I want her to be happy.”
“In love?” I let out a hollow laugh. “I’m not in love.”
“The way that you talk about him says otherwise.” Shayna shoots me a sympathetic smile.
“Y’all know I’ve never planned on getting married.” I swipe away the tears falling down my face. “I can’t be in love. And obviously, with a family history like that”—I gesture to the front door—“I never should be. Love doesn’t last.”
“Love has lasted between us.” Alyssa wraps her arm around my shoulder, pulling me against her.
“Fine. Romantic love doesn’t last.”
“Just because you haven’t seen it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. I mean, think about my parents. They’ve been married for almost thirty years and still hold hands constantly.”
“Exactly,” Shayna says, then points at Tyler’s house. “And just look at how Tyler has shown up for you. He took care of you when you got the stomach bug. He showed up to save the day at your job when the car expert backed out at the last minute. He took you on a date somewhere he knew would mean everything to you. Not to mention the way that man looks at you. The look in his eyes was not at all appropriate for a children’s dance recital.” She fans her face. “But seriously, I could keep going all night.”
Alyssa squeezes my hand. “Don’t you want someone who knows you down to your core—someone who sees you and takes care of you and helps you reach your dreams?”
I grind my teeth. “I can take care of myself.”
“But would it be so bad to let someone else for a change?” Alyssa’s voice is quiet, like she’s scared to push me too far.
I can’t be like my mom and let a man control my emotions. I can’t let anything or anyone stop me from reaching my dreams. I shake my head. “I can’t. Not right now.”
And if I can’t be around Tyler, that means I can’t be around Evie either. As much as it would break my heart to upset her, I don’t know what else to do. I can’t do this. I can’t risk everything for a man.
I look at Mallory, knowing she’s the only one who could help me right now. “Can you watch Evie after school this week? Only until I find a new nanny for her.”
Mallory nods. “Of course.”
“Don’t you think you’re being a little rash?” Alyssa asks.
“Letting Tyler in and opening up to him was rash .” I ball my hands into fists. “I should’ve known better than to think things could turn out differently. He’ll walk away from me the minute I’m no longer convenient for him.”
As much as my friends and Darla might argue that love can last, I don’t think it ever will for me. I push up from the couch.
“Kels—” Shayna reaches out, trying to stop me.
I hold my hands up. “I need space and time to sort through my emotions.” Before any of them can try to convince me otherwise, I head to my room.
Once I’m alone, I fall onto my bed. Winston jumps up, licking my face before setting his head on my stomach. I inhale a shuddering breath. “At least a dog’s love is unconditional,” I whisper, running my hand along his back. He’s the only man I need.
As much as cutting Tyler out of my life might hurt now, I know it’s for the best.