Chapter 34
THIRTY-FOUR
“Thank you for finally joining us,” David scoffed as I took a seat at the table. Just my luck that everyone had already found their place when I stepped back into the room. Maneuvering around the table, I found the inscribed card with my name, the elegant script almost mocking me. After all, who needed assigned seating for a family dinner?
Diane Winters, that’s who.
As soon as the appetizers were served, I zoned out, already bored by the same mundane conversation I’d heard a million times before. David’s coworkers would blow smoke up his ass while my mom pretended to be the picture-perfect wife without a single hair out of place.
The chatter died down as David’s guests, whose names I hadn’t bothered to remember, turned toward Devyn and me. “Calla…” the shorter one sneered, talking more to my breasts than me. “What is it that you do? Do you work with your father?”
“No,” I answered coolly. “I don’t work with my stepfather . I’m an assistant at a talent management agency.”
“Ah.” The man turned back toward David with a pity- filled smile. “One of those bleeding, artsy hearts, huh? I have one of those myself.” He patted my hand. “When the money dries up, we all know where you’ll turn, child.”
“Exactly,” David scoffed. “It’s all rebellion until they learn the value of a dollar.”
I opened my mouth to say something, but Devyn kicked me in the shin, shaking her head subtly. My jaw hung open in shock. She’d never been good at ignoring out their nonsense—at least when she was a kid. Now, it seemed like she’d drunk the Kool-Aid and become one of the prodigal daughters, the ones whose names meant something—unlike me, the black sheep of the Winters clan.
“It’s just temporary, Richard,” my mother interjected. “Calla wanted some independence, so we encouraged her to branch out and expand her horizons.” She lifted a brow at me, at least as much as she could with the amount of filler pumped under the surface. It was a look I knew well, one that promised hell if I embarrassed her. “We’re planning on her returning to the fold once she’s had a taste of how the other half lives.”
“I’m not so sure about that.” I tried to keep my voice calm. “Even if I don’t end up staying there long term, I’m not planning on working for David.”
My mother’s eyes narrowed in my direction. “We’ll be discussing that later, Calla.” She smiled back at her guests. “I apologize for my daughter. She’s still at that willful age where all children believe they need to find their passion. But she knows our family values well. She’ll make a great addition to David’s staff someday.”
Family values? I almost choked on my sip of wine. If I’d learned anything from this family, it would be that appearance matters more than anything, and your value is defined by the money in your bank account. None of those values were ones I wanted to emulate. As the conversation started to resume around me, I couldn’t bite back my words anymore. After years of being shoved into a box, only expected to smile and wave as the cameras passed me by, I was done.
My mother cast me out of her life months ago, so what else was there to lose?
“Actually, Richard…” I downed the rest of my wine glass. “That’s not true. In fact, I’d rather chew off my own toes than spend a single day working for David. And since I don’t hate myself that much, I think I’ll stick with my current job—the one I got without any intervention from the two of you.”
“Calla,” my mother hissed. She looked at her guests. “I apologize for our daughter’s outbursts. She hasn’t been herself lately.” She tilted her head, as if in a secret code that only the upper class knew. There’d probably be whispers later that I had a problem, something vague enough to give an excuse for my behavior without making my family look bad.
I scoffed, accepting that there was no hope of us reconciling. I’d come here with good intentions, hoping that after months apart, my mother and I would be able to turn a new leaf. But instead, all I’d gotten were snide comments and insinuations that my absence was due to more nefarious reasons than reality.
And I was done.
“You know what, Mom? That’s fine. Tell your lies, twist your truths. I don’t care. If you want to spend your life looking down on others, I can’t stop you. But I’ll be damned if I have to spend another minute listening to it.”
Staring out at the shocked faces, I stood from the table, feeling a new level of thrill for finally standing up for myself after years of snide comments and remarks. Without another word, I stepped out of the dining room, heading straight for the foyer. I paused, looking around the apartment that housed me for so many years. While I’d always appreciate my family giving me the very best money could provide, that didn’t make it a loving home, and I was tired of settling for something less than that.
Not when Theo had shown me what it meant to be loved unconditionally.
Before I could find my purse, my mother stormed into my space. “Calla Marie, what the hell was that in there? That man could have helped you secure a good future, a career, and you practically threw it all in his face.” She crossed her arms and shook her head. “What has gotten into you? You are not the girl I raised.”
“I take that as a compliment.”
She narrowed her eyes, “You will not speak to me this way. Not in my own home.”
“Precisely why I’m leaving,” I scoffed before turning to face her fully. “Don’t you ever get tired of this, Mom?”
“What do you mean?”
“This act. Constantly pretending you have it all together. Don’t you just want to scream that everything is not perfect?” I sighed, watching as her eyes widened in shock. “All of my life, you’ve tried to make me into someone I’m never going to be. I’m done, Mom. I love you, and I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, but until you can accept who I am, flaws and all, I don’t want to see you.”
“Calla…” Her voice cracked, and she dropped her gaze down to her hands. “I know these last few months have been difficult.”
“That’s the thing, Mom,” I said. “They haven’t. I thought when you kicked me out, my entire world was falling apart, that I’d be forced to come running back to you. But I figured it out, and I’ve made a life for myself that I love. Without you in it.” I grabbed my purse from the entry bench, looking at her one last time as I pressed the button for the elevator. “I want you to be happy, Mom, but I want to be happy too. And it seems we can’t have it both ways.” The doors opened, and I stepped inside. “So I need to choose me.”
I found myself in front of Theo’s apartment, barely even thinking twice when I told the cab driver the address. Not for a moment did I think about going home. Maybe it was too soon, but this already felt more like my home as opposed to my room in Devyn’s apartment.
After all the shit that today had brought, I needed grounding, the kind that only Theo could provide. A night in his arms would soothe away all the bumps and bruises of the past few hours, making me feel whole again.
As if he knew I was approaching, Theo came rushing out of the building at the exact moment I tried to push the doors open, almost colliding with me. As I took a step back, his strong arms grabbed me, keeping me from landing on the nasty sidewalk.
“Shit, baby,” Theo said, holding me out to check me over. “Did I get you?”
“Nope.” I offered him a shaky smile. “Are you heading somewhere? I can head back to my apartment if you–”
“No.” Theo shook his head. “I was coming to get you. Devyn texted that something had gone down, but I was in the shower, so I didn’t get it until now.” He stared down at me. “Are you okay? What did your mom do? ”
“Nothing she hasn’t done a thousand times before,” I sighed. “But this time, I didn’t put up with it. I’ll probably die of embarrassment about my actions tomorrow, but tonight, it felt so fucking good to say what I’ve wanted to for years.”
“I bet it did.” Theo smiled down at me. “I’m proud of you, Calla.”
“It was because of you,” I admitted quickly, feeling the color rush to my cheeks. You gave me the strength to say no, to not accept anything less than I deserve.” I placed my hands around his neck, pulling him down closer to me. “You are a good man, Theo, and finding you is the best thing that has ever happened to me.”
Theo sighed, but his smile felt off, like it was painful to hear those words come from my mouth. Alarm bells rang out in my head, already on edge because of earlier. I placed my hand on his cheek. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Theo said. “It's been a long afternoon with the partners, and my energy is spent. But I’m happy you’re here.”
His words didn’t ring true, but I couldn’t bring myself to question him, not when I was already feeling so raw. Selfishly, I needed him to hold me up right now, and I didn’t want to think about anything that could come between us.
But as he led me up to his apartment, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was about to do precisely that.