Page 34 of Halstead House

My spine snapped straight out of habit. “Mother?”

“Who else were you expecting?”

Anyone but her. Last time we’d talked she’d disowned me. I hadn’t been made aware that we were back on again. “Oh, well, I just had a man ask me out and thought maybe it was...” I bit my lip but it was too late. My guard had been down and I’d said more than I’d meant to.

“A date? Oh, Grace, there are plenty of single, eligible men here in Providence. You didn’t need to run away to find someone. In fact, I’ve had a few in mind...”

“No, Mother, no.” I hurried to get that thought out of her head.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure.” Truly, I did not want her list of eligible bachelors. I wasn’t in the market for a bow-tied yes-man who’d flow right along with her plans.

“How is it that you’ve been down there for such a short amount of time and you’re dating, but you never date here at home?” she asked.

“Maybe the men in Providence are idiots?” I tried to joke.

“Or maybe you’re trying to be someone else and lying to the men there,” Mother replied. Ouch. I felt a stab in my stomach, but said nothing. “How am I to know what you’re up to? You never call and I haven’t seen any pictures at all. For all I know you’ve dyed your hair black and started dressing like a floozy.”

“I’m still me,” I said.

“Hmm...I should hope so.” Mother made another noise but didn’t say any more about that particular topic. “I’ve decided that I’m not all that surprised that you’ve decided to stay until June. You’ve been enamored of that house ever since Mrs. Reed told you her fairy tales. She filled your head with fluff and nonsense. What a complete waste of time. I can’t imagine that the house is half as wonderful as she led you to believe. If by some chance it is, they’re going to see you as a gold-digging upstart trying to claim a connection to a family that isn’t even yours. I hope you haven’t totally embarrassed yourself yet.” She was really getting a head of steam. “Never mind, of course you have. Dating around the island like you are, you’re probably making a name for yourself. How humiliating. Now the Halsteads really won’t want anything to do with you. I raised you better than this.”

The blows came one upon the other in a way that I couldn’t seem to handle. I’d been gradually letting my wall down, releasing chunks of the protection I’d so meticulously built. Her arrows were finding the cracks. They stung more than they had since I’d been too young to know that mothers could hurt you.

Tears of humiliation and defeat filled my eyes. Her voice echoed in the secret places of my heart. I understood that she was spouting lies and manipulations, but I was unable to pull up the slick glass shield I’d often used to let them slide off.

Alone, in the darkness, sitting on a bench in the garden of my dream house, I let the tears fall. She couldn’t see me. As long as I was able to keep myself from making any noise she would have no idea that I was upset. I was an expert at the silent cry.

“What are you planning to do until June?” she said as her tirade ended.

I filled my lungs with a slow breath and released it silently, gaining control of my voice before I spoke. While tears still made tracks down my face, my voice was steady.

“I’m staying in the house with the family and helping them with event planning,” I said.

“You haven’t changed your mind, then? You’re slaving yourself out for them? In hopes of what? Sucking up any crumbs they throw you?”

My throat felt dry and raw as the accusation hit. “No, Mother. I was hired on as a staff member before they knew who I was.” The slight fib felt necessary.

“Let me get this straight. You took a sabbatical from your perfectly respectful job in Providence to chase your dream, and ended up taking a grunt job on an island somewhere?” A response was not going to be necessary or helpful. “Your silence tells me everything I need to know. Well, I sincerely hope you’ll get this out of your system and return my real daughter to me at that time.”

The line went dead. She’d now hung up on me twice in my life. It was jarring. I dropped my phone onto the bench next to me before I let my head fall back and looked at the sky. The irony of her timing, and her words, wasn’t lost on me. I’d just come from a personal high—getting asked on a date—and it was as though her instincts had screamed at her across the distance to cut me down. A new round of tears threatened as I thought of all the things I wanted to say to her but never would, and of all the times that she’d managed to bring me to my knees.

CHAPTER 10

My world didn’t stop spinning for a few days after my phone call with Mother. She’d knocked me clear off my axis. I sought refuge as I had after the last confrontation: by diving in to my responsibilities as Eliza’s assistant. When I was technically off the clock I stayed on the property. I had a feeling that this adventure would end sooner than I wanted it to, and I needed to not waste a single moment.

I was in Eliza’s office on Friday morning, just before the doors were set to open to the public for tours, looking over the paperwork for the next week’s fortieth birthday party. I was happy to see that there would be no clown, and was about to ask Eliza what she’d had to say to the birthday boy, when the tour guide Steven called. A stomach bug had caught him, and while he was discreet in his description, it didn’t sound like something that would allow him freedom of movement that day.

Eliza offered her sympathies and understanding before hanging up the phone. Her thoughtful gaze met mine and I sat up straighter, as was my habit under any kind of scrutiny.

“I’m guessing you know as much about Halstead House as Steven does,” she said.

I nodded in what I hoped was a modest way, even as my inner wolf rustled in her sheepskin. “Possibly.”

“How would you feel about taking over for him today? Tours go from ten to six. They’re self-guided, but occasionally someone wants more details or gets lost—heaven only knows how.”

My stomach flipped happily at the idea. “What about our plans for today? That fortieth birthday party is next week.” I tried not to sound too anxious.

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