Page 6 of Roll With The Punches
To her credit, Tracey didn’t snipe back at him. “Okay. I should be able to make the one on Wednesday. I have to work Saturday morning, though. I can’t make that one.” Then she crossed the line. “Corey’s not a bad kid, he just has…issues.”
Aaannnd we’re done.“Nope, not buying what you’re selling. He tried to take hidden video of ourdaughter. You donotget to side with that little shit over Emma. Not without it biting you in the ass. If he was six, maybe. He’s going to befourteenin a few months, so he knew damned well what he was doing. I still stand by my statement that if he tries anything like that again, Emma has orders to call 911 and then me, in that order. And Iwillmake sure charges are pressed. That means he’ll likely end up on a sex offender registry. I willnothave him doing something to ruin her life.”
Tracey was silent for so long he wondered if she’d hung up on him. “I understand,” she quietly said.
Well, that’s progress.“Anything else?”
“No. I’ll see you Wednesday.”
“Okey dokey. Laters.” He hung up on her without waiting to see if she had anything else to say.
Tracey’s in-laws were rabidly religious Christian Scientists, to an obsessive level.
They also had a lot of money.
Pat had tried to worm his way into their good graces by forcing Emma to go with him, Tracey, Corey, and his parents on the religious retreat…on a boat. Tracey and Pat had lied to Emma and told her it was a family building retreat, leaving out the religious part of it.
And on the basis of Pat’s parents’ religion, they’d forbidden Brandon’s secular and extremely prone to seasickness daughter the over-the-counter motion sickness meds Brandon had purchased for her.
The predictable results being that Emma had spent the weekend sick, and had spectacularly—and deliberately—puked all over Tracey’s mother-in-law in front of a dining room full of passengers.
After eating two bowls of red Jell-O.
Then, due to Emma being dehydrated from puking all weekend, the ship’s nurse had requested the captain call the Coast Guard to airlift Emma to the hospital.
None of this was relayed to Brandon until after the fact, when they’d returned home and Tracey had called Brandon to come get Emma after Emma had told Tracey she wanted to live with Brandon.
That was when Emma came to live with him full-time, coincidentally on the same weekend he’d first met Jeff and Stuart and started dating them.
Pat and Tracey did not have a lot of money. Pat worked as an assistant manager at a fast-food restaurant, and had been stuck in that same position for years. Tracey’s job as an office manager at a grocery store chain also didn’t pay very well. From what Brandon had garnered from Emma, Pat was always trying to scheme ways to finagle money out of his parents, usually by using her or Corey as an excuse.
Brandon had no sympathy and gave zero fucks about either Pat or Tracey, in that respect. Brandon had taken his high school education and a job as a stock clerk for a bulk warehouse chain, and worked his way up to district manager of the same chain, in charge of several locations in southwest Florida, all while also getting his college degree, and later raising his daughter as a single dad when she was with him. That, on top of buying a short-sale house and renovating it.
Pat was fourteen years older than Brandon, and far worse off in life, with no inclination to improve himself or better himself through hard work. Tracey had apparently let him drag her down to his level.
At least Emma inherited my drive to succeed.
* * * *
Emma texted Brandon during her lunch period.
Why is Mom so eager to talk to me?
He groaned. He wasn’t going to lie for Tracey or do her dirty work for her.
She called me this morning. I told her to start taking an actual interest in you. She might come to your swim meet Wednesday.
Ugh.
Brandon sympathized.Why didn’t you tell me you’d stopped talking to her again?
Because it was just a couple of days ago. She brought up Corey and I thought giving her the silent treatment for a while would give her a hint. Carrot meet stick, like you taught me.
He chuckled at that. Totally Emma.Sorry, but she’ll probably keep trying. At least she is trying.
I don’t trust HER. Or Pat.
Again, he couldn’t blame her.Then tell her that. I thought you two were starting to fix things between you?
