Page 86 of No Apologies
Chapter Sixteen
“Oh my God, what’s wrong? Are you sick?”
Skylar winced when her mother dropped the hedge clippers she’d been holding and rushed towards her. She’d known when she got into her car and headed to her parents’ house that this would be the most likely response. As soon as she’d gotten out of the car and her mother had stood up to face her she’d seen her face pale as concern pushed away all other emotions.
She knew she looked like hell. She’d barely slept a wink in the past forty-eight hours. She was exhausted, emotionally distraught and to be completely honest, she wanted her mommy so she didn’t pull away when she was grabbed by the shoulders and held too tight.
“I’m not sick.”
“Are you sure? You’re…”
“I’m not sick. I just…” Her voice cracked and she saw the look of distress she knew so well color her mother’s unlined face, “Can we talk?”
“Of course.” Melanie Holland nodded quickly, “You know we can always talk.”
“Is… Is Dad here?”
“No. There was a problem at one of the rigs so he went out to take a look.”
Skylar nodded, unsure if her father’s absence was a good or a bad thing. It would be easier to have this conversation one on one with her mother but her father deserved to hear it from her too. It was his money after all.
She’d spent a long time thinking about this while she was lying in Colt’s bed, watching him sleep, too afraid she’d hurt him to curl up at his side. There was a part of her, some leftover remnant of the rebellious teenage girl she’d been maybe that said it was her money and she could do what she wanted with it. That part of her wanted to keep the withdrawal she’d made earlier in the day a secret the same way she’d kept her first tattoo a secret from her parents for months. That part of her whispered that they wouldn’t approve and wanted to delay the inevitable argument as long as possible.
But another part of her, the adult, rational, reasonable part of her had won out. Yes, it was her money. Her parents had told her that for years, but it had still been a gift from them to her and she knew they deserved an explanation for why she’d finally touched it. At the very least, they needed a heads up before the withdrawal showed up on their bank statement. She didn’t want to be responsible for giving her father a heart attack when he saw the number with all of those zeroes behind it missing from the account.
She’d also reasoned that if she wanted them to give Colt a chance, give her relationship a chance, then she had to tell them what she’d done with the money. If she hid it, that was as good as hiding him, and she couldn’t do that. She wouldn’t. They needed to know he was important to her and why.
Now, standing in front of her mother, she couldn’t seem to find the words.
“Why don’t we go inside?” Melanie offered when Skylar didn’t say a word, “It’s too hot to be out here right now anyway. Come on, let’s go in the house.”
She nodded and let her mom guide her up the porch steps and into the house. Neither of them spoke but Skylar didn’t miss the questions crossing her mom’s face. Her silence was worrisome. She knew that. She’d never been a quiet child except for the times she was in the hospital, too sick and too tired to get into trouble. She knew her mother must be thinking the worst but her worry over what her mother would say when she told her the true reason she’d come kept her quiet.
Would she be mad? Angry? Disappointed? Skylar had, in no uncertain terms, paid off a known criminal with her trust fund money. Sure there was paperwork to show that she’d legally purchased a percentage of Fine Lines but that was a cover and anyone with half a brain would know that. Her parents were not stupid. They would know what she had done but they wouldn’t understand why unless she told them what Colt meant to her.
“Would you like some iced tea?”
Skylar slid into a chair at the kitchen table and watched her mother remove her gardening gloves and hat. Melanie smoothed her sleek blonde strands back and tried for a smile that didn’t fool either of them. The tension in the room was palpable.
“Sure.”
“Good. Okay.”
It would keep her mother’s hands busy and buy her a few more minutes. Skylar watched as her mom bustled around the kitchen, pulling glasses from the cabinet and then filling them with ice. As she did, she thought about how much she loved Colt and wondered if this was how her mother had felt when she first met Skylar’s father. Desperate. She’d heard the term before in the movies. Desperately in love. She hadn’t understood it then but she did now.
“Mom…”
“Yes, honey?” Melanie paused in pouring the tea from the pretty glass pitcher into the waiting glasses.
“How’d you know Dad was the one?”
“I…” Her mother furrowed her brow, “I don’t know. It was just a feeling I guess.”
“What kind of feeling?”
Melanie finished pouring the tea and then put the pitcher back into the fridge, “I loved him the instant I met him. It was like something just clicked into place inside of me. I know love at first sight sounds naïve but for us, it was true.”
“Yeah, you’ve told me that before…” She chewed the inside of her cheek as her mother crossed to the table and took a seat.
