Page 184 of New Growth
“Christ! Did you hit him?” She cut me off.
El stepped forward. “No, I did. And I’d fucking do it again because he’s a bitch.” Then he addressed Ma. “Honestly lady, if this creep has been sniffing around your daughters for this long, you should be ashamed of yourself as a mother.”
My eyes widened but I kept quiet.
“Is this man with you, Elliot?” Ma asked through gritted teeth.
“Yes.”
Ma’s eyes snapped to El before looking back at me. “Are you hellbent on ruining our lives, Elliot? Ever since your father died, it’s like everywhere you go, drama follows. God. You couldn’t let us have one day? It’s Ryan’s wedding. She’s pregnant for goodness’ sake.”
“I didn’t do anything!” I snapped. “El’s right, Johnathan’s a creep. He came at—”
Ma crossed her arms. “Yes, blame everyone else. Let me guess—it’s Jonathan’s fault you don’t want to sign over your father’s house to Ryan also.”
I blinked, taken aback.Of course.
“Oh my God.” I swallowed. “It wasn’t Jonathan who put Ryan up to selling the house. It was you.”
She didn’t even flinch. “How else is she supposed to afford a baby, Elliot? How else are they gonna pay for this wedding?”
“She never should’ve even married that asshole.”
“She’s pregnant by him, so yes, she had to marry him. This family faced enough embarrassment with your last engagement. A bastard, too? Absolutely not.”
El took a step back, stunned. “Lady, you’re out of your goddamn mind.”
I turned to Ryan. Her mouth was pressed shut like she’d swallowed her voice years ago and forgotten how to find it. And that’s when it clicked. With me gone, Ma found herself a new punching bag.
“Ryan.” I moved closer, gentle now. “You don’t have to go through with this. Jonathan is not a good man. Ma can’t force you to stay with him.”
She blinked. When she finally spoke, her voice was flat, almost robotic. “I love him.”
My stomach churned so violently, I was afraid I’d throw up. He hadn’t changed. I could tell by the way she answered.
I grabbed her shoulders, searching her eyes. “Did he… did he hurt you?”
Ryan’s eyes flickered. For half a second, I saw it—something soft and scared flash behind the wall she’d built. “Elliot!” Ma barked. “Don’t be ridiculous. That’s the father of her child!”
But then it was gone. The wall slipped back into place.
I felt Elliot stiffen next to me but I didn’t break eye contact. “Did he?”
She pulled away. “Are you going to sign over the house or not?”
I stiffened, dropping my shoulders. “No.”
Her lips parted, just barely, like maybe she’d expected something different. Like maybe she didn’t want to go through with it. But she straightened. Cold again.
“Then there’s nothing left to talk about.”
Jonathan looked at Ryan, stunned, like he expected her to say something in defense of him. She didn’t.
“Let’s go,” she whispered, grabbing his wrist without looking at him. “Now.”
El leaned into my ear. “We should go too, baby. C’mon.”
I turned to Ma. “You can’t let her stay with him.”
