Page 12 of Make Me Fool You

Her left brow lifts. “I’m not going to talk about that, James. But you should have told me about this! I could have prevented what happened this morning. Or got it cleared up last night.”

“Really? How exactly would you clear this up? Do you think it’s alright that this man is obviously cheating on your sister? Would you encourage her to just forget about it and move on with the wedding? Continue with the sham because it looks good on paper?”

Her head snaps back and her full lips thin with anger. “Are you kidding me? Of course not! Cheating is never okay, James. Never. But it worries me that you didn’t think this was important enough to mention.”

My hand comes up and slashes the air. “Stop saying that! I was concentrating on you last night. Not these fools!”

Her dark eyes ice over and I can feel the arctic chill moving into my bones. “Don’t do me any favors, James.” And she turns away and I feel the finality of losing her sink into me.

“Bri?” I beg her, my hand moving towards her but she moves away, her face turned away from mine.

“My family needs me right now, James. I think it might be best if you go.”

“How are you going to get home?” I ask, hoping that she’ll give in. But she just shakes her head.

“It doesn’t matter. I’ll call an Uber or something if I need to.”

My shoulders drop and I know I can’t fight with her right now. “Alright, Bri. I’ll let it go for now. But I’m not giving up.”

She reaches over to hug her sister and her body stiffens. I turn and shuffle away from her, my whole body feeling like it’s about to stage a coup. I don’t want to leave her. It feels like my heart is dropping to the floor at my feet and I can’t breathe, can’t think. It’s like I’m slowly being suffocated to death.

And I know if I can’t get her to listen to me, change her stubborn mind, I’ll never own my heart again. It will always beat for her and her alone.

CHAPTER7

Brianna

“Itold you that guy was no good as soon as I saw him at the party. If he hadn’t been here, your sister would have never found out about…well, Cameron’s indiscretions.”

I lift an eyebrow, stunned. “Indiscretions? Is that what we’re calling it now? He cheated on Trinity. Probably from the very beginning because he’s just that kind of jerk.”

My mother shrugs one bony shoulder, her eyes cold. “So what? It doesn’t matter if the guy cheats on you. As long as you get what you need out of him, it’s all good.”

“And what’s that? Money? Power?”

“Either of those…yes. You sure as hell were never going to get anything like that with that…person you brought.”

My heart twinges in my chest and I rest my hand on it, feeling the rhythm, knowing that for right now it works. But for how long. Because even though I pushed James away, it feels like I cut a piece of my soul out when he turned and left.

“I honestly don’t know how you can act all holier than thou when you’re still willing to trade your daughter to Cameron if it means money and power are at your disposal.”

She shakes her head, her thin mouth tightening. “You just don’t understand how the world works, Brianna. Some people say it’s okay to love a poor man but I tell you, it’s just as easy to love a rich man as it is to love a poor man. You just have to focus on what you want and it’s easy.”

“I don’t need all the things in the world and whatever I do need, I can provide for myself. I don’t need a man to get me things. All I need is love from him. Safety, trust, security. Those are the things that matter to me.”

Her mother’s mouth tightens and she grimaces. “You sound like a naive child. Those things come from money as well.”

I shake my head, anger and frustration building up and bubbling over. “I don’t know who you are anymore, Mother. Since Dad died you’ve been so focused on things. Things you covet, things you can buy. That’s not me. I cannot be like that.”

“Really? It didn’t seem like it took very much to push that boy to the curb.” Triumph sparkles in her cold eyes.

“That was my own damn fears. The loss of Dad. The way my ex treated me at college and even the way that James kind of pushed me to the side when I went away. None of it has to do with money. Which seems to be the be all and end all to you,” I mutter under my breath.

“Think what you want, Brianna. But the truth is that you still kicked him to the curb. And it was for your family obligations. Not really because of anything he did. Seems like you know where your priorities really lie. Now I need to check with the minister and make sure that all the guests will be told that the wedding is cancelled.”

I eye her like you eye a snake about to strike. “I thought for sure you’d go ahead with this wedding and convince Trinity to go ahead with it as well.”

Her lips twist. “I would have if he hadn’t made sure that the whole damn town found out about his cheating. The boy just couldn’t keep it hidden. The Maxwell family name can’t be attached to such a scandal.”

---