out. If you have some free time, it wouldn’t kill you to check in on Grandma.”
“Are you going to see Morgan and Isabelle at the Twelve HorseshoesRanch?”
“Yes. We’ll be staying in Morgan’s guest house.” Charisma picked up her purse and keys and herded her mom to the door. “And I’ll give you a complete report of that magical place when I get back…unless they make me sign some kind of disclosure.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised. They’re all privacy freaks and have never invited the entire family. There would be plenty of room to hostour family reunion there.”
“That would be hard because this family is attached to Grandma’s backyard. And just because she has the space and the money, Morgan shouldn’t be obligated to host anything.”
“I wanted that life for you,” Debra said.
She unlocked the door and looked at her mom. “I know, in your infinite mom-wisdom you think you pushed me so I could have a better life,but I think you wanted those things for yourself. You know why I like living here with Grandma? Because I get to be a kid again in some ways. I was never a child to you, I was just something you were constantly grooming to be something special. When all I ever wanted was for you to tell me that I was special because I was your daughter and you loved me.”
“That’s not true,” Debra replied.
“Well, that’s how I felt. If you want to invest your time in something, how about getting your son to come home? The time I’ve spent working with Jared has made me realize how much I miss my brother. Train your laser focus on mending your relationship with your son. I have my love life and my housing situation under control.”
It would have been nice to see her brother again. It hadbeen far too long. But Trevor was staunch in his decision to stay away after Debra had meddled in his life as well, claiming she wanted the best for him, or at least what she thought was best.
“I’m losing you. I know it.”
“No, you’re not. I don’t know what’s going to happen in my life. I am working on so many things at once. But I’m not the same person anymore. I don’t want fame anda rich husband. I want to know myself and be proud of that. I can finance my own happiness, I don’t need a man to do that. Who knows, maybe I’ll flourish as an interior designer. It means the world to me that Jared thinks I can do it. And if I’m lucky, the people I treated like crap will forgive me. Whatever the outcome, I will own it and I will be proud of it.”
“Everything I did, I didwith your best interest at heart.”
She didn’t reply to that. Instead, she said, “If you ever want to have a new relationship that includes respect and trust, you know where to find me.”
She watched her mother drive off and got into her own car. Her hand shook as she pushed the start ignition button on her Lexus. That was the first time she’d ever really stood up to her mother and thefirst time her mother had actually listened. Charisma got on the road. She couldn’t believe her mom had searched for Derek’s net worth. She knew he was loaded, but she didn’t care about that. She was thinking about her conversation with her mother so intensely, she drove right past the bookstore and had to circle the block.
She eased into the back of the lecture room, hoping to go unnoticed.Derek was standing at the podium looking quite gorgeous holding a book up in the air while the women in the audience were entranced by his deep voice, dark hair, and those icy blue eyes. The man was born in a country with one of the richest, most complex histories in the world, but he was talking about the Battle of the Alamo. Go figure.
“If I had a history teacher like him in high school,I would have gotten better grades,” a voice said behind her.
She whipped her head around. It was Michelle. “I probably would’ve submitted a diorama of the Alamo for extra credit.”
Michelle snorted and a group of women turned around to
“Are you going to see Morgan and Isabelle at the Twelve HorseshoesRanch?”
“Yes. We’ll be staying in Morgan’s guest house.” Charisma picked up her purse and keys and herded her mom to the door. “And I’ll give you a complete report of that magical place when I get back…unless they make me sign some kind of disclosure.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised. They’re all privacy freaks and have never invited the entire family. There would be plenty of room to hostour family reunion there.”
“That would be hard because this family is attached to Grandma’s backyard. And just because she has the space and the money, Morgan shouldn’t be obligated to host anything.”
“I wanted that life for you,” Debra said.
She unlocked the door and looked at her mom. “I know, in your infinite mom-wisdom you think you pushed me so I could have a better life,but I think you wanted those things for yourself. You know why I like living here with Grandma? Because I get to be a kid again in some ways. I was never a child to you, I was just something you were constantly grooming to be something special. When all I ever wanted was for you to tell me that I was special because I was your daughter and you loved me.”
“That’s not true,” Debra replied.
“Well, that’s how I felt. If you want to invest your time in something, how about getting your son to come home? The time I’ve spent working with Jared has made me realize how much I miss my brother. Train your laser focus on mending your relationship with your son. I have my love life and my housing situation under control.”
It would have been nice to see her brother again. It hadbeen far too long. But Trevor was staunch in his decision to stay away after Debra had meddled in his life as well, claiming she wanted the best for him, or at least what she thought was best.
“I’m losing you. I know it.”
“No, you’re not. I don’t know what’s going to happen in my life. I am working on so many things at once. But I’m not the same person anymore. I don’t want fame anda rich husband. I want to know myself and be proud of that. I can finance my own happiness, I don’t need a man to do that. Who knows, maybe I’ll flourish as an interior designer. It means the world to me that Jared thinks I can do it. And if I’m lucky, the people I treated like crap will forgive me. Whatever the outcome, I will own it and I will be proud of it.”
“Everything I did, I didwith your best interest at heart.”
She didn’t reply to that. Instead, she said, “If you ever want to have a new relationship that includes respect and trust, you know where to find me.”
She watched her mother drive off and got into her own car. Her hand shook as she pushed the start ignition button on her Lexus. That was the first time she’d ever really stood up to her mother and thefirst time her mother had actually listened. Charisma got on the road. She couldn’t believe her mom had searched for Derek’s net worth. She knew he was loaded, but she didn’t care about that. She was thinking about her conversation with her mother so intensely, she drove right past the bookstore and had to circle the block.
She eased into the back of the lecture room, hoping to go unnoticed.Derek was standing at the podium looking quite gorgeous holding a book up in the air while the women in the audience were entranced by his deep voice, dark hair, and those icy blue eyes. The man was born in a country with one of the richest, most complex histories in the world, but he was talking about the Battle of the Alamo. Go figure.
“If I had a history teacher like him in high school,I would have gotten better grades,” a voice said behind her.
She whipped her head around. It was Michelle. “I probably would’ve submitted a diorama of the Alamo for extra credit.”
Michelle snorted and a group of women turned around to
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