Page 34 of Sweet Surrender
“That’s enough, Leona,” Daddy declared as Judah barked, “Aye, come on now.”
“Clearly, it’s not enough, Princeton. Look at how she’s acting,” Mama argued.
“She’s an adult who is allowed to make her own decisions,” Daddy countered.
“Talk to your sister,” Mama fussed at Jonathan, shoving his shoulder a little.
“It is embarrassing, Alex, knowing that my little sister is sleeping with both of my friends, and it just looks bad.”
“Right, and you’re not even trying to be discreet. What’s going on here, Alex?” Mama demanded.
“I lied. I’m not planning any event for Judah; I’m dating him, and I love him.”
My mother made a choking sound, and Jonathan added to her dramatics by patting her on the back and asking if she was okay.
“I’ll be fine, I guess,” she muttered, shaking her head. “Alex, what has gotten into you? Your father and I didn’t raise you this way. You should be embarrassed and ashamed of yourself.”
Anger filled me, and I was struggling not to disrespect my mother, but enough was enough.
“Listen, I’m not embarrassed about it, and I’m no longer going to hide it. I always looked for you and Daddy’s approval for everything, but if I can’t have it, then that’s fine too. I could really care less what anyone thinks, including y’all. I love this man a lot, and y’all can either accept it or don’t.”
“You have my approval, sweetheart. It’s clear that he makes you happy, and that’s all I have ever wanted for you,” Daddy declared.
“This is ludicrous. And what about you? How are you okay with coming behind your brother like this? He is a good man,” Mama stated, scolding Judah.
I tried to ignore the passing glances of other customers who witnessed our family debacle. Judah stepped from behind me and moved beside me. I could feel the energy coming off him in waves, but when he spoke, it was with a cool authority.
“I’ve tried to stay out of this argument between you and your daughter, Mrs. Sheridan, and allow her to handle her family. The only reason I’ve remained silent for so long is because she has to make a stand for us. Now that she has, I’ll fight every one of her battles. I’m a respectful man, but I don’t play about mine. This woman right here, . . . she’s mine, in every way that you can imagine. As soon as she agrees, she’ll be mine in name too.
“Mr. and Mrs. Sheridan, I have your daughter’s best interest at heart. The relationship she had with my brother has nothing to do with me; it’s in the past. The only thing that I can promise you is that I will take care of her heart and treat it with care. I understand all three of you may have concerns, but that has nothing to do with us. This is our lives, and we’ll live it the way we want to. You can accept it or don’t, but I swear to the Almighty God who I serve, if one of you speak out of pocket to her again, disrespect her, or make any type of insinuations about her character, it’s about to get ugly in here, family or not.”
Judah had taken my hand when he first started speaking. I gave him a reassuring squeeze to thank him.
“I’m appalled that you would speak to us that way,” Mama stated.
“Feel how you feel, Mrs. Sheridan. I said what I said. You ready, baby?”
I looked at him through the sheen in my eyes, and my heart exploded in my chest. No one had ever taken up for me that way in my life, not even my own father. As much as my daddy lovedme, he would only go so far when it came down to taking a stance against Mama.
Jonathan often agreed with me through the years, but he didn’t know how to stand up to Mama, and Issachar had always been too busy trying to kiss her ass to see any wrong that she did.
“Yeah, I’m ready,” I agreed.
“You did good,” Daddy stated quietly.
I smiled at him, and he kissed my cheek and then turned to Judah and shook his hand. “Thank you for taking care of my baby.”
“Take care, Mr. Sheridan,” Judah replied before turning me and the cart in the other direction.
I leaned against him as we walked to the next aisle. “Thank you for that, baby. I know that took a lot, but Mama probably won’t speak to you for at least a year.”
“I’m good with that. You need to understand who I am to you, Alex. I’m your protector and your strength now. I will put it all on the line and sacrifice everything for you, each and every time.”
