Page 74 of Always You (A Lilac Bay Novel)

“The entire town was invited, Mom, you know that.” I needed to keep her calm, try to get her out of the tent. I had no idea how I was going to get her all the way back to the other side of the island in this state. I’d have to bring her to my apartment. But first I had to get her out of here.

She lurched away, pulling her arm out of my grasp. “Am I allowed to eat?” she asked, her tone nasty and cold.

Why,whydid she have to do this tonight, when everything was going so well?

“Mom, why don’t you sit and let me get you a plate,” I said.

She snorted. “Like you’d do anything for me. You wouldn’t help me if I was drowning in front of you.”

“Mom, come on. Let’s just sit. You don’t feel well.”

“You don’t know how I feel!” she yelled, and several heads turned in our direction.Let one of them be Andrew, I prayed.Let him come help me, please.

“You don’t know anything about anything but yourself, because you’re selfish, Riley.” Her face was right up in mine now, her eyes angry and disgusted and so bloodshot they must have been horribly painful. “What did I do to get such a selfish daughter?”

I wanted to drop her arm, wanted to leave her there to do whatever the hell damage she felt like. Why did she have to be my problem? She clearly couldn’t stand me.

“You want to leave, don’t you?” she asked, her voice cruel and knowing. “I can see it in your damn eyes. You’ve wanted to leave me since the day he died. So go, Riley. I don’t need you. I don’t want you!”

She pulled her arm back to slap me, and I watched it, feeling too shocked to move.

In all the shit she’d pulled over the years, she’d never once hit me.

But then someone was there, grabbing her hand before it could make contact, someone tall and strong and for a moment I was so relieved I thought I really might burst into tears.

“Okay, Beth, everything’s fine.” It was Jake.

And I did cry then, a rush of anger swelling through me even as tears trickled down my cheek. Anger at myself for not being able to handle her on my own, anger at my mother for doing this tonight. Anger that Jake had been forced to leave Rebecca and the boys to come and deal with this when they’d all been having such a nice night. Why did she have to ruin everything?

“I’ve got you,” Jake was saying. “Let’s just come over here, sit down.”

“We should take her to my apartment,” I said, wiping at my eyes. “She shouldn’t be here.”

“Riley doesn’t want me here,” she told Jake. “Riley wishes I would die.”

“Mother!” I cried. “Don’t say that!”

“Did you wishhewould die, too? Selfish, selfish—!” Then she was crying against Jake’s shirt, and he looked at me over her head.

“I have her, Riley. Go on, sweetie. I’ll get her home.”

“How? It’s miles in the dark and—”

“I have the cruiser here.”

Oh. The police cruiser. One of the few vehicles allowed on the island.

“Let me at least help you get her in the car.”

Together we managed to pull my still-sobbing mother down the long hotel driveway to the cop car parked on the road. Jake pulled open the back door and I helped him to get her inside, leaning over to pull her legs up into the car. In that position my face was very close to hers, close enough to see the individual tear tracks on her checks.

She looked up at me with northing short of revulsion in her eyes.

“I wish God took you instead of him.”

I stumbled back from the car, gasping.

Out of nowhere, arms came around my middle. Strong and steady and definitely Andrew. He pulled me back against his chest, saying something to Jake.