Page 33 of Reign of the Queen
"Your momma's home?" Raegan turns to question me, one beautifully sculpted eyebrow raised, effectively bringing me back to reality.
"This day just keeps getting shittier." I sigh and pull the Range into the spot next to hers.
We park and get out, heading for the house. We hear music coming through the built-in speakers. Taylor Swift's "Don't Blame Me" is playing loudly, and my mom is singing right along at the top of her lungs.
I stroll into the kitchen area, where the singing seems to be coming from, and there's my mom, shaking her ass in front of the built-in coffee-espresso machine, wearing nothing but a long T-shirt that barely covers a single ass cheek. Her long, dark, wavy hair is pulled up into a messy bun on the top of her head. I watch her for a moment, reminded of what the old her used to be like, before all the money, society parties, Botox, new friends, and clothes. She's so relaxed, totally into the song, moving gracefully.
She looks gorgeous, young, and carefree. She's had some work done since she married my stepfather Jared, I wish she hadn't, but it still doesn't take away from how beautiful she was and still is.
Her face is bare of makeup, not a wrinkle in sight, and you wouldn't know it looking at her, but she hasn't even hit thirty-seven yet. She still has a youthful glow emanating from her skin. The minute she senses us behind her, she turns dramatically, hand to her chest and the song dies on her lips.
She walks over to the control panel on the wall, hits a button, and Taylor Swift's voice disappears mid-lyric. The change is instant in her face and body language. She goes from being carefree and happy to guarded and stiff, wrapping her arms around her body.
"Girls, I wasn't expecting you so soon after school." She walks back to the coffee maker and takes her latte, giving us her back again. I watch out of the corner of my eye as she takes the bottle of bourbon on the counter and pours a generous amount into the latte.
"Hey, Ms. Catherine," Raegan's sweet southern drawl answers her.
"Raegan darling, you get prettier every time I see you." A smile crosses her face as she takes a sip of her latte.
I'll just bet she wasn't expecting us home so soon. I've been avoiding her, but she's also been doing her darndest to ignore me. After the discussion I had with Grandmother the last weekend I was in Manhattan, I know why, too.
Apparently, the grieving widow has decided to start dating again; wealthy suitors only need apply, mind you. Eight short months after burying my beloved stepfather.Unfuckingbelievable.Unbeknownst to her, grandmother has her under surveillance and knows almost every move the bitch makes.I know, I know, she's my mom, but fuck her. How could she move on like that? I thought she loved him.
I should have warned her the minute I came back about her being watched. She’s just giving my grandmother Stella more ammunition against her, but I was full of rage and despair at the fact that she was already moving on from Jared—my beloved stepfather and the only man to truly love her and me.
"I'm surprised you're even here right now...mom," I spit the word out like it's filled with poison.
Setting the cup down on the Calcutta marble countertop, she says, "Why is that Amelia? This is my home, after all." She braces her hands on the countertop in front of her.
A hysterical laugh escapes my mouth. "Your home? You have to be fucking... kidding me. This house is Jared's home; this is my home. You're just a constant in and out visitor!" I wave my hands around, motioning to our large glass and steel cage.
She takes in a sharp breath, anger filling her features. "Amelia Hamilton! Jared is dead, you have to move past this, and I will not have you speaking to me in that manner. Do you hear me? I'm still your momma, miss high and mighty."
"STRATFORD, NOT HAMILTON!" I shout. "There is no Amelia Hamilton anymore...and you haven't behaved like my momma in a long time.” My lips curl in a snarl. ”Jared may be dead, but I don't have to do shit you tell me. When he left Isabella and me all of his wealth, he made sure of that."
Pivoting to leave the kitchen, I come to a halt, giving her my back. "One more thing,MOMMA, make sure your skanky ass isn't bringing your new dates to my fucking house, or you'll find yourself back on the street my father pulled you out of." I race up the stairs to my wing of the house, black rage blurring my vision and tears threatening to fall from my eyes.
"Lord," I hear Raegan squeak out before footsteps rapidly follow me up the stairs.
Glass shatters from downstairs; she must have thrown the damn mug of coffee. I hope she cleans that shit up before she disappears to wherever it is she goes; I have no more energy left to deal with her today.
Storming into my room, I throw my bag on the bed and head for the glass balcony, opening the French doors wide, taking deep, full breaths of the North Carolina crisp air to try to calm myself. I shouldn't have done that; I don't want to fight with her. She's my mom, before Jared came along, she worked hard and sacrificed for me all those years alone. I know she got the raw end of the deal, and everything she's doing now is because she's terribly hurt.
Jared got sick with pancreatic cancer and died quickly. Watching him wither away to a shell of the man she married destroyed a considerable part of her. Then finding out that he made provisions in his will right before he died only to leave his substantial fortune to his daughters, Isabella, his biological daughter, and me, his adopted daughter…it was a huge betrayal of the trust she had in him. It left her basically on a widow's stipend and utterly dependent on my grandmother's generosity or mine.
It has broken what was left of her. She's full of rage and hostility, and I know I should be understanding, but I can't. I loved Jared, he was all the good in my world, and I thought she believed that too.
"Amelia, are you okay, girl?" Raegan approaches me slowly as if I was a rabid animal instead of her best friend.Given the circumstances, it's a pretty fair description of me lately.
"I'm good. I just don't want to deal with my mom's shit right now." I put up my hand before she gets a word out. "I know that was harsh, that I was a disrespectful cunt to my mom just now, Rae. I'm just so lost and hurt. I don't understand how she could just be moving on from him. He was my world."
She wraps her strong arms around my shoulders tight and squeezes me as hard as she can. "I know, girl, I know."
After a few minutes of her giving me all her strength through that hug and taking deep breaths of clean air, I've managed to calm myself down. I pull back from Raegan and give her a crooked smile. "Thanks, biatch; you know I love ya, right?"
She giggles, the sound puts a smile on my lips. "Right back at ya, girl."
"Okay, let's get some freaking homework done, then start getting ready to slay us some kings, shall we?" I smirk moving toward my bed.
