There was a big sigh on the other end of the phone as if her mother had been holding her breath. “You don’t know how grateful I am to hear those words. I’m so ashamed of how I’ve treated you...of how I talked to you.”
“It’s okay, Mom. I understand. I deserved your anger.”
“No, you didn’t. Don’t ever believe that. I’ve had a lot of time to think this over. I realize now that when you lived here, I tried to make all of your choices for you. I’m the reason you went so far away to school.”
Cleo couldn’t deny the truth of her mother’s words. “There were other reasons for choosing the college that I did. Like their amazing reputation. And the fact I got a partial scholarship.”
“I know you’re trying to make me feel better, but you don’t have to. I understand what happened.”
“The main thing is I miss my family and I’ve realized how important you all are to me.”
Her mother’s voice grew soft as though she was crying. “The day you were arguing with your father, it was because you didn’t want to come home because I would be here.” Her mother’s sob ripped through the scar on Cleo’s heart. “I’m the reason the family was torn apart. It was me! Not you.”
“Mom, that’s not true. It was me, too. I needed a chance to find out what makes me happy.”
Her mother sniffled. “And did you? Find out what makes you happy?”
“I’m working on it.”
“Cleo, I know that I don’t have any right to ask this but could you forgive me for the way I treated you at the funeral and afterward? I can’t even believe the things that came out of my mouth. I’m so ashamed that I spoke to one of my children in that manner. I’m a terrible mother.”
“No, you’re not. Everyone makes mistakes. Especially me. This whole nightmare is of my making. If I hadn’t been so stubborn when Dad called—so certain I knew everything—”
“The accident was not your fault. And I’m so sorry that I said it was. I don’t know if I’ll ever forgive myself for turning my pain and anguish on you like I did.” Her voice cracked and Cleo knew that her mother was crying, which brought tears to her own eyes. “I don’t have any excuses except that I was out of my mind with grief. I had to be to speak to you like that.”
“Mom, I love you. And I understand. A friend of mine explained it to me.”
“Tell your friend that I’m deeply indebted to them.”
That touched upon another sensitive subject—Jax. Maybe it would be best to wait—to put it off until things were more stable between them. But if this was to be a new beginning for them, she wanted to get things out in the open. There was no way that she could go back to pretending to be the complacent daughter.
“Mom, the friend who talked me into calling you, it was... It was Jax.”
“No. Not him.”
The palpable disapproval in her mother’s voice caused dread to churn in Cleo’s stomach. She recognized her mother’s tone and whatever followed was never good news.
“Mom, he’s changed—”
“Cleo, are you trying to tell me that you’re involved with that man?”
Anger warmed her blood. Jax deserved a lot more respect than being call “that man.” She may not have stood up for him back in Hope Springs, but she wasn’t about to let him down now.
“His name is Jax. And...and yes, we’re involved.”
“But, Cleo, you could do so much better for yourself. The Riley boy is just down the lane. He’s still single and he’s taking over his father’s ranch—”
“Mom, I thought you just got done saying that you regretted trying to make my decisions for me. Listen to me. I’m interested in Jax. I’ve been crazy about him since I was a kid.”
“I know.” Her mother groaned. “The whole world knew.”
A smile pulled at Cleo’s face, easing some of the tension. “I wasn’t very good at hiding my feelings, was I?”
“Not at all. But why you had to choose him over the other boys in Hope Springs is beyond me.”
Cleo accepted that her mother would never approve of her choices. There was nothing she could do to change her mother’s attitude, but Cleo promised that she’d stay true to herself. Going forward, her choices would be made based on what was best for herself and not just to please someone else.
“But I don’t understand,” her mother continued, pulling Cleo from her thoughts. “When Jax left Hope Springs all those years ago, no one knew where he went. How did you find him?”