“How has everything been around here, Mama?” The tension in Axel’s voice mirrored the atmosphere in the room. “Did you and Dad make it through the storm okay? Is he around here somewhere, too?”
I wasn’t sure how long Axel had planned to stay, but it probably wasn’t the best sign that I was already counting down the minutes until we’d be able to leave again without being blatantly rude.
“The wind tore a few shingles off,” she frowned, glancing up at the ceiling. “And there are a few leaks here and there. But it could have been a lot worse. Your father is out downtown helping out where he can.”
Axel glanced back at Micah and me, then turned back to his mother. “I hoped you’d both be here to meet Jasmine. After I’ve been talking about her for so long, I thought—”
“Your dad couldn’t be here,” she said, cutting him off with an icy tone. “But yes, you’ve certainly talked about Miss Bailey for long enough. I guess this day had to come, eventually.”
God.
Message received.
She hated me. Really hated me. Not only my family, but me.
“Mama,” Axel said through gritted teeth, “Jasmine’s mother, Stella, was nice to me and Micah. She welcomed us into her home with open arms. Literally with open arms.”
Tanya raised her eyebrows and huffed out a short breath before turning to face me directly. “Have I not welcomed you?”
Oh, God. It was exactly the kind of confrontation I’d feared. The kind I’d hoped to avoid.
But I wasn’t going to lie. Not when there was still so much at stake.
“No, ma’am,” I said quietly. “I don’t feel very welcome here at all. I’m not sure why you hate me, but I don’t think I’ve done—”
“I don’t hate you,” she said, placing a finger up to stop me from replying. “But I can’t say I have any use for you after the way you’ve tied my son in knots for all of these years.”
Confused, I blinked, then looked at Axel. He seemed just as confused and caught off guard as me. “Tied him in knots? I-I don’t understand.”
“Let me spell it out for you. You broke my son’s heart a long time ago, and he’s been pining away for you ever since. I’ve waited and waited for him to grow out of his... his infatuation, but he clearly needs a push. I think it’s been a mistake for you to see each other, and I hope you aren’t staying in town for very much longer.”
My mouth fell open and hung there while I tried to find the right words that didn’t start with, “Listen, lady.”
To be fair, she’d been honest, brutally frank, and just as truthful as I’d been with her a few moments before. For better or worse, at least all the hard truths were finally aired aloud.
Even if her version of the truth was plain and simple wrong.
“Mama, that isn’t what happened,” Axel said, thankfully trying to set the record straight.
“We never...” I shook my head, still trying to find the right words. “I wouldn’t have broken his heart. That wasn’t possible.”
“You did,” Tanya insisted. “Just because you weren’t ever around to see it doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. You broke his heart and moved off to California. And when Micah left too...” She sighed. “All I ever wanted was for my son to be happy.”
“I am happy, Mama,” Axel insisted. “I really am happy. And Jasmine is a big part of the reason why. Jasmine and Micah too.”
“Even after everything she’s done to you? That isn’t right, son. I’m sorry, but it just isn’t.”
I wasn’t sure where she’d gotten the idea that I’d done anything at all to her son, but my initial confusion was quickly fading to anger and frustration at the situation. I didn’t want to list all the ways that Axel had made my life miserable all those years ago, but Tanya seemed determined to leave me no choice.
Fortunately, Axel spoke up before I had to.
“Jasmine didn’t break my heart.” Axel scrubbed a hand down his face. “Jesus, Mama... I was the one who messed things up between us—even before there was anything to mess up. I ruined my chance with Jasmine by acting like an ass while we were in school.”
Tanya’s brows furrowed. “What? What does that mean? You acted like a—I think you’d better explain yourself, son.”
He turned to me and shook his head. “I’m sorry for all of this,” he whispered before speaking to his mom again. “Jasmine never did anything wrong. Never. But I was a bully in school. I teased her. I said awful things. More than once. More than a few times.”
Now it was Tanya’s turn to be confused until anger showed on her face. “You’re telling me that I’ve been feeling sorry for you all these years when the whole thing was your fault to begin with?”