She continues, “Is this how you treat your mother? What does your girlfriend think about it? Women judge their men by how they treat their parents. Surely, you understand that by now. It’s how they figure out how you’re going to treat them long-term.”
“Enough of this bullshit! You don’t get to drag Skittles into this.”
I start to take a step forward, but Skittles pulls me back. Her face is set in a hard mask. “Mrs. Blackwood, how Court treats you is irrelevant, because I’m not going to behave the way you did. I already know the background to this story. In fact, it’s rather widely known.”
Mom inhales sharply, her eyes narrowed and smoldering. “You’re making a mistake.”
Skittles shrugs. “If you say so.”
Mom jumps to her feet. “The divorce is going to ruin us!”
I look away, embarrassed and tired of her refusal to accept reality. “Like I said, that’s all between you and Dad.”
“You don’t understand!” Her voice is becoming shrill. This isn’t part of her standard routine. She must be desperate.
“Dad loved you enough to let you nearly destroy the family. It’s you who killed that love with your actions.” I squeeze Skittles’ hand, needing the contact to anchor me before I lose my temper enough to do something I shouldn’t.
Mom grows pale, then starts shaking. She stares at me coldly, contempt etched in every line of her face. “One day, Harcourt, you’ll experience the same thing I am. Don’t expect any sympathy from me.”
She’s the last person I’ll turn to for comfort, so she can rest easy.
She stalks away, her stilettos eating the ground. The door slams behind her.
“I’m sorry you had to see that,” I say, running my fingers through my hair. It’s one thing to be embarrassed about your family’s sordid history, but something else to have your woman watch the whole shit show play out with her own eyes.
I need a drink. And a special eraser to wipe out what just happened. I’m so damn mortified that I can’t even face Skittles.
“Hey, it wasn’t your fault.” She puts her arms around me. “She surprised both of us.”
I sigh with relief that she isn’t disgusted enough to walk out, then hold her tighter because I need her warmth and softness to sooth the acidic burn in my gut. “I’m still going to apologize. This should’ve been a perfect day for you.”
“It is a perfect day. I aced my job interview. I had fabulous sex. Your mom’s visit… It’s just a minor blip. And it showed me you have good judgment.”
I pull back to look at Skittles’ lovely face. “She’s that obviously bad, huh?” I know honesty is important in a relationship, but that doesn’t mean I want her to see all my ugly baggage.
“She doesn’t deserve you,” Skittles says softly. “And your mom isn’t you. Don’t act like you’re somehow responsible for what she did here.”
The gentle understanding in her voice is my undoing. And I finally realize why what she thinks about me matters so damn much.
I’m utterly in love with her.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Pascal
Court is looking at me so strangely. Is he still worried about how I’m reacting to his mom?
If so, he shouldn’t be. I intend to be fully supportive of him, the way he was with me when I was having issues with my dad.
I pull him gently to a couch and push his shoulders until he’s seated, then curl up next to him. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“About what? Sex?” he says, his tone light, even though his eyes are still not quite the same bright blue.
“You know what I mean.”
“And you know what I mean.” He puts an arm around my shoulders. “She isn’t that important. And she doesn’t make a habit of showing up unannounced. It won’t happen again. I promise.”
The “this is finished” shutters come over his eyes, and I know he won’t say another word about it. It bothers me because I swear he needs more support from me. On the other hand, maybe this is his way of coping. Don’t I also try not to think about my dad’s newly discovered sexist attitude?