Total pages in book: 196
Estimated words: 180438 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 902(@200wpm)___ 722(@250wpm)___ 601(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 180438 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 902(@200wpm)___ 722(@250wpm)___ 601(@300wpm)
I’m his girlfriend, soon-to-be wife if he knows what’s good for him and what do wives and girlfriends do. They proudly proclaim their love for their man on social media. Before I could think better of it, I went through my camera roll and chose the last picture we’d taken together.
It was a nice shot of him standing behind me as we stood at the window of the mansion, looking out at Central Park in the distance. Ryder had taken it with his phone, and when I saw it, I fell in love with the beautiful simplicity of it and asked him to send it to my phone.
My heart was knocking against my ribs when I hit send, and I closed my phone almost immediately, already regretting what I’d done. Oh crap, Mom, Sydney. How could I forget that I hadn’t told them yet? What the hell was I thinking?
I looked at my watch and calculated that I still had some time to deal with Sydney since she was on stage halfway around the world, but as if on cue, my phone rang with Mom on the other end. I took a couple of deep breaths, but they were of no help.
“Please tell me that this is an old picture or that somebody photoshopped you two together.”
“Mom…”
“Just answer me.”
“It’s not; Ryder and I are back together.” I bit my lip and waited for the explosion.”
“Are you kidding me right now? Have you forgotten what he put you through?”
“Mom, have you always distrusted me?”
“What’re you talking about? I never distrusted you.”
“So, do you think I’ve lost all my trustworthiness in this situation?”
“That, I’m not saying that, but we both know what he did to you.”
“Mom, I love you; you’re my mother, and you only want what’s best for me. You were always there when I needed you, and I’m forever grateful for that and. I’m sure you’ll have to be there for me again, but please listen to me now without interruption. Make up your mind only after I have finished. Can you promise me that?”
She wasn’t too pleased, but her silence after a sigh was all the go-ahead I needed. I told her everything, from the night Ryder first showed up, everything about Rachel and her part in the smear campaigns against me, why Ryder married Janie, all the lies, everything. I didn’t leave anything out, and by the time I was done, we were both in tears.
“Are you sure about all of this?”
“Yes, Mom, I’m sure. You don’t think I’d be giving him a second chance if I wasn’t, do you?”
“I don’t know, this all sounds like a movie. It’s crazy, but I did see Janie on the news ranting like a lunatic, so anything could be true. I just can’t believe that she went to those lengths to get what she wanted. It’s diabolical.”
“I was just about to call you because there was a podcast on earlier with the woman she supposedly hired to work black magic on you and Ryder, and your post came through before I could make the call.”
“What podcast?”
“I recorded it for some strange reason, I still don’t even know why I listened, but the Internet has been in an uproar for the last few days with all that’s going on.”
“Really? I only just took a peek, but I stayed mostly in the past; I haven’t really dived into the latest drama.”
“So where’s that Rachel bitch now? She’s not at your house in L.A., is she? Because I’ll go and throw her out on her ass right now.”
“No, she disappeared; I don’t know where she went.”
I don’t really care either, though sometimes I do worry about her. It’s not easy for me to just stop caring about someone I love because they turn out to be a monster like her. She hadn’t killed me when she had the chance, a chance I’d given her by letting her into my home, so I guess that’s something.
“She’d better not show her face around here again, or I won’t be responsible for my actions, and tell Ryder he needs to come to see me before you two make any plans. I heard everything you say, and I admit he got a bad deal, but I can’t just hand you over to him as if nothing happened.
“Mom, you didn’t like him before, remember? Even when you knew I was in love with him. This time I think you’d hate him even more because of what happened between us, so I’m not asking for much other than to trust me and give us a chance. I don’t expect you to welcome him with open arms but try to remember that he was a victim as well. Can you do that for me?”
“I’m not making any promises, but since you tricked me into acknowledging that I trust your judgment, I guess I can’t go back on my word.” She sounded so petulant I was tempted to laugh. “Oh well, you might get over on me, but Sydney’s going to give you hell; I hope you’re prepared.”