Show Me the Scary Part, page 38
“You did an amazing job, babe,” Nadine says, kissing my cheek.
I smiled at her. “Thanks.”
Nadine moves to my side and takes my hand in hers.
“Should we find our seats?” she says.
I nod.
We all went to find our seats, and we conversed while we waited for the first match to start.
“It’s such a beautiful day,” Alex said.
It was a nice day, the sun was out, and the temperature was just right. We were all seated under a tent, and we had a great view of everything.
The match began, and it was cool. I had never seen a polo game before, and I liked it. I was mostly impressed with the horses, but I was in love with those creatures.
Nadine tapped my shoulder to grab my attention. I was fascinated by this match.
“What is it, babe?” I said, still staring ahead.
“Your mother,” she says.
I looked at Nadine, and she was looking beyond me. I turned to look in the direction she was looking, and there she was, my mother was just standing there looking at me.
“Hello, Whitney,” she greets.
“Mother,” I said simply.
She looks around at my wife and in-laws. “Good evening, everyone.”
Nadine just gave her a nod, and her parents gave her a friendly ‘good evening’.
Her attention comes back to me. “Can I speak to you for a moment alone?”
I took a breath. “I’m just trying to enjoy the tournament with my family,” I said.
“Whitney, please,” I believe she was begging.
I didn’t want to talk to my mother; I didn’t want anything to do with her.
I was just about to tell her to go away when my boss walked up.
“Dr. Delaney, I hope the evening is going as you envisioned.”
I watched as my mother plastered on her fake smile. “Everything is just beautiful. I would like to thank you for hosting this event.”
“You could thank your amazing daughter; I would have never been able to pull off something of this caliber,” he praised.
She looks at me and she smiles.
It threw me off because it seemed genuine.
“I wouldn’t expect any different from her,” she says proudly.
“She is a great addition to our staff,” Mr. Helm says.
“Whitney and I were actually about to take a stroll,” she turns to look at me, and she extends her hand for me to take.
I took a breath. I did not want to go with her, but I couldn’t very well reject my mother in front of my boss. I didn’t want to jeopardize my job because of her.
I looked at my wife. “I shouldn’t be long.”
I could see the look on her face; she did not want me to go with her, but she knew that I didn’t have a choice.
I took my mother’s hand and let her lead me away from the people I feel most safe with.
She took me off to a more secluded area, far enough so no one could hear us, but close enough were I could still see the event taking place. I removed my hand from hers as soon as I could.
I looked at my mother. “What do you want from me?”
“Whitney, you are my daughter. Is there any way we can try to reconcile this?” she says.
I had nothing to say to her; I didn’t want to reconcile anything. She put me through so much, I didn’t want anything with her at all.
“I just want to be with my family,” I said.
I began to walk away.
“Whitney, please.”
“What makes you think you deserve reconciliation, and how can you reconcile something that was never civil in the first place?” I stated.
Honestly, that was a joke.
“I was just doing what I thought was best for you, Whitney. I wanted the best for you. How could you not see that?”
I rolled my eyes. I really couldn’t believe her.
“I do not want to do this with you, mother. I want to be with people who truly care for me,” I said.
“Whitney, I do ca—”
“Do not,” I gritted.
I refused to let her finish her sentence.
“I’m going to stop this right here. I’m tired of hashing this out with you; it’s the same thing over and over again. I don’t want anything to do with you, and I don’t want you anywhere near my family. Stay out of my life,” I commanded.
“What can I do?” she says.
She seemed desperate, and I’ve never seen her this way before.
“Why are you doing this? What do you have to gain from this?” I wondered.
“I have no one, Whitney,” she says.
“Am I supposed to feel sorry for you, because I don’t. You brought this on yourself; you treated us like puppets and reprimanded us for attempting to cut our strings.”
“I’m sorry, Whitney, I truly am. I don’t want to control you.”
I was so fucking angry, and it was so hard to contain it.
“Look around you,” I gestured to the event. “You orchestrated this whole thing just to get to me. The amount of money that you threw at this just to get to me is controlling.”
“I just wanted you to see that I support you,” she defended.
“This is not the way to do it. I don’t need you interfering with my life.”
“Is everything okay?”
That was my wife’s voice. I turned to see her approaching me.
I don’t care what’s happening; that woman always brings a smile to my face. I just love her so much.
“Yeah, we’re done here,” I said to Nadine.
She moves to my side and puts an arm around my waist.
My mother looked between the two of us. I could see that she wasn’t okay with me and Nadine, but I didn’t give a shit.
“Whitney, I would love to have dinner with you sometime,” she says.
I frowned. “I would prefer that we don’t have any more interactions after this one. I want to move on with my life, and that does not include you. I do wish you all the best.”
Nadine and I walked away from my mother, and we went back to enjoy the event. I was hoping that this would be the last time that I would see my mother.
“Are you okay?” Nadine asked once we were back in our seats.
I looked at her and smiled at her. “Yes, I’m okay.”
I didn’t see my mother anymore for the rest of the event, so I know that she left. My boss did ask about her a little later, and I told him that she had to leave.
The event was nice, I had a good time, other than the encounter with my mother.
When Nadine and I got home, she immediately pulled me to her and started undressing me. Our child was out of the house for the weekend, so we were going to take full advantage.
We were lying in bed after making love, and I was trailing my fingers along her naked back.
“Are you sure you’re good after seeing your mother today?” she asked, looking at me.
I gave her a reassuring smile. “I promise that I’m okay, baby. It is hard seeing her, I can admit that, but I can handle it.”
“What did she want?” she asked.
I took a breath. “I think she wants to form some type of relationship with me.”
She gave me a questioning look. “Really?”
“Yeah. She’s lonely.”
“You’re not open to a relationship with your mother?” she wondered.
“No, I’m not open to getting hurt,” I said.
“I’m here to support you in whatever you decide to do,” she smiles at me.
“I know that, babe. Can we talk about something else now?”
She looks at me warmly. “What do you want to talk about?”
I leaned in to kiss her on the lips because her lips were so damn irresistible.
“Actually,” I kissed her again. “I don’t want to talk at all.”
I pressed my lips to hers again, and I felt her hum on my lips.
“I’m okay with that.”
I proceeded to make love to my wife; I couldn’t get enough of her.
* * *
I was just wrapping up at work, and I couldn’t wait to get home to my family. I love my job, but nothing beats going home to the two biggest loves of my life.
I was just leaving the barn to head to my car when I heard my boss calling me. I turned to see him jogging up to me.
“Is everything okay, sir?” I asked.
He was out of breath, so he took a moment.
I was wondering what all of this was about.
“I just got a call,” He paused, continuing to catch his breath. “Christ, I’m out of shape.”
What the hell was going on? I was just waiting there, not very patiently, because I wanted to leave, while this man caught his fucking breath.
Then, finally, he started to talk again, and this time he seemed like he wasn’t going to pass out.
“I just got a call from your mother; she wants to purchase the ranch,” he shared.
What?
“What?” I voiced aloud.
“You’re acting like you didn’t know about this,” he observed.
“No, I had no idea about this. Why would I?” I said.
“Whitney, your mother is putting an offer on this place for you.”
“Wait, she can’t do that. I have zero part in that, I swear,” I voiced.
He shrugged. “Whether or not you knew about it, the ranch is yours now because I’ve taken your mother up on the offer.”
“No, you sold your prestigious ranch that’s been in your family for several generations. I don’t believe it. What about everything you have put into this place? How can you easily sell it like that?” I was shocked out of my mind.
“2.5 million dollars, it wasn’t that hard a decision. Enjoy your ranch, Whitney. We’ll sign over the deed in a couple of days.”
With that, he walked off.
I stood there for a moment, and I felt my blood start to boil. I felt disgusted at this man for selling out his family legacy; fuck that guy; he hadn’t an ounce of respect or decency. My mother. Here she was, yet again trying to control my life, and I wasn’t going to let her do it.
Looks like she just bought a ranch for herself because I don’t want any fucking part of this.
Just like that, I realized why I never wanted to come back here.
THIRTY-SEVEN
Whitney
Hearing that my mother bought the ranch where I was working was very hard to digest. She was trying everything in her power to control me.
I was crushed that she had ruined another thing that’s good in my life. I love that ranch. I loved my job, and I looked forward to going, but now that was gone.
Tears fell from my eyes as I drove. Am I ever honestly going to get rid of this woman? I have no idea what to do. I just knew that I had to do something. Not only was she affecting my life, but she also ruined this prestigious family-owned business.
I pressed a button on my steering wheel that called Nadine. It wasn’t long before her voice was filtering through the speakers.
“I was just about to call you. Is everything okay?” she says.
I took a breath. “No, everything is not okay.”
“What happened?” she asked, and I could hear the panic in her voice.
“I will talk to you about it when I get home. I’m just calling because I have to make a stop first. It shouldn’t take long; there is just something that I have to do,” I said.
“Are you going to tell me what it is that you’re doing?” she wondered.
“I promise I will tell you when I get home,” I pleaded.
I just didn’t want her to talk me out of anything.
“Okay, baby, but please be careful with whatever it is that you’re doing,” she says, concern laced in her voice.
“I will, I shouldn’t be long. I love you,” I said.
“I love you.”
I hung up the phone and turned my car around for a little detour.
I eventually pulled up to the gated community that I grew up in, and I never wanted to come through there ever again.
I rolled down my window when I got to the gate, and the guard approached the car.
“Name?” he asked.
“Whitney Thornton, I’m here to see Dr. Vanessa Delaney,” I said.
“Who are you to Dr. Delaney?” he asked.
“I’m her daughter,” I said.
“Okay, give me a moment.”
He then walked back to his station.
He came back a moment later, and he handed me a piece of paper.
“Alright, you can go through,” he says.
I drove through the gate and drove the mile and a half to my mother’s house. I was not ready for this, but I needed to confront her.
I pulled up to the house, and I hated the feeling that washed over me as I looked at the house. All of the horrible things that have happened in this house just came rushing back to me. All of the cold “family” dinners, all of the nights I would cry myself to sleep, and just the complete absence of love.
I had no desire to set foot in this house again. I haven’t been here in nearly ten years, but here I was, hopefully for the last time.
Here I was standing in front of the door, waiting for one of the workers to answer the door. When they did, I was instructed to wait in the living room.
I stood in the living room waiting for my mother to make her grand entrance like she always does. She knew that I was coming up, but she always had a flair for the dramatics, and I swear I would not be able to deal with that shit today.
“Whitney. I was not expecting you. To what do I owe the pleasure?”
She finally entered the room.
My anger immediately returned upon seeing her; she was just standing here in the same condescending way she has been my entire life. I’ve had enough.
“Why can’t you just leave me alone?” I said to her.
“You are my daughter, Whitney. I have a right to be a part of your life,” she voiced.
I shook my head. “Don’t you fucking get it! I don’t want you a part of my life, I don’t want anything to do with you.”
“I just want what’s best for you, Whitney, that’s all I ever wanted.”
“You keep saying that like it’s going to have a different effect on me. It’s not. When I look at you, I don’t see a mother who wants the best for their child, and I never did. I haven’t once felt an ounce of genuineness or affection from you. Being back in this place only reminds me just how cold and callous you are.”
“I’ve made mistakes, Whitney, but I have changed,” she says.
“No, you haven’t, you are still finding ways to control me, and it has to end. You’re now interfering with my livelihood, which means you are messing with my child’s needs. This is where I have the biggest issue,” I said.
“I can say that buying you that ranch would hardly interfere with your livelihood; if anything, I have enhanced it. And let’s not pretend that your grandmother didn’t leave you well off; money is the least of your worries,” she says sardonically.
I didn’t think she could upset me anymore, but she always managed to.
“You want to bring up that my grandmother cares enough about me and my family that she made sure we’re taken care of. When my parents wouldn’t.”
She looked unaffected. “Are we just going to ignore what got you into this position?”
“Whose ignoring it because I’m not. I know exactly what led me to the choices I’ve made in life.”
“This is the life you chose, huh?” Her words were laced with arrogance.
“Well, I’m not lonely, and my child actually loves me. I can honestly say that I have more going for me than you do.”
I saw a hurt flash in my mother’s eyes for only a moment before she masked it. I struck a nerve.
“Must we go through this dispute every time we are around one another. I am trying to make things right with you, Whitney. Can my gift to you just be a peace offering?”
“I don’t want anything from you. I don’t want anything that has your hands on it,” I deadpanned.
“I cannot have my daughter be an employee when you can be the owner, you’re a Delaney.”
“I am no longer a Delaney, and I haven’t been for a long time. I couldn’t wait to get rid of the name. Have fun with your ranch, I know how much you love horses, so that should be a lot of fun for you. I’m just here to tell you that if you interfere with me or my family again, I will not hesitate to get a restraining order. That would look good for your fake country club friends.”
This was the last time she interfered with my life.
* * *
Nadine
I was worried about Whitney; she seemed out of sorts over the phone, and that was never a good thing. She was at work all day, so my thoughts were getting away with me. What could have possibly happened to make her so upset?
“Can we please wait for Mom to eat?” Ryder said.
“I don’t know what time your mom’s going to be home, so we should go ahead and eat,” I told him.
He shook his head. “No. We eat as a family now, and I never want to go back to the way it was before.”
He was very determined, and I honestly agreed with him. We eat dinner together as a family, and that was what we were going to do.
“Okay, baby, we will wait for Mom.”
Ryder and I started another episode of Master Chef, and we were thirty minutes in when Whitney entered the room.
At first glance, I could see that she was upset. I always could tell when she was crying because her face got a little blotchy, and there were still some unreleased tears in her eyes.
Despite all of that, she still graced us with that beautiful smile of hers; she was always so beautiful, no matter what.
“Mom, we waited for you so that we could all have dinner together,” Ryder says, running up to her and wrapping her in a hug.
She hugs him back and kisses the top of his head.
“That was so sweet of you, Ryder. Why don’t we all wash up so that we can eat? I’m pretty sure we’re all starving,” she says.
“Yes, I’m pretty hungry. Meet you in the kitchen,” he says, then runs off.
I got up from my seat and walked over to Whitney, who was looking at me.
