Mum nodded, biting her lip. “Can I … can I come in?”
Blood whooshed in my ears. “I’m on my way to work.”
“I won’t be long. Please.”
With an abrupt nod, I turned and strode into the open-plan living and kitchen area. A construction company Thane recommended was coming in a few weeks to take down the wall between the entrance and the rest of this floor so it was all open. It involved expensive beam work, but I thought it would be worth it to be able to walk into the house and see all the way to the floor-to-ceiling windows at the other side and out to the view.
My mind stuck on thoughts about the demo because it was easier to think about that than to think about the woman behind me.
I heard Mum close the door and follow me in. My mind raced with confusion, hurt, and questions. A hundred fucking questions.
Arms crossed over my chest, I leaned against the kitchen island. Tried to look unaffected by her sudden appearance.
“Wow, you’ve done well for yourself.” Mum gestured to the house. “You’ve got a beautiful home, Fyfe.”
I jerked my chin. “So what do you want? I’m not in the mood for a family reunion.”
“I deserve that.” She nodded shakily. “That and so much more.”
“Are you back in Ardnoch?”
“No.” She smoothed a hand over her hair and that’s when I noticed the wedding ring. “I live in Glasgow.”
My jaw clenched and it took me a second to choke out. “With a husband?”
Mum followed my gaze to her hand. She brought it up, looking at the ring with affection. “With my wife, actually.”
Shock rooted me to the spot. Never, not once, had I ever seen my mother with another woman.
She gave me a sad smile. “I used alcohol and drugs to deny a lot of things about myself, Fyfe.”
“Do you think I would have cared?”
“No, of course not. I … it’s a long story, but my father once caught me kissing a girl when I was fourteen. He always lifted his hands to me, but that night he beat me so badly, Mum finally kicked him out.”
What the fuck?
I threw my hands up. “So you disappear for years, after years of saying fuck all to me about anything, and suddenly, in the space of a minute, you’re here, you’re gay, and you grew up with an abusive father?”
“Why do you think I was the way I was? Why do you think I did my mum’s bidding and came home and had you? I owed her. She saved my life that night, and she got rid of the man she loved to protect me.”
My chest felt tight. “I can’t … I can’t believe this shit.”
“Fyfe … I was so afraid of turning into my father. That’s why I left. To protect you.”
After years of neglecting me? She thought abandoning her son was protecting me?
I narrowed my eyes, suspicious of her motives. “How long have you been sober?”
Mum swallowed hard. “Six years.”
“Married?”
“Five.”
All that time, she’d been better … and she never thought to come find me? Until now.
“Why has it taken you this long to show your face?”
