“They’re with Gia and my mom, crafting with the crochet club at the Daily Grind.”
Kathy gets that pinched look on her face that Lauren said looks like she’s sucking on a lemon. I redirect my thoughts to keep from laughing. “I’d like to talk with you for a minute if that’s okay.”
She hesitates, obviously wanting to say no, but she doesn’t have a good reason to do so. She can’t tell me she’s busy since she was supposed to spend time with the girls right now. “Sure. Come on in.”
I walk through the doorway and hang my coat on the hook, kicking off my boots simultaneously. She offers me a coffee once we get to the kitchen, but I decline.
I stand on one side of their marble-topped island while Kathy stands on the other. It’s a no-man’s-land where shots from either side could be fatal.
Taking a deep breath, I dive in. “Here’s the deal. Lauren told me what you said about Gia. It’s fine if you don’t approve of me dating someone. To some degree, I can understand why, but what isn’t acceptable is calling Gia a bitch in front of the girls. I also don’t think it’s fair of youto put Lauren and Leah in the middle of something that should be left between us adults. I would have much preferred you to discuss this with me directly instead of saying it to them.”
“The real issue isn’t about this little tart you seem hell-bent on flaunting around town. What you need to worry about is the disrespect your daughter showed me that day. If you heard what she said, you’d have washed her mouth out with soap. I almost did.”
“Lauren told me what she said, word for word, and it resembled exactly what you said. It seems she learned that kind of disrespect from you.”
Kathy gasps. “She absolutely didnot. Your little bimbo is the reason those girls have started talking back to me. They never used to do anything of the sort until you brought her around. I can’t believe you blame me.”
“Kathy, I’m not trying to blame anyone. I’m trying to discuss the things I don’t want you to talk about around the girls. If there’s a problem you want to talk about with me, then I’m more than happy to be open to your concerns, but manipulating my girls to try to get rid of the woman I’m dating is just inappropriate.”
She starts cleaning her already spotless kitchen. “It sure seems to me like you’re trying to make me the bad guy here. All I’m worrying about is the safety of Lauren and Leah. I haven’t said anything that would put them in danger.”
“Except you’ve told Leah to ignore her bully and not tell me about him. That’s put her in harm’s way on multiple occasions now.”
“So I’m just the villain here? I can’t take an interest in my granddaughters’ lives? I can’t give you an opinion on things I know Hannah would be appalled by? That’s what you’re saying? Fine. I won’t say a single thing to them anymore. They don’t ever have to see me again.”
Kathy marches out of the room without a backward glance.
I stand rooted to the floor, wondering what the hell just happened.
The bonfire crackles, keeping me warm despite sitting on my cold tailgate. For someone as antisocial as Knox, he knows how to host a party. There are quite a few people here now. My brothers showed up, likely invited by Grayson. Gia brought Gwen and a reluctant Farrah. Even Kylie is in town this weekend. Gray must be over the moon.
Now that I think about it, Knox had no part in bringing these people together. He just provided the location. And the firewood.
The kids have roasted marshmallows under the watchful eyes of the adults, while the adults brought coolers full of drinks to share. By all accounts, it should be the perfect night, but I just can’t seem to get into it. My mind hasn’t stopped thinking about my talk with Kathy today.
I knew it wouldn’t go well. I didn’t have any grand delusions of her apologizing for what she said, but I didn’t think she’d go straight to no contact. Maybe I came at the situation wrong. I could’ve asked what she meant by the things she said, but I have a feeling she’d have brushed it off like it wasn’t a big deal.
“Hey, broody cowboy.” Gia climbs onto the tailgate next to me, her thigh and hip pressed up tight to mine. I wrap my arm around her back, encouraging her to get closer. When she lays her head on my shoulder, I kiss the top of it. “Are you still thinking about Kathy?”
“Did I make a bigger deal out of what she said than I should have?”
“Of course not. Even if you take me out of the equation, she still said something horribly mean and tried to influence your girls to do something awful.”
“I just don’t understand why she’d go straight to no contact without even discussing the issue.”
“Because she wanted you to apologize and cater to her whims without having to acknowledge her own part in the problem. I’m sure she thought if she threatened to cut off contact, you’d cave.”
I breathe out a weary sigh. “How did we get here, Gia?”
“Your family went through something incredibly traumatic, and Kathy is probably struggling with how you’re moving forward when she hasn’t yet. There’s nothing wrong with her being at a different stage in her grief than you, but trying to hold you back in your journey is problematic.”
“Hannah would hate this.”
“Probably. But do you think she’d have been okay with Kathy telling Lee Lee to ignore a bully instead of telling you guys?”
“Absolutely not. She’d have been pissed.” The truth of that statement settles some of the turmoil boiling in me. This isn’t how I wanted things to go down, but Hannah would never have allowed this situation to fester. She’d have sat down with her mom and tried to talk it out with her. I doubt she’d have gone about it exactly the way I did, but I can only do my best in a situation like this.
I’ll let things cool off for a bit and reach out again in an effort to mend the rift, but I won’t ignore the hurt that she’s caused to both the girls and me, let alone Gia.
