The love of money really was the root of all evil.
“Okay,” I said simply, refusing to give her any satisfaction on her empty threat.Of course, she could be serious, but I was so done with her bullying.
She looked a bit flabbergasted as she asked, “Wh...what do you mean?”
“If that’s how you feel, then I’m hardly going to force you to do something that you don’t want to do, Mother,” I told her.“Unlike you, I’m all about letting others live their lives as they see fit, and if cutting me off feels like the answer to your happiness, then so be it.”
She gasped again.
A true damsel-in-distress gasp.
“You cannot be serious,” she huffed.“You would actually choose that...that man over your own family?”
“No,” I answered sternly.“You’rechoosing what you want over your own family.You’re the one tossing out ultimatums here, not me.”
“Leandra, I am serious about this,” she threatened.“If you do not stop seeing Dalton, then we’ll have no more to say to each other.”
Even though it hurt, I knew that I couldn’t back down on this.If I did, then I’d be spending the rest of my life in a cloud of maternal misery that I’d never escape from.My mother needed to be put in her place once and for all, and it was time to take the gloves off.
“You know where the door is,” I told her, and while a bit mean and cold, I felt that it was warranted.
When she finally realized that I wasn’t going to concede, she said, “I can see that it’s a lot to process, so I’ll give you a few days to really think it through.I just hope that you come to make the right decision when we speak again, Leandra.”
I didn’t say anything as she headed for the door, and once she was on the other side of it, I pulled out my phone to call my father.While I had no problem cutting off my mother, my father was a different story.I didn’t have a tumultuous relationship with him, and so I needed to hear that he was on my mother’s side from him.
Luckily for me, he answered on the third ring.“Hey, honey,” he greeted.
“Hey, Dad,” I greeted back.“You busy?”
“Well, I’m headed into a meeting in a few minutes, but I got some time.”
“Mom just left my apartment,” I told him, cutting to the chase.“She said that you’re both cutting me off if I continue to date Dalton.”
He was quiet for a few seconds, and emotion hit my eyes when I realized that this might be it between us.However, when he finally spoke, he said, “I love your mother, Leandra.She’s my wife, and I love her very much.Nonetheless, I don’t always agree with her views.Still, even if I did, I’d never cut you off for wanting to live your life freely.”
“But I can’t stand the idea of her dragging you into this, Dad,” I said, meaning it.
“I don’t want you worrying about that,” he replied easily.“Any arguments between me and your mother are between me and your mother.”
“Then why do I feel like I need to apologize to you?”I muttered tiredly.
“Because you’re a good person, Leandra,” he answered.“You’re also a good daughter, despite your mother’s opinions about your life.”
“Thank you, Dad,” I whispered.“I needed that.”
“I love you, Leandra,” he said.“And I don’t ever want you to forget it.”
Chapter 22
Dalton~
It was already a bit late, but I was okay with that.Working into the late hours didn’t bother me, and I was good about scheduling my tattoos around my Precious Pets schedule, so that meant that I was going to be able to sleep in tomorrow.
I also didn’t mind being the only one left in the shop.I liked the quietness of the place, and cleaning up felt more therapeutic than an actual chore.While I wouldn’t say that I was a neat freak, I took my workstation seriously, and so I went hard when I was sanitizing my area.I also didn’t mind restocking supplies for the shop.Working alone had its benefits, and I usually got a lot done when it was just me.
However, all that peace and quiet came to an end when my phone chimed with an incoming text.
Blondie:Don’t get mad, but I’m outside
