Page 81 of When I Had You

“I was forbidden to see Cash, so it left us no choice but to sneak around.”

A breath fills her chest as she glances out the window. When she turns back, she says, “Your entire family was in the theater waiting to watch and then celebrate the premiere with you.”

“I’m sorry.” I hate feeling bad for something that feels so right. “Last night wasn’t planned. Corbin—”

“How is your boyfriend engaged to another woman, and we didn’t know you two were broken up?”

Angling my knees toward her, I toy with the loose end of the seat belt. “A lot happened in a short span of time on that carpet and in front of the press—”

“And the world.”

Frustration sets in, and I purse my lips before realizing I’m tired of holding it in. “I won’t apologize for what I did with Cash. Corbin cheating on me was embarrassing. Kissing Cash was freeing. Corbin told me I wasn’t good enough for him and then called me a whore for being with the man I love instead. Cash treats me like a queen.”

My mom’s mouth hangs in shock, her hands clasping together over her heart. “I’m sorry. He treated you awful. If I would have known—”

“I don’t have any more regrets because I learned what I would never tolerate again and what kind of man I deserve.”

No parent wants to hear their child had to go through something like this. Corbin will be dead to her like he is to me. “You’ve gone through so much,” she says. “How are you?”

“It’s been a lot, but I’m doing better than I have in years.” She embraces me again, and I let her, loving her comforting arms around me. “I’ll apologize to the family for not letting you know what was happening. I just couldn’t bring myself to go inside that theater after all that happened beforehand.”

“The man you love?” She reaches over, stilling my hand with hers. “You love Cash?”

I feel caught, precariously walking a tightrope of protecting what’s mine and makes me so happy and sharing with everyone else. My mom isn’t everyone else, though. I swallow any hesitation and just say it. “I love him. I’m in love with him.” And then I wait . . . I don’t even know what reaction I expect from her. She’s always been on my side while still being a guiding parent with advice.

She sits back, and her gaze falls forward. But then a small smile tiptoes onto her face, and when her hand covers her heart, she says, “I’ve never heard you say that about anyone you’ve dated before.” Reaching over with arms open, she snuggles me in her arms when I lean closer. “Oh honey, I’m so happy for you.”

“You are?” I reply the best I can as I have the daylights squeezed from my body.

When we sit back again, her smile is as wide as the one she wears on Christmas morning. “Love is a beautiful emotion. It’s strong and more powerful than any other.”

“It’s all-consuming. I only want to be with him, to lie in his arms.” I stop, my eyes going wide at the realization of what I just confided to my mom. Does a parent want to know that kind of thing about their daughter?

Reading me like a book, she laughs. “You’re a grown woman, Marina. You should be in love. You should be making love with someone who matters to you and makes you feel giddy when you see them. We enter this new stage of our relationship if you trust that your dad and I always want the best for you.”

“I know you do, Mom. Thank you. I trust you and Dad and our whole family to always have my best interests at heart. It’s just hard with so many opinions, and then you add in the fact that they’re his boss—”

“You are too. Don’t forget.”

Part ownership was an amazing gift and could pay off to be a financial windfall with how the team is doing, but in no way have I ever had a say or hand as an owner. “I do forget. It’s not like I have a vote.”

“Of course, you do. You just have to use it.” She pauses to dig her phone out of her bag. Reading a message on the screen, she sets it on her lap just after, seemingly satisfied. “An owner of the team dating one of the drivers complicates things.”

She’s right. This could make things messy.

Resting my elbow on the window, I lean my chin against my hand and stare out. “I hadn’t thought of myself in that position.” I turn back to face her. “Tell me it’s okay to follow my heart with him.”

Her smile is soft, sincerity straining the edges. “I can’t do that. Only you can decide if that’s the right path for you.”

The SUV loops into the airport, and I know my time with her is running out. “I guess I should have listened to my brothers. It was never about Cash but the situation we’re now in.”

“Your brothers said they would have never banned you from the races if they had known about you and Cash. It’s out there now, so we’ll move through the storm together as a family and handle the coverage the best we can.”

“Thank you.”

When the vehicle comes to a stop, the driver gets out and grabs my suitcase.

I unbuckle and lean over to give her a hug. She embraces me like she always has—as if I can do no wrong—and says, “I love you. Take care of yourself.”

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