Page 107 of The Life We Left Behind

Regina fucking Farrington.

I looked up at the sky, wondering why I was being punished and tried to decide if I could just walk around her and pretend like she didn’t exist.

And I was going to.

I swear I really was.

Then I saw this for the chance that it was. I wasn’t a child anymore. I wasn’t even afraid of her.

Annoyed? Yes.

Ready to commit murder? Very,veryclose.

But I’d come to realize there was nothing she could say or do that was going to hurt me. Me, on the other hand? Oh, I had a lot of things that I wanted to say to her.

“Delaney.” She looked me up and down as I came to a stop in front of her and then shook her head like she was disappointed and thought I actually cared about it. “I had thought you would be sensible enough to leave town after the funeral.”

I didn’t say anything. I just stared at the old woman who was talking to me like she was some kind of mob boss in pearls. Surely she could hear how ridiculous she was.

As the silence stretched on and it became obvious that I wasn’t going to respond to her, she shuffled and then grimaced in disgust. Was Regina nervous? Were those cracks that were starting to form in the perfect exterior she wanted the world to see?

“I know what you’re doing. Do you think you can come back into town with your sob story and worm your way into my family? You’ve really no idea, have you? If Trace even thinks about taking up with you again, then he’ll be cut off quicker than the two of you can say ‘I do.’ He’ll never be happy with you. He’ll always resent you for being the reason he lost everything. You might think you’ve won. You might think you have everything, but it won’t last. It never does for people like you. My husbandoffered you a fair price for the land. Take it. Leave. Your kind doesn’t belong here, and you never will.”

I couldn’t help myself. There was a right way to deal with this. A mature way to tell her that she was wrong, and I didn’t care what she had to say. But the laughter bubbled up inside of me until it exploded out in one barking laugh.

The way she clutched her pearls at the sound just made me laugh all the harder.

It got to the point where I was waving my hand in front of my face like it would do something to stave off the tears that were running down my cheeks as I wheezed out, “Oh, the pearls.”

I wished Blake was here. She would have loved this too, and there was no way I’d be able to do it justice when I replayed it back to her.

Regina stood in front of me, her face turning redder and redder as she got more and more annoyed at the fact that I obviously didn’t care about anything she had to say.

“Oh my god, thank you,” I wheezed as I started to get myself under control. “I really needed that.”

She reared back in surprise, like she hadn’t been expecting the first thing to come out of my mouth to be a thank you. To be honest, I was surprised too. Not that I was finished with her just yet.

“Shall we get right to it, then?” I asked, not giving her a chance to respond before I spoke again. “First, and I say with absolutely no respect at all, fuck you, you withered old bat. The fact that you think you have any say over mine or anyone else’s life is honestly the best joke I’ve heard all year. And that’s all you are, Regina. This year’s biggest joke that will be quickly forgotten about. I actually feel a bit sorry for you. I know! It surprised me as well. You see, you get to live the rest of your life knowing you have family out there, a wonderful grandson, and all those sons that you chased away, and you’ll never get to be a part of it.”

“If you think I care about your life?—”

“Actually, I do,” I interrupted her. “That’s what you were always fighting for, right? The family. The picture-perfect happy family that was a shining example to all of town. But in your attempt to shove them all into your shiny molds, you chased them out of your life. Everything you’ve ever fought for is gone. They don’t want anything to do with you. Everything you did, all those awful ways that you manipulated the people you were supposed to love, and all it got you was alone. Just you and your pearls. Now, this is the important part, so you’re going to need to listen closely to this bit, Regina. Whatever happens between me and Trace is none of your business. We don’t need your money, and we sure as fuck don’t need your approval. I won’t be selling my land, and I won’t be leaving town. And you’re going to leave us the hell alone. Because if you don’t, I’ll take the one thing you have left. The tattered parts of your reputation. I still have the check and a very illuminating letter that my father left me. I knoweverything, and I have absolutely no problem sharing it with the rest of town if you push me.”

Her mouth hung open in shock as I got to the end, and I stepped around her to carry on with my way.

“Do close your mouth, Regina, dear. It’s terribly unladylike to stand gawping in the street,” I whispered as I walked past, unable to stop myself from taking one last parting shot.

I was under no illusions that I’d never hear from Regina again. She wasn’t the type of person to take this whole thing lying down, and I might have just made more trouble for Trace than he’d thank me for. But, damn, that felt good.

Best hangover cure ever.

Now, I really needed a coffee and a donut. I was celebrating, after all.

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

TRACE

Walking through the orchards with Delaney’s hand in mine was like a dream, and I never wanted to wake up from it. Seeing Cade darting between the trees like an excited puppy was just icing on the cake.

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