Page 35 of Lush

I felt my heart swell, and it was as if a dam had broken inside me, and all the years of pain and misunderstanding rushed out.

“I love you too, Mom.”

We both leaned back, overwhelmed by what just happened. I hadn’t expected that. I expected screaming, yelling, accusations.

“I’ve been thinking about the after-party, and the hospital,” I said, returning to the plan Laurene and I had concocted. “When Conrad was in the hospital, did anyone unexpected drop by?”

Mom snapped her fingers, and a maid immediately entered with a glass of water.

“Why?” she asked.

“Just curious,” I said, trying to smooth over the tension in my voice.

Mom’s gaze didn’t leave mine, but her fingers brushed against the rim of her glass, like she was calculating her answer. “No. It was mainly family and doctors. Nina was there too, of course.” I watched her think. “Blair. Noelle McKenzie, and her parents. Mayor Castillo, of course he wasn’t mayor then. And Hollie was there as well?—”

Hollie being there wasn’t a surprise; she was Jennie’s best friend.

“Anyone else? Maybe someone surprising who asked a lot of questions about the accident or sent flowers?” I pressed.

Mom paused again, deep in thought. “Well, there was Tobias Merrick,” she finally said. “He and Conrad were friends. He came to the hospital and sent flowers. I remember he shared a little about what happened on the boat.”

Tobias?The fucking weasel. He had damn near pushed all the women out the way to be the first one on the boat.

“What kind of flowers?” I asked, the question slipping out before I realized how strange it sounded. But the details mattered.

Mom seemed confused by the question, blinking a few times before she answered. “I don’t know. White. Peonies? Gardenias? Lillies? It’s been so long.”

I leaned back.This asshole.

“Did Conrad ever mention him? Anything about their friendship? I don’t remember them hanging out.”

“After you had that argument with your father and he, um, cut you out the business, Conrad took over everything. Jennie was getting her MBA at the time. But, um, they were workingtogether on something. A business deal, I think?” Mom’s gaze drifted momentarily. “Conrad put Tobias’s restaurant in the resort. Your brother didn’t really discuss his work with me.”

Conrad could partner with Toby, but not his own damn brother?

“No one thought to tell me that he was making deals with Tobias? Or after when I took over?”

“Jennie has always been better at handling the resort.” Mom sent me a look. “Let’s be real, Reese. You didn’t care about the business at all until these last few years.”

I nodded. That was true. “Anyone else?”

“Miles Whitmore came. That was lovely of him.” My mother’s fingers tapped the edge of her glass. “He was just concerned, wanted to know how we were handling things. Sweet boy, especially after everything with his father.”

“What else do you remember?”

She sighed. “It’s hard for me to remember those days. They’re all jumbled together in my mind.”

“Mom, please.” I leaned forward farther, my hands reaching out instinctively to clasp hers.

“It’s not that simple. I don’t—” She shook her head, biting down on her lip. “I don’t want to remember those things. They hurt too much.” She tried to pull her hands free, but I tightened my grip.

“This is important.”

“I don’t want to remember!” she snapped back, her voice trembling as her hands jerked against mine. “All I remember is pain and his body and how cold it was and I—I can’t…”

She snatched her hands from me and sank into the couch, her fingers kneading at her temples.

“Mom, take a breath,” I said, reaching out to touch her arm.

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