Page 11 of Never Your Girl

She glances toward the window like the sun might be playing tricks on her. “Really?”

“Yeah.” My gaze darts to the closed bedroom door. “Is someone else here?”

Her face lights up like a kid on Christmas morning. “Oh, honey, I met the most fabulous man.” She hugs herself, practically vibrating with excitement. “I think he might be the one.”

That’s when I notice the gap in her smile where a tooth should be.

“What the hell happened to you?”

Her hand flies to her mouth, expression turning sheepish. “I had a little accident when we came home from the bar the other night.”

“Jesus. Are you all right?”

She waves off my concern. “I’m fine. It was so stupid. I tripped on the walkway and hit the cement face-first.”

“You’ll have to call the dentist?—”

“Oh, I don’t know if I’m going to bother. Dale says it adds character.”

I stare at her, wondering how this is my life. “Mom, you can’t walk around like that.”

“You’re making a big deal out of nothing. You didn’t even notice at first.”

My gaze catches on a worn leather vest thrown over a dining room chair. Before I can reach for it, Mom’s voice turns sharp.

“Don’t touch that! Dale was really weird about it.”

The stone in my gut turns to lead. “Please tell me he isn’t part of a biker gang.”

Her eyes widen with childlike excitement. “How did you know?”

“Mom...”

She drops her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “They call him Jigsaw, but he won’t tell me why.”

When I continue staring, she bounces on her toes, making the oversized shirt ride higher. “Hey! Are you seeing anyone? He’s got some friends who seemed nice. Maybe we could double date!”

“Absolutely not.”

She rolls her eyes. “You’re so judgy, Holland. You really need to chill out and live a little.”

I press my lips together, swallowing back all the things I want to scream.

About responsibility.

And consequences.

Or how I’ve spent my entire life watching her “live a little” before cleaning up the aftermath.

“Look, I need to take off.” I force my voice to remain steady. “I just wanted to stop by and make sure everything was good. If you’d answer your phone once in a while, I wouldn’t have to go out of my way to check up on you.”

She closes the distance between us, cupping my cheek in her warm palm. “Aww, but I’m glad you did. I enjoy seeing your pretty face. I love you, baby girl.”

And just like that, my anger melts into resignation. Nothing is ever going to change with Vivienne. She is who she is.

“I love you too.”

She smiles, the gap in her teeth making her look vulnerable in a way that breaks my heart.

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