Page 75 of Sawyer
“Thea, I’ve got this,” he said softly.
His mother didn’t know who to focus on. Him or his trusty knight.
“Of course he does,” his mother finally said, trying to shove Thea out of the picture. “How could he not want to see his own mother?”
“I said ‘enough.’” Sawyer put Thea behind him to the right, shielding her.
“Sawyer, you don’t have to talk to her,” Thea rasped out.
He put his arm around her waist when she drew up next to him again. He would not shield her. She’d earned her seat at the round table, so to speak. While Thea was trembling, he felt strong. Like he was standing on a mountain andlooking down at the heights he’d ascended. “Yes, I do, little sister.”
He faced the petite woman in front of him, whom he’d surpassed in height years ago. Her slick black hair rested on her narrow shoulders. She looked put together, but there was a familiar mean glint in her nearly black eyes. He often wondered how he could share DNA with someone he felt so unrelated to. When he’d looked in the mirror, he’d never seen a trace of that meanness in himself. It was one of his saving graces, he’d always thought.
“I cannot believe you would treat your own mother like this, Sawyer!” she cried, now that she had his full attention. “I’m glad your father isn’t here to see your behavior. I’ve been texting and calling you?—”
“I blocked you last night after what I intended to be my final text, Mother.” He put his hands on his hips. “I told you that I’d made my decision and planned to live my life as I want. As an artist. I don’t want to see you or Father anymore. I’m tired of this game we play. You criticize, and I deflate. You threaten, and I get scared. We don’t have a healthy relationship.”
“Healthy?” Her laugh was like glass shattering on the floor. “What New Age books have you been reading since coming here? You’ve gone crazy. No wonder you’re thinking about throwing all your hard work and a respectable profession away. Well, we will take care of that. Your father and I know what’s best for you.”
He shook his head. “Not anymore. I can’t become who I want to be with you in my life?—”
“Can’t become?Sawyer, Imadeyou. Your father and I gave you every advantage. So your art seems to have made a little splash? You got your name in the newspaper and some people talking. That’s nothing compared to the respectability of being a professor. You clearly need me now more than ever if you’re going to undo all this damage?—”
“You didn’t ask me the most important question, Mother,” he interrupted.
She only stared at him.
He felt his lips curve. “You remember it, right? ‘Is it good enough?’ It’s all you asked when I was growing up. It’s played in my head my whole life when you aren’t around. Well, guess what? It is.”
“You don’t get to decide these things,” his mother practically shrieked at his defiance. “You are my son, my only son. I am your mother. We’re blood. That is not something you can undo.”
His laugh was harsh. “Wanna bet? If I could have a blood transfusion and suck out every link we have biologically, I would, but since I can’t… I hereby disown you. I never want to see you or Father again or talk to you. My life is no longer your concern. Don’t doubt my resolve. That, I finally realize, is the only thing we have in common.”
He stepped back and slammed the door. It was over. His mother might not want to give up, but he didn’t care anymore. He was finally free. In himself, where it mattered most. The rush was like coming to the end of the roller coaster after six terrifying turns in the air. “I did it!”
Thea grabbed him in a half hug. “You did it!”
“God!” He put his hands in his hair. “I wonder if this is how Athena felt after she defeated Ares with a boulder. Whoa! I thought I was fine, but I think I need to sit down.”
“Me too.” She helped him to a nearby chair and then sat herself on the floor. “I hate confrontations like this, but your mother wasn’t backing down, was she? You were so brave.”
“So were you.” He held out his hand. “Delayed shock. I’m shaking like a leaf, but I feel great. Are you okay?”
She lifted her arm so he could see her tremors. “I’m like a bowl of jelly, but I’m starting to feel really happy. It makes me think I can finally tell my parents I don’t want them in my lifeeither. I mean, I stood up to your mother. And she’s really scary. Wow! Jean Luc is going to be so proud of me.”
He started laughing wildly. “And imagine what Brooke and Madison will say? You locked your arms in the doorway of the restaurant and wouldn’t move, Thea. Like a regular Valkyrie. That’s huge!”
“I know! And she has the scariest fingernails I’ve ever seen. I thought she was going to stab me.”
He blew out a huge breath, a smile tugging at his mouth. “Glad it didn’t come to that.”
The back door burst open, and they both jumped as the chandelier clanged.
Kyle was in the doorway, looking larger than life next to his grim-faced knight, Madison.
“Are you two all right?” he shot out. “We saw Sawyer’s mother getting into a car.”
He and Thea shared a look and suddenly they were laughing hysterically, falling against each other.
