Page 93 of Cross My Heart
Lanie
“There’san entire family out there that loves you, Lanie. You do not owe your mother anything.” Mimi says, helping me wash my hair in the sink. The unfortunate vomiting accident in the kitchen landed mostly on the left side of my head.
“I know, Mimi, I still can’t believe they all came and brought the Westbrook’s too,” I tell her.
“Seems to me, Dexter has his own chosen family out there. If the situation were reversed, do you really think we would let you go without us?” I hadn’t thought of it that way, but she had a point.
Standing up, I wrap a towel around my head.“You’re right, Mimi, but I have to do this, I think. I need the closure it will bring.”
“Honey, you know she is going to be in a bar tonight. Do you think you’ll get the closure you’re looking for if she has been drinking all day?” Mimi asks skeptically.
Staring at Mimi, I know I want to be a mom like her, however that comes to be. I also know it can’t happen unless I cut the strings of my past.
“Honestly, Mimi? This isn’t about the closure she can give me. It’s about the closure I need by speaking my truth, out loud, to her. I know she won’t remember and will very likely cause a scene, but I need it. If I want to move on…if I want a chance at inheriting that large group of crazy men out there…” I laugh because there is no other way to explain the Westbrook’s. “If I want those amazing babies I already love so much, and a man that cares so much more for me than I ever thought possible, I have to do this.”
Mimi takes me in her arms, tears running freely down her face. “We have been waiting for this day, Lanie. The day you would see how special you are, how easy you are to love, how much you have to offer the world if you could only open your heart. I don’t think I have ever been prouder to have you as a daughter as I am right now.” She pulls back and looks me straight in the eyes, “but you know, I cannot let you go down to that bar alone. I insist someone goes with you. Pawpaw will go if that’s what you’re most comfortable with.”
“Okay, I’m sorry to leave you with a house full of man-babies,” I tell her cheekily.
“Oh, honey, they are a group of very handsome men, I think I’ll survive. Plus, Sylvie is excellent at keeping those boys in line.”
“That she is,” I tell her.
We walk out of the bathroom to a room full of laughing and yelling. Sylvie and Pawpaw have taken the kids to the solarium, where it seems to be quieter. Dexter is yelling at Cooper, Shepherd has Easton in a headlock, Preston is taking pictures, and Ashton is spinning in circles trying to get everyone to calm down.
“What the heck is going on here?” I yell, louder than I knew I could be. Everyone freezes, even Preston, who is standing on Mimi’s couch with his phone high in the air, trying to get everyone in the frame.
“You, young man, can get your feet off my couch.” Mimi scolds, and Preston immediately jumps down.
“Sorry, ma’am, I was trying to get pictures for the MLM.” He says as if that explains everything.
“Oh, well then, carry on, everyone else can stop the yelling, though,” Mimi tells them.
I stare at her like she is crazy.What the hell is the MLM?
Dexter points to each one of the guys, “not another word or text from any of you, or I swear you won’t like what you’ll wake up to.”
He stalks towards me with my jacket in hand. “It is not up for debate,” he says, helping me into my coat. “I swear to God, Lanie, not a single word. I spoke to Julia. I spoke to Pete. If you insist on going into that bar, I will be going with you whether you want me to or not. I’m happy to drive you, but if you insist on going by yourself, know this, I will follow you.”
Looking at Pawpaw, I mouth, “Traitor,” to which he blows me a kiss.
“Dex, I really don’t want you to see this. She is going to be a mess, and it isn’t going to be pretty. She will definitely not be kind. I-I don’t want you to see me this way.”
Lifting my chin so I have to look at him, he stares at me for long minutes. “Lanie, just because this woman birthed you or because she will likely display abhorrent behavior towards you, it does not, in any way, change how I feel about you. Now that we have that out of the way, let's say goodbye to the kids and get this over with, shall we?” He speaks as if he has no idea we are about to enter the seventh layer of hell.
We say goodbye to the kids, and I promise Tate I will be back in the morning, then we walk towards the door.
Just before we leave, Sylvie stops us. “I’m so proud of you, Dex, your Dad would be so happy to see the man you’ve become.”
He has tears in his eyes. “Thank you, Sylvie. That means a lot. More than you could know, actually.”
She smiles and gives him a kiss on the cheek, then whispers she loves him, and I see the emotion written all over his face.
“I love you too,” he replies.
We make our way to the car as wet, heavy snow starts to fall, covering the vehicles in the driveway. “Tate is going to love this tomorrow,” Dex tells me, “he hasn’t ever seen snow before.”
Shocked, I ask, “How is that possible?”
