Page 136 of Shattered

The head of the Giving Hearts board. The woman who controlled her future and had taken away a portion of her funds.

She made it downstairs and into Callum’s bathroom before she heard the front door shut. She was pacing when he tentatively opened the door.

“You okay?” He slowly walked over, placing his hands on either side of her face. She leaned into him.

“That was your mom?”

“Yeah.”

“That was your mom,” she said once more. This time it wasn’t a question.

Callum swallowed then took a breath. “Listen. I’ve never really done this before. This is new, and I’m not sure I want my family meddling in our relationship yet. I didn’t realize you would want to meet her.”

She wanted to laugh through the tears that had now sprung forth. He thought she was upset because he didn’t introduce her to his mom. The irony of this situation was astounding.

“If it means that much to you, I promise that–”

Sam abruptly cut in, “I’ve already met her.”

“What?” Now he looked even more confused.

“Your mom is Ashlyn Clemmings.”

“Yes.” Callum stared at her, mouth slightly agape.

“You said she works for the university?”

He nodded in response.

“Do you know what she does?”

“She is over a couple committees.”

“She’s over the Giving Hearts Foundation.”

He shrugged his shoulders in response. That phrase meant nothing to him.

“Okay?”

Then it all came out in a rush.

“That's the foundation that pays for my schooling. They support foster children. The email that I got that night at Toplie when you found me crying outside on my break…that email was from her. The next week, I had to sit before her and plead my case. It was absolute hell. She knows everything about me. Literally, she has my entire file and my history at her disposal and I have meetings with her scheduled all throughout the next semester. She is the one who will decide if I get my money back for the spring semester.”

He stared at her in disbelief. “Are you sure?”

“Absolutely. She was a foster kid, right?”

He nodded. “My grandparents adopted her when she was twelve.”

“It’s her.”

He stepped back then. She could tell he was unsure what to do with that news. “I had no idea. Sam, if I had known I would have told her, I would have–”

“No. I’m glad you didn’t know. What happened happened because of my own mistake, and I’m not taking that out on her or anyone else. I just…” She tried to wipe the stress off her face. “Just imagine how hard it is knowing that the woman who has the power to decide your future is the mom of the man you are fucking.”

He eyed her then. “We aren’tjustfucking.”

She shook her head and amended, “You know what I mean. She’s the mom of the guy I’m dating. What if she hates me before she even really knows me? She could find outanythingabout me by just opening a folder.”

---