Page 25 of Wild and Bright

“We’re going to be moving to a new house soon. Very soon. In fact, the next time you come back from your daddy’s, it will be to our new house instead of here.”

She frowns. “Where is our new house?”

“It’s not too far away. But it isn’t exactly our house. It’s your Uncle Cam’s. He’s letting us stay there for the next six months.”

“Is six months a year?”

“No, baby, six months is just six months. It’s a half a year.”“

I’m startled when my door opens. My mom stands with one hand on her hip and a big glass of wine in the other—a constant since my aunts arrived. “Cady, honey, Leilani and Aunt Lisa are working on a puzzle. They need your help with it.” She smiles sweetly. “They aren’t as good at puzzles as you are.”

As my mom knew she would, Cadence leaps off my bed and darts toward the door.

“I didn’t even finish your makeup,” I call after her, but it’s futile. Her bouncing footsteps are already pounding on the kitchen tile. I frown at my mom. “I was talking to her about something important.”

“What’s so important?” She narrows her eyes. “Where did you and Cam take off to?”

Something about the question draws my attention to her face. Her eyes are hard and her jaw is set.

She’s jealous.

And that’s why I don’t feel guilty for my childish triumph. On the contrary, that look of death on her face makes my stomach flutter. Just wait till she knows the full extent of it.

She’ll want to kill me.

“We went to his lawyer’s office.”

Her irritated expression shifts to bewilderment, and it makes my stomach flip.

“Why would you go to his lawyer’s office?”

I stare at her steadily, wanting to savor this moment. “Because I’m moving in with him.”

Her mouth falls open. “Is this a joke? Why on earth would he ask you to move in with him?”

“Why do you think?”

My mom’s eyes are saucers now. “I really don’t know.”

“He’s been into me for years. He’s finally owning up to it. He wants me to move in with him so we can finally have the kind of relationship he’s always wanted.”

Her face grows almost completely expressionless. She looks like she’s in a sort of trance. “This isn’t funny,” she eventually says, her voice barely above a whisper.

“I’m not joking.”

“You’re telling me all this time he’s wanted a relationship with you?”

I clench my teeth, and my skin grows hot. “Yep.”

Her eyes narrow. “And you’re doing it? Out of the blue? You’re moving in with him because he wants you to.” Her voice lowers into a menacing rumble. “You have a daughter.”

“Thank you for pointing that out, Mom. You’re absolutely right. I have a daughter I need to support. And thanks to you—and dad, according to you, though he doesn’t seem at all aware of the fact that you threatened to kick me out yesterday—my financial situation has changed dramatically.”

“I can talk to your dad about that. Maybe we don’t need to… We can probably afford—”

“It’s too late to take it back. There’s no way I’m changing my mind about this. It’s done. And Cam’s going to pay off all my student loans.”

Her mouth drops open. “What?”

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