Page 33 of Rocked: The Price of Dreams

What lies had she spun Nolan? The poor man didn’t know what he was in for. “Do you love him?” I was sure my mother wasn’t capable of that sentiment.

“Hah! Hahaha-ha-ha.” Pure shallowness rocked through her chilling laugh. “I like him. That’s good enough.”

“You’re pathetic.” I was right.

“Don’t talk to me like that. I’m your mother. Show some respect.”

“Then earn it.” Acid dripped in my tone.

“You’re so ungrateful.” She stabbed her finger at me. “You better sort out your life. You won’t be coming with me if I marry Nolan. I’m not having you cramp my new lifestyle.”

Tears burned in the back of my eyes, but I sucked in a deep breath to keep them at bay. I refused to give her the satisfaction of seeing my crushed heart. “Don’t stress. I’m outta here the moment I graduate.”

She straightened, flicking her hair back over her shoulders. “It can’t come soon enough.”

“I’m glad we understand each other,” I sneered, but my stomach sank to the floor. I’d tried to get along with Mom. I’d asked her to every show. I wanted her to be happy and supportive of my music, but she never cared. I shoveled the last mouthful of cereal into my mouth and pushed the empty bowl aside. “By the way, there’s no food in the house. Can I have a few bucks to buy some groceries tomorrow, please?”

“You earn your own money from your little job and your gigs; you should be paying me rent, contributing some cash toward the utilities, and buying your own food.”

“ButI’m in school.” And I often purchased groceries—otherwise I’d starve.

Mom lifted her chin. “All you do is play with those boys. I should be compensated with a band management fee for driving you around and taking you to shows.”

“Are you delusional?” I grimaced, unable to fathom my mother’s crap. “I ride my bicycle everywhere. Claire and Derek drive us to our gigs. You’ve been to one show in the past year—the Easter fair in the park. You drove me there so you could go to the bar and pick up men.” She hadn’t even watched us perform.

“Oh... yeah.” She curled her hair around her finger. “That was a good night. But I promoted you at every opportunity. That’s worth some kind of payment.”

I clamped my teeth together. Fire coiled through my veins. “Entering a wet T-shirt contest in our white branded tank top doesn’t count as promotion.”

“Fine.” Pompousness shot through her tone. “Then you don’t get any of my hard-earned cash either. You can buy your own food from now on. And leave twenty bucks on the counter to help pay the electricity bill.”

“If it gets you off my case...gladly.” Acid turned in my gut. I didn’t earn that much money, but I’d survive. “What are you going to tell Derek about this weekend?”

“That I’m going away on a girls’ weekend. Like I always do. It won’t be an issue.”

My voice sliced through my teeth. “You need to tell him about Nolan.”

“Stay out of it,” she snapped. “This is none of your business.”

It was. He was my stepdad. I didn’t want to see him hurt. Tears prickled my eyes again. “Why do you hate me so much?”

“Why?” She rested her hands against the chair, digging her nails into the vinyl. Her eyes narrowed into severe slits. “Because you screwed up my life. You were an accident. Your father tried to do the right thing and married me. But that left me stuck in this horrid town with a useless husband. Henry filled my head with promises that never happened. He was pathetic. You’re just like him. Derek has proved to be no better. Y’all have done nothing but hold me back.” She shook her head. “But not anymore. I’m gonna get out of here, and one day, you’ll pay for ruining my life.”

“I have paid.” My heart constricted into a pin-sized ball. “Every day with your cold-heartedness. Do you honestly not care about love and family or me?”

Ice set in her gaze. “I’ve put food in your mouth and a roof over your head for long enough. You can look after yourself. It’s time for me to look after me.”

She’d done that since I was born. I’d taken care of myself since I was six. So be it. “You do that, Mom. I hope you get what you want.”

“Oh. I will. Just wait and see.” She winked, then returned to her bedroom and slammed the door shut.

A tear finally escaped and slid down my cheek. I quickly brushed it off with my palm as I stared at my schoolbooks. Mom had never lied about me being an accident and not wanting me. That was nothing new. I guessed I was the one who’d been delusional, hoping that one day she’d be civil toward me. Love me. But her lust for money had grown to a crazed level of insanity. She watched too many reality TV shows like The Real Housewives of New York and had become obsessed with a rich lifestyle. Rather than work hard and earn it, she wanted to lie and manipulate some man in order to achieve it. That was a new low even for my mom.

We all wanted out of this town, but there was a right way to go about it.

Music would be my ticket to leave. I didn’t care about making millions. I just wanted to do what I loved and earn enough money to be able to afford food and pay rent.

Maybe Mom hated that I was focused on my dreams and slowly making them happen. Maybe she was jealous.

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