Page 73 of Good Girl

My mother stood in the doorway, a prim figure with the most twisted, hateful look that I had ever seen on her face.

“Charlotte Lark, get downstairs right thisinstant.”

35

CHARLOTTE

Despite the speed at which I threw myself down the stairs after my mother, my heart beat rather slowly in my chest. Deep, painful thumps echoed around my skull as I watched her pace in front of me, wringing her bony hands together.

Twice, she pointed a stern finger at me and paused. No words came, and she would resume her pacing after a few moments of staring. My hands trembled even as I curled them into fists, and I pressed my thighs tight together to try and control the shake that was moving through me like the splinters of an unraveling threat.

“Mom—” I tried hoarsely, and I was immediately silenced by a cold glare. Derek and Samuel joined us a few moments later, but I didn’t dare to look at them, not when my mother’s look of disgust was frozen in my mind’s eye.

“Uhm,” Derek began, and his voice made me flinch. “Matt has had to leave. A work thing, there was a fire and—” I spun on the spot to face Derek, eyes wide, and he quickly raised both hands. “It’s not serious. He just witnessed it, and he needs to go and do... something. It doesn’t matter. He’s sorry.”

I turned back to my mother, my heart still pounding painfully slow in my chest, and finally, she stopped her pacing.

“Iknewsending you to that school was a mistake,” she hissed, her words dripping in venom. “I knew, in the pit of my heart I knew you were up to no good, but you keptpushingme, Charlotte. Pushing me further and further until I had to give in and let you go, and this... this is what you bring back to me? Not good grades or a decent career, you bringthisback?” She flew one hand wide, indicating to Samuel and Derek hovering behind me.

“Mom, please. If you could let me explain—”

“Explain!” A sharp bark of a laugh escaped her. “I don’t need to know the details, I’ve seen enough. My daughter, portly as she is, has turned into a whore, and if that wasn’t enough, you bring your disgusting antics under my roof? You bring men into mybusinessand you spread your legs and you—” Emotion choked off her words, and she pressed a quivering hand to her chest.

Each word speared me through. It was my worst nightmare come to life right before my eyes, and whatever lingering hope I had of gaining understanding from my mother shriveled away.

“Mom,please,” I begged thickly as tears slowly began to build in my eyes. “You’re wrong—”

“Don’t you dare!” she snapped. “I have never in all my life been so disgusted by you. How long has this been going on, hmm? How much do you charge for more than one gentleman? Enough to break your mother’s heart, I bet!”

“Ma’am, please—” Derek tried to speak, but my mother clapped her hands together sharply.

“I do not need to hear a single word from the filth my daughter has brought under this roof,” she said tightly. “Get out. Get out, and don’t you dare come back. And as for you?” She pointed at me once more, and her hand trembled. Never had I seen such anger in her eyes before.

I took a step forward, raising my hands to try and appease her. “Mother, please, it’s not what you think. It’s not money. They’re my boyfriends, and I know that—”

“Boyfriends?” My mother cackled, and a sharp chill stole down my spine. “Don’t treat me like I’mstupid, Charlotte. Men like that have no interest in women like you. I amashamedof you, do you hear me? All those years I spent trying to keep you on a light path, and you disappear off to that school and succumb to the Devil.”

The remains of my childhood safety net snapped right before my eyes. Nausea swirled in my gut, and a cramp swept through my lower belly in time to the painful internal punching of my own breaking heart. I didn’t need Haley and Paul to destroy my relationship with my mother. I was doing that myself.

“Mom, please...”

“The shame you are bringing to me, to our family name, do you have any idea, Charlotte? Have you ever stopped to think about anyone except yourself?” My mother stepped away, then she turned back to me, stiff as a board. “Thank the Lord your father isn’t alive to see this. He would be disgusted by you!”

That was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

The last of my resolve crumbled, and I burst into floods of tears. The pain in my chest erupted forth, and I struggled for air as the thought of how horrified my father would be utterly consumed me. I would have sunk to the ground had Samuel not swept forward to gather me in his arms.

Derek stepped around me and spoke. “Mrs. Lark, I understand that what you witnessed may be a shock to you, but that is absolutely no way to speak to your daughter. She is yourchild, not some rat off the street. She deserves your unconditional love regardless of how you view whatever situation she may find herself in.”

“How dare you—” My mother was swiftly cut off as Derek continued.

“Furthermore, our relationship with your daughter is not for any financial gain, I can assure you of that. She is a beautiful, warm woman with a kind soul and a brightness that lights up every room she is in. You should be brimming with pride for the woman she is because... and I can assure you of this, we care deeply for her.”

“We love her.” Samuel spoke up, and through my tears and uncontrollable sobs, his words reached me. “I love her. I have for a while. Charlotte is... amazing, and I can’t believe you don’t see that.”

Through a world of tears, I stared up at Samuel, unable to fully comprehend what he was saying on top of all the pain from my mother.

“I do too.” Derek half turned back to look at me and sent me a sad, warm smile. “I’ve known since that night, after the club.”

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