Against All Odds - Angel's Story(47)

“Mum!” I hear Angel squeal from behind us. “What are you doing here?” I can tell by the tone of her voice she wasn’t expecting her visit.

“Baby,” she says, turning around. “After our phone call yesterday morning, I was worried. I needed to come see for myself that you were okay.” She closes the distance between them, pulling her into a loving embrace. “How are you?” she asks, gently stroking her hand down her daughter’s face. I watch in awe. My first thought is, she’s nothing like my bitch of a mother.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy sweet-cheeks has a mother who loves and cares for her, yet I can’t help but feel envious. I don’t know what it feels like to have a mother who cares.

I walk over to the coffee table and swoop up my shirt. It’s time for me to get going. After slipping it over my head, I turn to see them both watching me. “Thanks for letting me crash here last night, sw…” Shit. I almost called her sweet-cheeks in front of her mother.

“Aren’t you going to stay for breakfast?” she asks.

“No. I’ve gotta get going.”

“I’ll make you another omelette,” she offers with a hopeful smile. As much as I’d like to stay, her mum has come all this way to see her. They probably need some alone time.

“As tempting as that sounds, I really should be getting home. Pops will be wondering where I am.”

“Oh,” she says, sounding disappointed. My eyes move to Angel’s mother. She’s looking between us, a huge smile plastered on her face. I have no idea what that’s all about.

After grabbing my keys and wallet off the table, I walk towards Brooke. “It was nice to meet you Mrs. Cavanagh,” I say sincerely, extending my hand to her. She ignores it and pulls me into a hug. Of course I’m shocked, but I can’t stop the smile that spreads across my face. I can count on one hand how many times my mother held me.

“It was nice to meet you too,” she replies, smiling at me. I like her. I see where Angel gets her sweetness from.

Turning my attention to Angel, I say, “I’ll see you later okay.” I’m not sure when that will be. She won’t need me around as long as her mother is staying here with her.

“Why don’t you come back later this afternoon?” her mum offers. “You can have dinner with us tonight.” I look back at Angel, seeking confirmation. She’s smiling, so I guess she’s okay with it.

“Sure, that would be nice. Thank you.”





CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Angel



“So who’s the hottie?” is the first thing my mum asks when Chase leaves. It makes me laugh, but it stops the second she asks her next question.

“Is he the guy you went on a date with the other night?” When my face drops and my eyes fill with tears, she reacts straight away. “Jesus,” she says, pulling me into her arms. All the emotions I’ve being trying so hard to hold in the past few days come rushing to the surface as I completely break down. “Oh, baby,” she says, as she leads me towards the lounge. “After our conversation the other morning, I just knew in my heart something wasn’t right. What’s going on?”

“I can’t tell you,” I answer as I wipe my eyes.

“Bullshit. If there’s something going on with you, I want to damn well know,” my mum says sternly. I don’t know what to do. My dad can’t find out about this, and I know my mum tells my dad everything. “Angel,” she snaps when I don’t answer her.

“Please, mum. I wish I could tell you, but I can’t.”

“Why? If something has happened with you, Angel, or to you, I want to bloody know.” My mum rarely gets angry, but when she does, she won’t back down. She’s as stubborn as hell.

“Daddy will freak if he finds out. He’ll probably make me move back home.”

“What? Why? Talk to me. What’s going on with you? Does it have anything to do with your date the other night, or is it something else?”

“My date,” I whisper, as tears fill my eyes.

“Was it with Chase?”

“No. His name is Riley.”

“Did he do something?” When I nod my head my mum’s face drops. “Oh, sweetie,” she says wrapping me in her arms.

She holds me and lets me cry. I know this isn’t the end of it though. She’s going to want the whole story, and I know she’s going to flip her lid when I tell her. My only hope is that daddy doesn’t find out.

••••



After she makes us a cup of tea, we go and sit outside on the deck and I tell her everything; from the time Riley picked me up, until the moment Chase brought me home.