Page 107 of Royal Desire

It takes another few moments for her to make her way in, and she holds onto the wall as she rounds the corner. She looks exactly like she did when I checked on her a bit ago—like hell ... only conscious.

Her gaze settles on Ruby before she focuses on me. “She’s still here?”

I cross my arms. “Yes. So are Alice and Blake. They aren’t going anywhere. Get used to it. It would be nice if you could not be rude.”

Mom does her best to stand straighter, which she rarely does so I’m sure it’s to save face and pretend she’s not the mess she’s turned into. “I can’t find my phone.”

I don’t respond.

“I never take it out of my room. It’s gone.” Her words run into each other and come out slow, until it looks like she has an epiphany and points at Ruby. “They took my phone! One of them took my phone!”

Ruby’s fork hits her plate.

I put a hand up to Mom to stop the nonsense. “They didn’t take your phone. I did.”

Mom lets go of the wall and takes two steps into the kitchen. “Why would you do that? Give it back!”

I shake my head. “I’m not giving it back. At least not yet.”

Her face reddens. “I’m your mother! You might’ve taken over everything else, but you can’t control me. Give it back.”

“Oh, I know I can’t control you. I’ve tried.”

“Give me my phone now,” she demands.

I tip my head. “Why? Are you running low on alcohol? Do you need to make an order?”

She moves forward another two steps, like she’s any type of threat to me. “Don’t you judge me⁠—”

“Payne.” Ruby interrupts and stops Mom in her tracks. “You need to tell her.”

Mom glares at Ruby. “Tell me what?”

Ruby touches my arm. “She deserves to know, and she needs to hear it from you.”

The grace Ruby gives my mother after the way she’s been treated by my family proves she’s an angel on earth.

I turn to Mom and prepare for the worst. “Dad was released from prison.”

She stumbles back like I struck her. “What?”

“It happened the day before last, but I just found out last night. He must have been given a favor by one of his crooked politician buddies, because he got a pardon.” I watch Mom as she takes in the news. I have no idea what to expect. Dad’s prosecution did her in. It pushed her over the edge from being a social alcoholic to diving headfirst into her addiction. “I came into your room last night to take your phone in case he tries to contact you. I don’t want you to have to deal with him.”

She forgets all about her phone. “He’s out? Is he coming here?”

I shrug. “I have no clue where he is. But he is not welcome here. I won’t allow it.”

“Maybe you should sit down, Tallie,” Ruby suggests.

Mom unceremoniously plants her ass on a barstool as she stares off into space. “What does this mean? Will things go back to the way they were?”

“Fuck no.” I rein it in and try to keep my cool. “It means nothing for you or me. If I had my guess, he’ll probably try to get back some of his old clients. If they return to him, so be it, but it would be a bad move on their part. Their margins are up because of me. Every single one of them.”

Her bloodshot eyes wander to me, and her words come out in a haunted whisper. “He’s going to come back. He has nowhere else to go.”

I wrap my hand around Ruby’s. “There’s too much at stake. I won’t allow it.”

“I ... I don’t know what to do.” She runs her fingers through her hair like she’s trying to fix herself up for Dad’s dramatic homecoming. She looks up, and all I see are years of hurt scrolling through her head like an old movie reel. “What do I do?”