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Call me immediately, read a text from my father.
He picked up after one ring.
"Hey," I said.
"Hey yourself." Anger rolled off of him through the phone, and I braced myself. "I had a rather unexpected phone call from Caroline Barton after you left. You saw her?"
"Unfortunately, yes."
"Well, apparently I'm not the only one who has objections to your… circumstances with Lowell. Her mother's very upset."
"I can't imagine that you really care. Not after what she did to you."
He sighed. "She was practically hysterical."
Drama queen. Actress. Grifter. "That's too bad. She seemed okay when she was here. Not that I trust her."
"Well, I don't trust her either. She said some other things too, son. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with her."
"What do you mean? What'd she say?"
"Well, first, she asked to see me. When I said no, that I was too busy with meetings, she went on and on about how she doesn't have any financial security right now. And she said she's worried about Lowell, that she seems off-balance."
"I think she's on a treasure hunt. Stay away from her."
"She probably is. She usually is." He snorted, as if dismissing the topic of Caroline Barton. "Am I going to see you tomorrow?"
I looked toward the bedroom door. Lowell had suddenly appeared there, her brow furrowed, staring at me.
"I don't know," I said, because I didn't.
* * *
"What the hell was that?" Lowell asked. Her face had gone pale. "Who were you just talking to?"
"My father."
"Were you talking about my mother?"
I nodded tightly. "She called him. He said she was going on and on about how she doesn't have any financial security right now and how she's worried about you."
"I told her he seemed lonely, but I didn't think she was gonna call him today." Lowell sank onto a nearby couch. "Ugh."
I sat gingerly across from her. "I'm sorry."
"Are you sorry that she called him? Or that I caught you telling your dad my mother is a gold-digger on a treasure hunt?" Her eyes flashed at me.
"Both. I'm sorry about both." I started to get defensive, but I reeled myself in.
I believed Lowell knew who her mother was. But as much as I wanted to protect her from her mother and from everyone else, I needed to tread lightly. Caroline was her mother. You only got one, and most people preferred it if people didn't insult theirs.
She looked at me warily. "This is just going from bad to worse. Just when I thought it couldn't get more complicated…"
"It was always gonna be an awkward family reunion, Lo. Both of our parents are difficult. They both have their agendas. We just need to separate them from ours."
She shook her head, and my heart sank. "I can't do that. I can't forget where I came from. Or where you did. And you need to go back, Kyle. Back to your Dad."
"It doesn't matter." To me, it didn't. "Nothing else matters to me except you."
