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Taking her chin between my fingers, I tugged her gaze to meet mine. Her watery eyes slayed me. “It’s okay. It happens. Just because the clothes are pink doesn’t mean we won’t wear them. Next time, we’ll be more careful. It was my fault we didn’t double check the piles, not yours. You didn’t know. I should have made sure you knew.” I kissed the tip of her nose, and she sighed.
“Are you sure? I feel really bad.” The corners of her lips tipped down.
“To show you just how sure I am, I will be wearing one of these pink shirts tomorrow night on our date.” I had to hold in a laugh when her eyes grew as big as saucers. “I promise you, princess, it’s not a big deal.”
I shifted my hand to the back of her neck and massaged away her tension before I kissed her pout away. She melted in my embrace and let out a relieved sigh.
The front door slammed shut, and Andrew’s voice rang through the house. “Naked movie night.”
Tori laughed, and I swatted her tight little ass as she walked out of the mudroom to find Drew. God, this woman drove me crazy, but in every good way possible. I didn’t want moments like this to stop, but a niggling sense of worry burrowed into my mind. We hadn’t talked to Tori about what it might mean to not return to Cosland.
VICTORIA
My phone rang for the umpteenth time today.
“Tori, I swear if you don’t answer it, I will,” Caleb called from the other room. I swiped my phone off the bathroom counter and answered it. No way was I letting Caleb speak to my mother.
“Hello, Mother,” I said, my voice tight as I walked into the bedroom to find my headphones. I still needed to finish my makeup, and I didn’t want to make us late for our date.
“Victoria, why do you make me stay up to ungodly hours to call you?”
“It’s a seven-hour time difference. It’s only a little after eleven there.” I sighed. It didn’t matter whether it was early, late, or just right, she’d find a way of making it my fault. I didn’t know why I still tried to please her.
I popped my earbud in and sat at the counter. “Is there something you needed?” I asked, finishing the eyeliner on my left eye. I didn’t want to go too bold on my makeup since Caleb wanted me in my little blue dress. We weren’t going any place fancy, but I still wanted to be cute. My stomach did flips just thinking about going on something as normal as a date.
“Can’t I call my daughter on a Sunday night to check up on her wellbeing?” Her dramatic voice could be heard through my earbud loud and clear. I could even picture the pouty look she’d often had when she had to take time out of her day to scold me.
“You always want something. What’s the ulterior objective behind this call?”
“It’s been a week, Victoria. You must have a better idea of when you’ll be coming home. I want to make an appointment at the bridal store to try on gowns.”
“The project just added a whole new level. I have meetings booked throughout the rest of the month I have to be here for.” It wasn’t a complete lie. Once Thomas had asked me to work with Alex on finding the new software program for the ranch, we hit the ground running. I had a meeting scheduled with one of the software companies they want to use on the ranch.
Apart from a couple small jobs I’d picked up from old contacts of mine, this was the first big job I’d had since graduating—one I could really show the skills I’d learned.
“Do you think you could come home for one weekend? That way, we can find you a dress, and it can be made while you finish up the rest of your work.”
I ran that idea over in my head. If I went home and did one thing she wanted, she might back off a little. On the other hand, if I came home and tried on dresses, she could also take that as a sign to move the date of the wedding sooner.
Nope. I was not about to take a chance that this one trip home ended with me staying there for good. I needed to stall as long as possible. Tears gathered in my eyes, making them burn. There was no way I could leave Caleb and Andrew just yet.
“If I have a free weekend, I’ll let you know. Thomas and Declan will lend me their plane at a moment’s notice.” I lightly dusted my cheeks with blush and applied my lipstick. “Is there anything else you needed?”
“William Donaldson wanted me to let you know he can’t wait for you to come home, so you can leave all this behind. He says you will never have to work again once you are married. Isn’t that so sweet, honey? They are going to take such good care of you.”
My stomach turned sour at her words. William was the one I avoided most often. He was a chauvinistic asshole. I had actually been serious when I said I might never date again. This could very well be my last date ever, because I could guarantee there wasn’t a romantic bone in any of the Donaldson brothers’ bodies. My life was going to be miserable as soon as I saidI do.I would never have a say in anything and would be expected to be their silent arm candy in public.
The worst part was I had no idea how I could put a stop to it. My parents controlled everything in my life, and I didn’t know how to get away from them. I couldn’t support myself. I was truly stuck.
“I’m glad you think so, Mother. I have to get going now.” I’d been in such a cheerful mood before her call. I should have let the phone go to voicemail.
“You always make these conversations so short.” I don’t know why she sounded so surprised. It’s not like she enjoyed our conversations either.
“You always make these conversations about me coming home and the wedding. If there is anything else you would like to talk about, then I’d be more willing to catch up.”
“Those are the only important things at the moment. When you come home and get married, then we can start talking about you taking on more of the family business and your plans to have babies.”
I rolled my eyes. Already there were doubts that crept into my mind that what my mother said was true. Part of me wondered if the carrot they dangled about joining the business was just that. A carrot to lure me in, to make me feel like I had power and control when they were the ones playing with the strings. I didn’t want to join the family business in the first place, but I knew if I did, I’d be trapped forever.
