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“Mitchell, your lack of manners is disappointing, especially since I raised you better than that.”
In the past, her tone would have frozen him in his tracks. He had wanted so desperately to have her be proud of him the way Mrs. Faulkner and Mr. Conner had been. But no matter what he’d accomplished, that pride had never materialized.
“I have nothing to say to you about my ex. You may want to keep in touch with her and buy into her I’m-so-innocent-and-it-was-an-accident act, but do it away from me.”
“If you would give her a chance to explain, you made such a great—”
“For the love of God, Mother. Stop!”
His mother stared at him, her Botoxed face showing an incredible amount of shock for how fake it was.
“I’m still your mother.”
“Mrs. Faulkner is more of a mother to me than you have ever been. Tell me something. What did my ex tell you?” He’d never told his mother, because in his mind, she should have been on his side. “Why are you so determined to be on her side rather than your own son’s?”
His mother tightened her lips. Vera Anderson was capable of vindictiveness and being hurtful. “The son who just told me another woman was more of a mother to him than I was? That son?”
He knew he shouldn’t be an ass but dammit, he wasn’t going to be guilted into shit.
“Yeah,” he snapped, not slowing down at the surprise on her face. “That one.”
“She said you saw her in a compromising position but wouldn’t give her a chance to explain.”
His eyebrows shot up. “A compromising position?”
“Yes. And had you let her explain, this ridiculous divorce could have been avoided.”
He blinked rapidly a few times. “Oh, I want to hear this. Explain the situation to me that I misunderstood.” He yanked his shirt on over his head and backed up to swipe his watch off the floor next to his bedside table. “I’m waiting.”
His mother didn’t appear as sure as he was used to seeing her look. “She was being held up by one of your teammates. Said she’d fallen and he stopped her. You took it wrong.”
He licked his lips and put the watch on. “I took it wrong. Where was this? And with who?”
Did she really believe this shit?
“Donaldson. She’s not a woman to go after men of different races. She loves you. He’s who you should be mad at. They can’t control their urges around a beautiful woman.”
While he ducked in his closet for a pair of slip-on kicks, he took a moment to push down his rage. He was going to need to meditate before he got to the game. Shoes in hand, he stepped out.
“And by ‘they’ you mean…”
“Non-white men. Honey, I know you’re friends with one of them but you have to—”
“Enough.” He wasn’t yelling at her but his tone held no room for disobedience, even from his mother. “I’m not going to stand here and listen to you disparage two of the best men in the world because they’re not white enough for you. I divorced her because she cheated on me. More than once. With men of every color and nationality. The more money they had, the better. She didn’t lie about Donaldson. He did help her up—off his dick, after she’d propositioned him at a party. If you want the photographic evidence of her perfidy, I can have that sent to you from the private investigator I hired. Have to warn you, though, it’s a lot. Like, a lot. So get off your high horse about that woman. She is never going to be a part of my life again and if you want to be in hers, then you’re no longer in mine, either.”
“You’re lying.”
He tipped his head to the left and gave it a small shake, exhausted by the entire thing. “I wish I was. I’m not.”
“What about Mallory? You know this is hard on her. I have to send her away again. She’s eating too much.”
“You’ll do no such thing. She’s moving in with me.” He took a step toward the woman he should have love and affection for but honestly, he was dead inside. “Stop trying to make her half her size. My sister is a fucking beautiful woman and when the confidence she has in herself returns after years of being beaten down by you, she’s going to be a goddamn rock star.”
“All she has to do is show some restraint about eating. Is this because of that large woman who was here at your house?”
Anger surged up. “You should really shut your mouth now, Vera.” He got in her space, towering over her. “If by woman you mean Hope Roman, then yes. I’m in love with her and when I track her down, I’m going to do what it takes to be in her life.”
