Stepbrother Forever: A Stepbrother Romance (35 page)

“Even better! Tom is out back so
it’s quiet in here. What’s new? How is everything? How is Michael?” Mom
questions all at once. And there it is, my opener: Michael.

“Nothing much. Not sure how
Michael is. We broke up,” I inform her.

“Aw. So sorry, Ashley. I know
you really liked him.”

“Yeah. It’s okay. I thought I
did, but he lied to me. Actually, he cheated on me, which involved many lies
over time, I’m sure.” I try not to sound too bitter. “I’m over it, though. He’s
not worth my time.”

“Well, good for you for letting
him go,” Mom encourages me. “You’re an amazing girl and you deserve someone
that appreciates you. Besides, you’re still young. You should be out having fun
and not concentrating on one guy. Find some nice college friends and boys your
own age. Michael was already out in the world, working a corporate job—he would
have moved on at some point, anyway.” Wow, Mom is on a roll.

“Thanks, Mom. You always know
how to make me feel better,” I reply. I’m only being somewhat sincere. Mostly
I’m trying to butter her up a little bit.

“I’m older and wiser,
remember?” Mom kids. “Plus, after almost twenty years with your father, I
learned a lot about men. Especially cheaters. More so, men that prey on younger
women. Trust me, Ashley, I’ve seen and heard it all,” she finishes. She just touched
on almost every negative thing I know she is going to hate about Jayson. This
should get interesting.

I chuckle because I know she’s
trying to make a joke, but also because I’m extremely nervous now. She gave me
the perfect segue initially, but now I have been set up for failure. I prepare
myself for the incoming shit storm as I begin my response.

“Yeah. I saw what you went
through. Good thing you have Tom now.”

“He’s perfect, Ashley. Truly
perfect. I am very thankful he’s in my life.” I can almost see her smile
through the phone. I decide this is my chance and go for it.

“I hope I find my own Tom one
day, Mom. Actually, I think I might have. Losing Michael may not have been the
worst thing.” I tell her officially opening Pandora ’s Box.

“Already?” She sounds dubious.
“That happened fast. You thought Michael was perfect, too, though. You wanted
me to meet him just a couple of weeks ago.”

“Well, yes. I kind of met him
while I was with Michael, but didn’t bother with him since I was already in a
relationship.” I’m trying to sound like I didn’t just jump into something.

“Oh. And you think he’s the One
now?” Mom replies, sounding disappointed already.

“He might be. He’s honest and
loving. He’s supportive. He’s head over heels for me. I’m pretty sure he is
also in love with me, although we haven’t said it yet.”

“He sounds fantastic, but I
don’t know. You should be careful, Ashley. Sometimes when something—or
someone—sounds too good to be true, most likely it is.” I don’t even know if I
want to take this conversation further, but at this point, I don’t have a
choice.

“I’ve never felt this way about
anyone. And I’m sure his feelings for me are true. I just know it.”

“You’re too young to know these
things, Ashley. You’ve been in college for three years and haven’t even settled
on a major. You will learn as you grow and mature.” Now Mom is lecturing me. I
was trying to be patient, but now she’s just being mean—and I haven’t even told
her who this man is yet.

“Don’t be so judgmental, Mom,”
I snap. “A career is one thing, my feelings are another. I know how Jayson and
I feel about each other, and it’s real. I don't have to go to school to know
that.”

“If you say so, Ashley,” she
concedes. “I only want you to be happy. I’m just looking out for you. I will
wait until I meet this Jayson to judge.”

“Crazy coincidence, Mom. You
actually already know him,” I reply in a calmer tone.

She’s quiet for a moment, as if
she can’t possibly believe that what she’s thinking is true. When the silence
between us only thickens and I don’t correct her, she whispers, “
That
Jayson?”

“Yes.
That
Jayson. Crazy, right?” I give another little laugh, hoping
against all odds that it’ll lighten the situation.

“Oh, no. No, Ashley. Just… no,”
Mom replies, obviously at a loss for words.

“No?” I ask. “I don’t need your
permission, Mom. Although you think I’m young, I’m an adult and can make my own
decisions.”

“First of all, Ashley, you may
be an adult by law, but Jayson is way too old for you. He’s a grown man who
owns and runs a multimillion dollar corporation.”

I blink. I knew Jayson must
make nice money just from his apartment but wasn’t aware he was doing so well.
But what the hell does that have to do with anything?

“Not only is he too old for
you—way too old—but he is a womanizer,” she continues. “I’m pretty sure I told
you that before. He has never been serious with a woman and probably never
will. Don’t think you will be any different than any of the other countless
woman he’s bedded.” She makes a sound that’s half amusement, half disgust.
“You’re just a lovesick college girl with a crush on an older man. You’re
falling for the oldest trick in the book.”

Thanks
for the vote of confidence,
I think, but I can’t form the
words. I’m too pissed. When I say nothing, Mom fills the gap in our
conversation with more vitriol.

“And what about him being your
stepbrother? Tom and I are getting married, for God’s sake! You cannot be
dating my husband’s son. Move on, Ashley. This relationship you think you have
will never work—none of it.”

“Nice to know you care so much,
Mom.” I snarl, finally finding my voice. “You obviously don’t think that much
of my intelligence or ability to make decisions. I know about Jayson’s
past—it’s not a secret. I’m aware of our age difference, too. Just because Dad
cheated and left you for a younger woman doesn’t mean that all men are like
that!”

Mom starts to say something,
but I cut her off. I’m not done. Nowhere near.

“Maybe he’s like his own
father, Tom,” I continue. “You know Tom, right? Perfect Tom, the man you love?
The one that treats you like a queen—
that
Tom. Jayson is
his
son. Maybe he
inherited some of his qualities. Did you ever think of that?”

Mom snorts, and I can tell
she’s going to dismiss me again. She almost gets my whole name out of her mouth
before I interrupt her a second time. I can’t help it. Rage is making my blood
boil.

“You think Dad is such an
asshole for what he did—and maybe he is—but you had many years of love and
happiness. People change, it’s a part of life. Who cares how old he is? Who
cares if you and Tom are getting married? We’re not kids. We’re not going to be
living together under the same roof. We might be in love, doesn’t that count
for something?”

I finally stop, realizing that
I’ve been yelling. I hate arguing with my mother, but I feel so much better now
that everything is out in the open. This conversation has been so heated, but
also completely liberating.

“Okay, Ashley,” she says after
a minute, her voice much quieter and more resigned now. “I don’t know what else
to say. I think I’ve said my piece and you’ve said yours. It’s a lot for me to
swallow right now. I need to think about all of this.”

I sigh, putting my face in my
hand. “Yeah. I’m sorry about yelling, Mom. I just don’t think you understand,
and it’s frustrating.”

“I don’t think you understand,
either, Ashley. Let’s just try not to fight about it. I want to talk to Tom and
see what he has to say. Maybe he can shed some light on the situation for me.”

“Sure,” I answer.

“Love you, Ashley,” she tells me.
I know she means it, even though there is so much tension between us right now.

“Love you too, Mom,” I reply,
and we end the call.

Well, that went pretty much
just how I expected it to go: like a fucking nightmare.

I’m pacing around my living
room like I have been since my mother started in on me. I have so much anger
and frustration built up, I don’t know what to do. If Jayson wasn’t Tom’s son,
she couldn’t say half of those things—she wouldn’t know or have to.

I hope Tom can talk some sense
into her. Since she thinks he’s so amazing, maybe she’ll listen to reason if
it’s coming from him.

I decide I should call Jayson
and fill him in on what happened. I dial his number as I continue to pace
around the room and get his voicemail. I don’t bother leaving a message, what
would I say? “Told my mother about us. She hates you. Call me back.” I know
he’ll return my call when he sees my number so I just hang up.

I go into the bathroom and
undress while I wait for the shower water to warm up. I step in and let the
warmth roll over me and sooth my tension. Showering was a good idea. I begin to
loosen up and calm down.

By the time I emerge, I feel
much more settled. I brush my hair and my teeth again and go into my bedroom to
get dressed. I put on some clean clothes and I definitely feel better than
before.

I head back into the living
area and see my phone lit up. There is a text from Jayson.

Been
on the phone with my Dad. You really stirred shit up over there. Call u when
I’m off.
He wrote that almost fifteen minutes ago,
probably shortly after I called him. Must not be going too well.

No sooner do I have that
thought than my phone rings. I already have it in my hand, so I answer it right
away.

“Hey,” I greet Jayson when I
pick up the call.

“Hello, beautiful. How’s your
Sunday morning?” Jayson replies with a touch of sarcasm.

“Just peachy,” I answer. “Guess
you heard already.”

“I did, I did. My father just
called me in a panic. He wanted to make sure what Cynthia heard was true.”

“And?” I ask, prompting him to
continue.

“It is,” he says with a laugh.

I roll my eyes. “Ha, ha. Come
on, what happened?”

“Hard to say, exactly. He’s a
little upset, but mostly because your mother is. He doesn’t care what I do with
my love life but doesn’t want it having an effect on his.”

“Makes sense,” I reply.

“It does. We spoke about a
bunch of different things. Pretty much everything Cynthia said to you. We came
to the conclusion that the four of us should sit down and talk,” he informs me.
Definitely not the news I was expecting to hear.

“That sounds like a terrible
idea,” I reply and Jayson chuckles.

“It’s a great idea, Ashley, for
a few reasons. Most important of which is because it was mine.”

I make a face. “Why would you
even suggest something like that?”

“Because it’s a great idea,” he
says matter-of-factly. “We can just put everything out in the open and hash it
out together. It will remove the middle man and all the ‘he said, she said’
bullshit. You and I are on the same page. My father mostly agrees with me, or
doesn’t care as long as it doesn’t affect your mother, so we can all just try
to convince Cynthia that you and I are perfect together and there’s nothing
more to it. Without ganging up on her of course.” he adds.

“You think we’re perfect together?”
I ask. That’s the only part of his statement that I retain.

“I do.”

“Then hopefully my mom will
understand. When is this meeting taking place?” I ask.

“As soon as possible. They’ll
come in and meet with us here in Manhattan. We’ll decide when you have your
schedule for the week.” When Jayson mentions my schedule, I glance at the
clock. With all these other things going on, I forgot I had to work today.

“Shit! I have to go,” I tell
him. “Thanks for trying to smooth things over, Jayson. I’ll call you later.”

“Are you working late?” he asks
quickly.