And until that moment, I was down with that.
Mom made me strong.
Life made me strong.
I got on with things as a matter of course.
And I didn’t do too badly at it.
Straight up, if you asked me, I’d tell you I was proud of that part of myself.
Until that moment.
Oh, I was still proud.
But there was something significant, waking up next to Boone, and having him offer to stand between me and something that was sure to be a blow in one form or other.
It was so significant, I couldn’t even speak.
“Ryn,” he prompted when I didn’t answer.
I kinda wanted to see what he’d say to Angelica if he took that call.
But for me, Portia and Jethro were on the line, my position was precarious when it came to them, so I couldn’t test those waters.
“I’ll take it,” I mumbled.
He handed off the phone and I engaged the call.
“Ang?” I answered.
“You need to get over here right now.”
My heart squeezed.
“Is something wrong with one of the kids?” I asked.
Boone leaned closer.
“Yes, something’s wrong,” Angelica announced. “Portia is being a pain in my ass.”
I was so stunned at this announcement, responsible Portia being a pain in anyone’s ass, I sat still and silent and stared at my bedclothes covering Boone’s hips.
“So are you coming?” she demanded.
“I—” I started.
“She says she won’t do anything until her Auntie Ryn shows her face.”
My eyes went to Boone.
He lifted his brows.
“I’m sorry, she won’t—?” I didn’t get any further.
“She won’t brush her teeth. She won’t get dressed. She won’t even get out of bed. She won’t do anything until you show,” Angelica informed me. “So I need you to get over here so the little bitch will get out of bed and get her ass to school.”
Okay.
All right.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Before I could get to ten, Boone cupped my jaw in his hand, and my focus that had gone hazy with fury fixed on him.
“Ryn,” Angelica bit into my ear. “Are you coming or what?”
“Did you just call your seven-year-old daughter a bitch?” I asked.
The pads of Boone’s fingers flexed into my skin before he dropped his hand.
“She’s acting like a little bitch,” Angelica said.
“Okay, I don’t even know where to start,” I replied.
“I don’t need another lecture from you, Ryn. I just need you to get over here and get her ass to school. I need a break from her attitude which she’s been serving up all weekend.”
Ah.
Light was dawning.
So I said, “Breaking this down, what you’re saying is, failing to be a mother and capable of getting your own daughter out of bed and ready for school is ticking you off because all weekend you’ve been confronted with the fact that you’ve failed to be a mother.”
“Fuck you, Ryn,” she hissed and disconnected.
I closed my eyes and dropped my hand with the phone to my lap.
“I’m seeing I should have taken the call,” Boone said, his voice again gravelly, but there was no sleep in it.
I opened my eyes.
“Portia is refusing to get out of bed until I come over,” I told him.
“In other words, her daughter is missing the mother she’s known since she was born, and Angelica isn’t liking that much.”
“Yeah.”
“And she’s the one who put herself in that situation.”
“Yeah.”
“And instead of handling it, as usual, she’s calling on you even though she’s shit all over you for years.”
I blew out a sigh and then repeated, “Yeah.”
His tone went soft when he said, “Ryn, honey, she’s gotta sort this out herself.”
“Portia needs to go to school.”
“That’s Angelica’s problem.”
At that, I drew in a sharp breath through my nose and held it.
It wasn’t angry or annoyed.
I was trying to fortify myself because he was right.
I had to stand my ground, not just for myself, but for the kids, and in a way, for Angelica too.
I was about to nod when my phone went again.
We both looked down at it and I knew Boone had read the screen because he grunted, “Unh-unh.”
But even if this indicated he was intent to intervene at this juncture, I was who I was.
This was my shit.
So I took the call.
“Brian, listen to—” I began as greeting.
And again, I didn’t get further.
“You’re the one who caused this mess, Ryn,” my brother bit at me. “The least you can do is help during the transition.”
Help during the transition?
What planet were these two living on?
“Let me get this straight,” I said. “I’m done being taken for a ride by you and Angelica. I make that clear. You cut me out of the kids’ lives. And when the kids don’t like that because they love their aunt, you’re not only blaming me for the situation you created, you want me to help straighten it out? When the point is, for all of you, that the kids should not only expect their parents to straighten themselves out, but they deserve that?”