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It’s fucking heartbreaking that Stella is still holding out hope for a relationship with her mother when all Lilian has done time and again is prove herself to be a deadbeat.
Anyway, if my ex-wife picks up on my annoyance right now, she doesn’t let it show. I have to physically pry her hands off of me.
I scramble to get out of the shower. I don’t even bother with a towel, just yanking my dirty jeans back on over my wet body. Anything to get out of here quicker.
“Things are over between us. I’m sick of the mind games, Lilian. Whatever you seem to think you can do…coming in and out of our lives. That’s over. We’re over.”
“Oh, sweetie. Things will never be over between us. We weren’t just some fling. We were married. We have a child. We’re linked for life, and our souls are forever intertwined,” she adds, spewing that hippie nonsense of hers.
“That’s where you’re seriously mistaken,” I spit out.
I throw a towel at Lilian, who’s still standing there in my goddamn shower, not even trying to cover herself up. If she thinks being naked is going to get me to cave to her whims tonight, she’s not half as bright as she thinks she is.
“But I am Stella’s mother!” She stomps and huffs and finally starts to dry herself off.
“Come the fuck on. You may have carried her for nine months, but we both know you are not her mother.”
Lilian’s jaw hits the floor. She’s not used to this version of me. She’s used to a man who lets her get her way.
Well, that version of Nolan is gone.
“Why are you being like this? Why are you talking like this? Is it because of Inez? Is that why you don’t want me anymore?” She’s crying crocodile tears now as she gets dressed. “Well, newsflash—Inez left town. She’s gone. Such a pretty girl. Obviously, she would never stay in this shitty town for a backwoods loser like you.”
Oh, now my ex-wife’s true colors show.
I laugh. I throw my head back and laugh like the maniac I’m becoming. This woman is driving me certifiably insane.
“You know what? It is because of Inez. Because of Inez, I now know what true love is. And she may be gone, but now that I’ve had a taste of the real thing, I could never settle for you again. I’d rather be alone than feeding on the scraps you throw out. Now get your ass dressed and get the hell out of my fucking house!”
I stalk down the hallway and pull the front door open.
“Nolan, please,” Lilian begs. “Let’s talk. Let’s work things out.”
“Look—your old playbook doesn’t work on me anymore. Just go.” I hold the door open for her.
She gives me a resentful glare as she drags her feet down the hallway. She’s like a drowned rat, trudging out in her wet clothes and her hair plastered to her face.
“You’re a bad man, Nolan. A bad, bad man. Stella won’t forgive you for picking some bitch over us, our family.”
I clench the doorknob tighter when she calls Inez out of her name. “You are the one who ruined our family. Now, get out and don’t come back here. If you want to make arrangements to see Stella from now on, we’ll be going through my lawyer.”
I slam the door hard enough that the windows shake, and then I flip the door lock.
50
NOLAN
The overhead lights turn off and the crowd grows quiet. Stella’s piano recital is about to begin.
She’s been working toward this for weeks, practicing with her instructor every Saturday and getting in extra rehearsals at home with school being closed. And now, the day is finally here.
The local piano studio reserved the small auditorium at the Starlight Falls town hall for this evening. They’ve strung up some fairy lights and balloons around the stage to celebrate the tiny musicians.
Since the minute she woke up this morning, Stella’s been brimming with nerves and excitement to get up on that little stage and show off her skills to everyone.
I’m just as excited as she is. My camera is fully charged and ready to videotape my daughter’s performance. I’m smack dab in the middle of the second row, because some other overzealous mom got here two hours early and snatched up the whole first row. I’m not even sure doing that is allowed. But the woman brought her own Reserved for the Jackson Family printouts and taped them to each of the chairs she wanted.
Looking around, it seems that each young pianist has almost an entire row of family members. I’m beyond grateful that my siblings are present to support Stella.
