Forbidden Seduction [ Forbidden Obsession]

I’ve only met Leigh one time, on a short visit to the campus when they were together. I disliked her then and I dislike her even more now that she’s managed to trample all over Brad’s heart. I look at her. She’s gotten more blonde and more tan, embodying the look of a college party girl. “Hi!” she says cheerily. “I’m looking for Brad. Is he here?”

I hesitate. I don’t know if Brad wants to talk to her. I don’t know if I should say that he’s stepped out.

She seems to sense that hesitation. “I’m his girlfriend,” she adds, with an annoyed smile.

I straighten up. “No, you’re his ex-girlfriend,” I say, “and I’m not sure if Brad wants to see you.”

Her mouth drops open. Drops all the way open in shock, and she looks me up and down as if I’m the most offensive person on the planet. “I’m sorry, who are you?” she says.

I give her a flat smile. “I’m Brad’s mother. We’ve met before, Leigh.”

“You can’t be his mother,” she says. “I remember meeting her, and she wasn’t a bitch.”

A deadly calm comes over me, and I’ve had enough. Enough of everything that’s happened today with my family. This is not happening. “Well, that was before you spent months lying to my son and treating his heart like a chew toy. We’re in the middle of a family dinner, and you need to leave.”

“I’m not leaving until I talk to Brad.” She steps closer.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“He’s not available. I’ll tell him to call you when he gets back to school.”

She scoffs. “Last time I checked, your son was an adult. He can make his own decisions. I know he’ll want to talk to me.”

“Oh,” I say. “So he’s my son now? Good to know. Goodbye, Leigh.”

I start to shut the door and Leigh jams her foot in the space, shoving the door back and forcing it open. I have to step back or get shoved backwards. She steps inside, grinning and shedding her coat onto the floor.

“You need to leave my house,” I say, trying to maintain a calm I don’t remotely feel.

“Oh, fuck off. Don’t you have some prune juice to finish drinking through a straw or something? BRAD!” Her voice, already loud, echoes through the house.

I swear I’m about to hit her when Brad comes into the living room. He looks between her and me and I know that he heard what she said to me. He looks me up and down, making sure I’m all right. “It’s okay, Mom.” He looks at Leigh. “I’ll talk to you, and then you’re leaving.”

“You suddenly a momma’s boy?” Leigh asks. “Been listening to her, letting her trick you into thinking I’m some sort of bitch?”

“I’ll give you guys some privacy,” I mutter, heading to the kitchen.

I hear Brad speak behind me, voice dark. “I’m letting you stay for a few minutes because it seems better than calling the police. But if you ever speak to or about my mother that way again, I will throw you out and I will never speak to you again.”

Those words bring a small bit of comfort to me, but I’m still spiraling. Her words bring back memories of days with Jackson, and that’s not a place I want to go. Not now. I hear frenzied whispers as I enter the kitchen, noting that the adults are conspicuously absent from the dining room. The whispers are coming from the hallway to the bathroom. Unfortunately, the whispers aren’t quiet enough that I can’t hear them.

“Still, you know she’s sensitive about it.” I hear Anna’s voice.

“I just want her to be happy,” Bradley says. “I feel bad for her. Now that Brad’s off at school, she lives here alone. She has to be lonely. I keep hoping that maybe us bringing it up will help her want to break out of her shell a bit.”

“We’ll have to think of another way.” That’s Maria.

Sadness pours into my chest, and I can’t take it. How did everything spiral like this? What is so wrong with me that my family thinks that I can’t be happy? What did I teach my son that he’s willing to be in a relationship just like the one that cost me everything? I grab my coat from the rack and go out the back doors as quickly as I can. I just can’t be in this house right now, and the front door is blocked by the blonde bitch.