Page 72 of Taming I Do
“He might be able to make you look presentable in editing, but what are you going to do about your appearances? I should have known better than to let you come here by yourself.”
Gripping the steering wheel tight with both hands, I took in a breath. “I’m twenty-five years old. I should be able to do some things on my own, don’t you think?”
Stella gasped, then reached into her purse and pulled out a tissue to swab at her cheeks. “All of the sacrifices I made for your career, and this is the thanks I get?”
Not now. I clenched my jaw. I’d seen a glimpse of the woman I might be if I could get out from under Stella’s thumb. And I liked her. I’d had more fun chasing butterflies and rolling around in the mud with Jasper than I’d had in a good long while.
Stella pulled the visor down to check the mirror again. “Now I’ve gone and messed up my mascara. Maybe we should just go back to the motel.”
“No.” I reached out and rested my hand on my mother’s arm. “You’re here and I think we both need some cheering up. Let’s grab a bite and you can fill me in on the progress you’ve made on the cosmetics line.”
“I’d like that.” Stella nodded, her lower lip jutting out in a tiny pout. “I’ve missed you.”
“We’ve only been apart a couple of weeks.”
“I know. But with Walter leaving me and all of the work I’ve been putting in on the business...”
“It’s been hard.” I patted her arm. “I appreciate all of the time you’ve been working on this. I hope you know that.”
“Of course.” Stella moved her arm and gave my hand a squeeze. “You’re my baby girl. I’d do anything for you.”
Anything but let me live my own life. I squeezed back. I thought once I was done with my reign as Miss Lovin’ Texas, Stella might find something else to focus on. But now it seemed like I’d never be free.
I could see my entire life laid out before me. Stella and I would do the cosmetics line together. Then we’d move into the fashion faux pas business. Pretty soon Stella would want to shiftinto a clothing line or restaurants or pageant dolls or who knew what else. But it was clear as day that if I wanted the freedom to live my own life, I needed to start setting some boundaries.
As we drove down the main street of Swynton, I kept my eyes peeled for a place that looked like it served something besides bar food and beer. A sign outlined with twinkle lights caught my eye.
“How about this? It looks cute.” I eyed the charming restaurant. It sat a little way back from the main road, close to the river.
“It sure looks better than that burger place we passed before we drove over that bridge.” Stella grimaced.
I wanted to tell her that the burger place was owned by a very nice man named Helmut. And even though I didn’t appreciate some of his marketing tactics like Smoker Saturdays, he’d given up his day to catch butterflies for a complete stranger. That was the kind of community I wanted to live in. Those were the kind of people I wanted to hang out with. But words like that would fall on deaf ears if I tried to explain all of that to my mother.
We entered the restaurant and were immediately seated next to a wall of windows overlooking the river. Stella ordered her cosmo with Grey Goose and I waited for a sign as to what kind of mood she might be in.
“I told you I brought those samples.” Stella dipped into her oversized bag and pulled out a few compacts. “I want you to try this blush. It’s absolutely gorgeous on. Go ahead, try it.”
I looked around at the other diners. “I’m not going to put on makeup at the dinner table. I’ll try it when I get back tonight.”
“Take it to the bathroom. You need to see how easy it goes on. Just the perfect amount of shimmer.” Stella pressed the blush into my hands. “Go on.”
It wasn’t worth getting into an argument over, so I pushed back from the table and made my way to the powder room.Standing up to Stella over something so silly as trying a blush would have been an easy place to start setting boundaries. But my mother looked so sad when she talked about her breakup with Walter. Being firm could wait until tomorrow.
By the time I got back to the table, Stella had downed half of her drink. “What do you think? It’s fantastic, isn’t it?”
“It’s great.” I took a sip of my white wine. It reminded me of the wine I’d shared with Jasper after the movie. For a moment I let myself remember what it had felt like to gaze up into his eyes with the glittering night sky spread out above us.
“Monique thinks we’ve got a winner. We’re so close to making it happen. How does it feel to have all of your dreams coming true?”
I stared into my glass. All of my dreams? What did Stella know about my dreams? Before I could answer, someone touched me on the shoulder.
“Delilah?”
I turned toward the woman’s voice. Bright red hair, teased way beyond its natural height, stuck out from Jasper’s aunt’s head. “Oh, hi, Suzy.”
“I thought that was you. I’m just about to head out but wanted to make sure I stopped over to say hello.” Suzy stood there, her eyes full of kindness. “What are you doing all the way over here in Swynton?”
“We’re just grabbing a bite. Suzy, this is my mother, Stella Stone. Stella, Suzy is Jasper’s aunt. She’s been a huge help since I’ve been here.”
