In Love With My Bully Step-brother

Chapter 8 | Not so surprised

Ashleigh’s POV

It took almost three days for me to finally get a hold of Waldo and even then, he didn’t have any good news for me. The lawyer explained that my mother had custodial rights over me and no one else could take me according to my father’s instructions. I also couldn’t live on my own until I was eighteen which was not very far away but not very close either. Waldo warned me against doinf anything that would compromise him. He knew exactly the kind of influence my mother was getting married to and didn’t want to trifle with that.

“She may not know how to show it but Ashleigh? Your mother does want you with her.”

I found that hard to believe but I thanked Waldo anyway for taking out the time to talk to me. I returned the receiver to its holder and released a sigh.

“Was that Waldo?”

I turned around at the sound of my mother’s voice. She was sweaty and from the way she was dressed, I could tell she had just returned from the house gym. She opened the fridge and took out a bottle of water, obviously waiting for a reply.

“Um…yeah, yeah it was,” I answered sheepishly, nervous about how much she might have heard.

“How’s he doing?” My mother asked instead. Either she didn’t care that I was trying f to get out of LA or she hadn’t heard any of it.

“He’s fine. He’s um…work is busy these days.”

“Uh-huh,” she nodded and closed the bottle. “You know, if you want to make these type of calls, your mobile would be much more private.”

I blushed. She had heard. I couldn’t tell if she was angry or just disappointed. And I know I hadn’t really done anything wrong but why on earth did I feel like I had just got caught with the gun in my hand.

“Yeah, um, my phone got crushed at school so, this was my only option.” It was also the reason Waldo hadn’t taken any of my previous calls, thinking I was some telemarketer with a product he wasn’t interested in.

“When?” My mother’s eyes went wide, surprised she hadn’t known.

I told her and for a second, I saw a look of guilt cross her face. I guess she felt bad that her daughter had been phone-less for almost a week and she didn’t know. Then, she hummed and it was gone. I thought I might have imagined it. She grabbed the bottle, gave me a small smile and left the kitchen, probably returning to the gym.

Maybe now that I was definitely staying in LA, I would take some time to actually explore this house.

With my shoulder slightly hunched in defeat, I walked upstairs. Willow had some friends over and her door was slightly ajar. I couldn’t help but peek in a little as I passed. It looked like they were making a video of some sort —all half-dressed. Willow caught me and with hiss, slammed the door in my face. Even though it wasn’t my business, I really hoped that video was for their eyes only.

Inside my room, I started unpacking my things. They had stayed in these boxes for too long and until I found another way out, this was going to be my home.

Earlier, I’d seen Kane drive out so, I finally had the space to carefully arrange my cosmetics into the cabinet. Other than the door locks which helped sharing a bathroom easier, Reginald had also paid for a new cabinet to be installed for me. I could even lock it too. This way, Kane wouldn’t have to see any of my personal care stuff.

Regardless of that, I knew I still had to be careful with my things. I couldn’t accidentally leave underwear hanging around and I always made sure I sent my clothes down to the laundry every morning and evening. I could really get used to being waited on. So far, the fully-staffed house was the best thing about LA.

I ended up spending almost the whole day arranging the room. By the time I went down for dinner, only Kane was left at the table. I turned around and escaped before he could see me. It didn’t even look like he had touched his food yet so, I gave up on eating for the evening.

Usually, I would go for a run but I wasn’t quite used to the terrain of this place yet. The last thing I wanted was to go on a run and end up getting lost. I would take a walk tomorrow morning instead and try to map a route for my runs.

I had grown up with a soldier for a father so, I definitely had fitness wired into me like second nature. We used to go on runs all the time but after he passed, I just lost interest in everything we did together. But, this was a new life now and I wanted to try and move on from the pain of losing a parent. The only parent I had ever known.

Upstairs, I found the door to my room slightly ajar. Certain that I had closed it before going downstairs, I pushed it further.

I was surprised to see my mother at the foot of my bed, arranging a couple of things I couldn’t see.

“What are you doing?” I asked, startling her. That was exactly my intention.

“Um, sorry, I, um thought you were eating?” She kept her back to the bed as I moved closer.

“Yeah, not hungry.” I looked at the bed and the boxes on it. They had partially-eaten apples drawn on them. “What is going on?”

My mother’s cheeks and neck seemed to turn crimson at the question. “You said your phone got crushed so, I got you a new one and some other stuff you might need.”

I took in the other stuff she was talking about. There was a laptop, an iPad, a smartwatch and AirPods to go with the phone. I could kiss her for that alone. But this was all too much.

“You didn’t have to. I was already saving…”

“I’m your mother Ashleigh. I am supposed to.”

“Well, you weren’t my mother for a long time,” I said before I could stop the words from leaving my mouth.

The excitement at doing something nice for me immeditwalt left my mother’s eyes and I could see all the walls I was used to being between us going back up. I had definitely hurt her with that one.

“I already had them set it up but, um, if there’s anything else just um, I’ll give you a number to call.”

My mother turned to leave and I reached for her hands. I didn’t feel like it but I knows that I had to apologize for what I had said.

“Mom…”

“You’re right Ashleigh. I haven’t been your mother for a long time now. Goodnight.”

I felt like such a horrible person as I watched my mother shut the door behind her. Even though I was right, she didn’t need the reminder. Especially not when she had been trying to do something nice for me.

I collapsed onto my bed, buried my head in a pillow and screamed. This was all too much for one night. I needed to reboot.