#Chapter 32 – Mother Daughter Time
Stella
“What about this one, dear?” my mother’s voice carries over the low volume of music that plays inside the store. I glance up from the clothing rack filled with high end dresses that are worth more than a year’s rent in the building I live in.
My mother holds a light blue dress in her hands. The fabric looks soft and there are frills along the neckline. My expression sours and my mother immediately catches on.
“What? What don’t you like about it?” she asks and her tone is genuine. It warms my heart to know that she wants to get to know me and my taste. It feels so nice to be seen.
“I…I am not a big fan of the frills or the color blue,” I try to mask my distaste of the dress as much as possible.
How can I explain that it reminds me so much of the woman who has made my life hell ever since she woke up from a coma? That the light blue color has been trademarked and owned by her since birth since it matches her eyes so well?
My mother nods, placing the dress back onto the rack, and moves on without another word. I watch as she leaves, effortlessly floating around the store as if it is her second home. It makes me so happy to see that she is enjoying herself today instead of arguing with my father or having to deal with the mafia’s finances.
It is nice to see her be my mom rather than someone who holds all of the
money and power for my family.
I glance around the store, trying to see if my foster mother and sister are inside. I don’t see them yet, but I can smell my foster mother’s floral perfume as I float along the store.
The scent puts me on edge, making me feel more conservative and quiet than I usually am. I hate that it makes me so shy and nervous when my mother is here with me. She deserves to be with me, the real me, instead of someone who is so guarded and cold because of her childhood.
My eyes glaze across the store, trying to find my mother. She is over by the shoes, picking up a pair of high heels. K sigh, relaxing, until my body tenses when I notice my foster mother heading in the same direction.
I pick up a nearby dress, not paying attention to the design or color or how I imagine it would look like on my body, and hold it up in the air.
“Hey, mom!” I call out. She immediately turns around and her eyes latch onto the dress. She nods and smiles, heading over in my direction just as my foster mother intercepts the shoes.
“That’s cute, let’s get it!” my mother exclaims. She plucks it from my hands and hands it off to a nearby employee, who takes it to the counter. “Ready to move to the next store? I saw a cute bag in a place we passed.”
I nod and smile, watching as my mother leaves to pay for the plethora of clothes she has bought for the two of us. Warmth spreads through my chest. Even with my foster family being here, it feels so nice to bond with my mother over clothes and shoes.
We walk into the next store and my mother instantly walks to the handbag. She turns and shows it off to me, the black fabric looking like silk matched with a gold chain. She drapes it over my shoulder and takes a step back; I pose and earn a laugh from her.
“Perfect, let’s get it!”
“Can you even afford it?” Clara’s snarky voice comes from behind me.
My body tenses and I swivel on my heel, turning around to look at Clara and her mother. They have their arms
#Chapter 32 – Mother Daughter Time
+25 BONUS
crossed over their chests, malice prominent in their eyes, and they exude a confidence that only people with newfound wealth show off,
“Excuse me?” my mother scoffs and steps froward. Her heels click against the floor, eyes narrowing at the duo that stands before us.
“We know Stella,” Clara sneers, her blue eyes attaching onto mine, “she is as broke as they come.
Clara steps forward, her fingers curl around the gold metal chain and she slips the bag off of my shoulder with ease. She then reaches into her pocket and pulls out a black credit card. My breath hitches in my throat as soon as I see it
It is Adrian’s card. He must have given it to her so she can spend all of his wealth in one go before disappearing from his life. A fire burns on the inside of my lungs, anger towards my foster sister instantly igniting at the thought of her using Adrian.
“See this?” Clara mocks, a smug smirk on her face as she waves it in front of us. “There is no limit on this card. That is how much Adrian loves me,” her giggles are sadistic and maniacal. It sends chills down my spine.
My mother places her hand on my shoulder. I turn and look at her, noticing the anger on her face and the fire behind her eyes. She turns her face to the side and signals for an employee to come on over.
“Make them leave,” her voice is icy. All warmth that was once inside her body has dispersed. “They have caused nothing but trouble all day and have been following my daughter and I around.”
My mother narrows her gaze at the employee. I can feel my heart race inside my chest. I turn to Clara and my foster mother, who stare at me with big eyes filled with confusion and anger.
“I can handle this,” I tell my mother then nod at the employee.
I leave my mother’s side and step towards the despicable duo. I grab their wrists and haul them out of the clothing store, yanking them in front of me as soon as we are out of my mother’s sight.
“What was that for?!” Clara snaps. She takes a step towards me but her mother stops her.
“Leave my mother and I alone,” I warn them, “you do not want to mess with us.‘
My foster mother glares at me and place her hands onto her hips. Her floral perfume is overwhelming and it makes my eyes sting. I take a step back, ready to leave, when she grabs my wrist, pulling me back to her.
“That is your mother?” she scoffs. “No, Stella, I am your mother. You do not get to treat your sister and I like this just because you are angry at the world.”
I bite back an angered laugh and slip my wrist from her grasp.
“If it weren’t for me, you would still be on the streets with nothing to your name! If it weren’t for your father and I, you would most likely be dead right now, just a faded memory in people’s minds as the girl who was in an orphanage.”
I narrow my eyes at the woman who stands before me. She has always been menacing, yes, but this is just cruel.
“Your mother didn’t want you but we did. We wanted you. You owe us for everything that we have given to you! You would not be where you are now if I weren’t for us,” Clara’s mother lowers her voice and her daughter sneers from behind her.
Something inside my mind snaps, a release that I have been
