“I can explain.” I step forward, frantic. “It was purely some innocent fun. It’s not the first time he’s done it, but those photos are just for us. I—”
“This isn’t about any photos, ma’am,” Bridge interrupts, shifting from foot to foot, clearly uncomfortable.
“Then what—”
“It’s your mother, ma’am.”
“What about my mother?” I ask, voice shaking slightly. After thirty years of dealing with her, I doubt whatever he’s about to tell me is happy news.
He licks his lips. “She was just interviewed on a popular morning show back in the States.”
My legs weaken. I gingerly lower myself into a nearby chair, dread balling tightly in my stomach.
“The focus of the interview was you, ma’am.”
“Me?” I manage to squeak out through the thickness in my throat.
“Hey.”
I peek up as Anderson sits beside me, his eyes sincere.
“I’m sure she didn’t say anything you have to worry about.”
“On the contrary, sir,” Bridge interrupts. “There’s a whole slew of photographers and reporters camped out in front of the hotel right now who believe otherwise. I’m guessing a hotel employee probably saw the interview trending on social media and decided to make a quick buck by selling your location.”
“Fuck,” Anderson hisses under his breath, pinching the bridge of his nose before lifting his steely gaze back to Bridge. “Well, get on with it. What newsworthy gems did that sham of a shrink drop? I hope she’s ready to be sued, because that’s exactly what I’ll do if she said one negative thing about Nora.”
I place my hand on his arm, trying to settle the fury I can feel radiating off him. The last thing I need is for him to have another flareup. Since Friday night, he’s been relatively okay, apart from an occasional finger twitch.
Then again, he’s barely touched me all weekend, as if worried he’ll have a repeat of that night and would rather remain celibate than deal with the reality. Would rather resort to prescription drugs in order to have sex, like I surmise he did on Friday night, especially when I discovered a bottle of little blue pills on the bedroom floor, obviously having fallen out of his jeans.
“It’s okay.” I smile at him, then look at Bridge. “What did she say?”
I square my shoulders, trying to appear calm, despite the fear bubbling inside of me. My mother wouldn’t go out of her way to espouse all my positive qualities. The only reason she’d do this interview was if she could publicly humiliate me, which is why I don’t want her at my wedding.
I should have realized she’d find a way to do that anyway.
“Perhaps it might be best if you show them,” Creed suggests. “That way, they’ll get the full picture.”
“Very well.” Bridge pulls a laptop out of his briefcase and sets it on the coffee table in front of us.
My nerves kick up when my eyes fall on Carly Hart, one of the most popular and well-liked morning talk show hosts, my mother sitting in a lush chair beside her. Bridge hits the spacebar, and Carly’s voice fills the room.
“Here in the US, we’ve all been wondering who exactly Nora Tremblay is, the woman who captured Prince Gabriel of Belmont’s heart. Up until now, everyone we’ve spoken with has refused to give an interview, claiming to respect her privacy. But a few days ago, the future princess’ own mother, Dr. Elaine Harcourt, finally agreed to give us an inside peek into the new American princess.”
I laugh to myself as I cross my arms over my chest. “I guess she’s back to her maiden name. Things with husband number five must not have worked out. Or maybe it was six.”
Anderson gives my leg a reassuring squeeze.
“Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me, Doctor. I understand you’re extremely busy, so I appreciate you shifting your schedule around for us.”
“As I discussed with your producers, I’m a psychiatrist. Normally, my patients come first and I’d only reschedule on them if it were of the utmost importance. But I felt it necessary to let the world know precisely who Nora Tremblay is. Particularly the fine people of Belmont. Particularly Prince Gabriel.”
Carly tilts her head. “What makes you say that? Nora appears to have charmed people all across the globe. They’re calling her the new Princess Grace. You have to admit, she does resemble the actress. The first time I saw her photo, I had to do a double take.”
My mother grits a smile. “Yes, she does.”
I can sense her aggravation over Carly’s compliment even from halfway around the world. It’s been a sticking point with her for ages. At least since I hit puberty and people started paying more attention to me.
“Nora is quite beautiful. Unfortunately, she often uses that beauty to the detriment of others.”
“How so?”
“Perhaps it’s my fault, but during Nora’s formative years, I was a single mother. My husband, Nora’s father, died on deployment.”
Carly covers her heart with her hand. “Oh, I am so sorry.”
“Thank you.” My mother blinks back fake tears, her lower lip quivering. I must admit, it’s quite the Oscar-worthy performance. “I did the best I could at the time, but somewhere along the way, I guess I missed the signs.”
“What signs are those?”
She peers into the distance for a beat before returning her attention to Carly. “How on days she had a history test, she’d wear clothes that were slightly more revealing. I should have questioned how she could have possibly brought her C average up to an A in a matter of weeks, but I figured perhaps she buckled down. The following year, the same history teacher was dismissed for improper relations with a student. We were never told the exact details, but a mother just knows.”
I blink, my breaths coming deeper and more shallow. I can’t wrap my head around the lengths this woman will go to in order to paint me in a negative light.
I was the one who went to the principal on my own about the ongoing series of unwanted advances my teacher made on me.
I was the one who had to prove that he purposefully downgraded my papers to trick me into attending private tutoring sessions with him.
I was the one who had to stand up for myself when my own mother simply claimed I was overreacting, that a mature man of nearly forty wouldn’t want anything to do with an awkward sixteen-year-old like me.
“It started with her grades in high school. Then college. She even cost me every single one of my husbands.”
I bark out a laugh, rolling my eyes at the ridiculousness of her assertion.
“Why would she do that?” Carly asks.
“Like I said, I take full responsibility. She grew up without a strong male figure in the household. That always affects a child’s development. Yes, her father’s death was tragic, but somewhere along the way, Nora started seeing his death as abandonment. As such, she’s always craved attention. And once Nora was able to gain it, she mastered the art of manipulation.”
“How so?”
“Simple. She always knew exactly what to do and say to get someone to do whatever she wanted. Hell, she manipulated me for years. Made me believe she was the perfect, well-adjusted teenager, then young woman. That’s how good she is. So what started as her manipulating her teachers in order to give her passing grades eventually turned into manipulating men for…other things.”