didn’t faint, but she sat down hard on the grass and put her head on her knees. “She’s going to make your life a living hell.”
“Sounds like you know something about that.” He crouched beside her and stroked her back, his presence a quiet, steady comfort after the ugly scene.
“I appreciate your standing up for me, but you shouldn’t have done it. She doesn’t make idle threats. She’ll try to get you fired.”
“I’ve dealt with bullies before. But I confess that I’ve never had to deal with it in my own home. I’m sorry, Brooke.”
She wiped her eyes and sniffled, too upset to be embarrassed anymore. “I’ve applied for six different jobs here in Royal since I finished school, and in every instance I got some flimsy excuse about why I wasn’t qualified. The first couple of times I wrote it off to the fact that I was straight out of college and grad school and had no experience, but then I got turned down for a waitressing gig at a place where one of my friends worked. I knew she had put in a good word for me.” She released a quavering breath. “So I couldn’t understand what I had done wrong...how I had interviewed so poorly that they didn’t want me.”
“Did you ever find out what happened?” he prodded gently.
“Yes. I couldn’t let it go, so I screwed up my courage and went back to the restaurant and talked to the manager. He admitted that my mother had called him and threatened him.”
“Son of a bitch.”
Austin’s vehement shock summed up Brooke’s reaction in a nutshell. “Yep. Who does that to their own kid?”
“What exactly is it that she wants you to do?”
“Daddy would be happy if I went to law school and joined him in his firm. Mama is Maverick County royalty. Her family owns one of the richest ranches in Texas. I’m supposed to play the part of the wealthy socialite. Wear the right clothes. Hang out with the right people. Marry the right man.”
He grimaced. “Sounds wretched.”
“You have no idea. And my mother is relentless. I have an inheritance coming to me from my grandmother’s estate when I turn thirty. All that’s necessary for me to get my money sooner is to be married or to have my parents’ permission. But my mother has convinced my father not to let that happen.” She lifted her chin. “So I’ve decided I’ll do whatever it takes to get out from under their roof. This job is the first step toward my liberation. Alexis isn’t afraid of my mother. This is real employment with a real paycheck.”
“But it won’t last long, surely.”
“No. The garden part will only take a few weeks. After that, Alexis wants me to do the walls in the childcare center. I’m saving every penny so I can rent an apartment.”
He put the back of his hand to her cheek and gazed down at her in concern. “You don’t look good, honey. Maybe you should go home.”
Brooke struggled to her feet. “Absolutely not. I won’t let Alexis down.”
He sighed. “When do you quit for the day?”
“Around four.”
“How about afterward we grab some food and take a picnic out in the country...find a quiet place where we can talk?”
“What if someone sees us and asks questions?”
His grin was remarkably carefree for a man who had recently tangled with the Goodman matriarch. “Let’s live dangerously.”
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