Bending the Rules (The Rules, #1)

Brenna

"Brenna, sweetie," Mom begs. "Can we talk about this, please?"

I give Mom the silent treatment while I unload my hockey bag from the back of her vehicle. No tears run down my cheeks. My breathing is at its equilibrium. I'm void of any emotions now. Numbness is all I can feel.

Mom was talking to my birth father behind my back. She was keeping him updated on my life. Not once did she tell me. She always tried to portray him as the bad guy—not that he isn't. He'll always be the bad guy in my books. But he knows about me. He knows what I'm doing. That I play hockey. God knows what else he knows.

And you know what the worst part is?

Seeing him doesn't affect me as much as Mom lying to me does. I thought Mom and I had a trusting relationship. Trust is an important part of the foundation. Realizing she's been lying to me all this time... it breaks my heart. Beyond the point of repair.

I hoist my hockey bag over my shoulder, trudging to the door.

"Brenna!"

Mom's hand comes down on my shoulder.

Something inside me snaps.

Throwing my hockey bag to the ground, I spin on my heel, coming face-to-face with Mom. "You want to do this now?" I yell. "When the neighbours can hear us?"

Mom, who looks distraught, nods.

Choking on a laugh, I run a hand through my hair and direct my gaze elsewhere. Her expression sickens me. She's trying to make herself look like the victim. Fine, I'll cut her some slack. She was probably trying to figure out a way to introduce Randy into my life. Still, that doesn't give her the right to keep him a secret for so long. Perhaps when I was younger, but at this age?

My bottom lip wobbles, foreshadowing more tears. Swallowing thickly, I hold the tears back. The drive home was filled with enough sniffling and silent tears. We don't need more of those. At least, not until I'm behind closed doors. Mom doesn't need to see me cry. No one does.

To put space between Mom and me, I grab my hockey bag and climb up the steps to the porch. Then I throw my bag to the ground again.

"You kept him a secret from me." My voice is emotionless.

Mom presses her lips together and looks away in shame.

"You spun lies. What happened to him being a villain? Did he leave after finding out you were pregnant, or was that a lie? How long have you been seeing him?"

Silence stretches between us for several seconds. Mom is still directing her gaze at the icy cement. That she won't look me in the eye shows just how deep the lies run.

"Why?" I choke, tears slipping down my cheeks. "You knew, Mom."

"Brenna..." She tries to reach for me.