One Summer with the Sinner (Monteverde Series 5)

22

Chapter Twenty-Two

"You have completely lost your mind!" My mother raised her voice. Even when she's oceans away, I could feel the derision present in her tone. I could sense her anger, the spite. "You're going nuts over some..." She struggled for words. "Some pathetic woman you have just met! Tell me, is she worth all the stress and controversy you gave this family?"

"Ma, please..." My voice was low, calm, a bit upset. I put the phone on loudspeaker so I could pop a can of beer open. I took a swig as I spoke. "She's really special to me. You have no idea just how much."

"Special? What the bloody hell are you talking about, Vane? You haven't even known her for a month! How could you confidently tell me that? This is stupid!"

"This is how I feel."

"Then what you feel isn't right. You need to clear that head of yours and come back to Kate. I may even find it in my heart to forgive you if you do that. Do you even know how embarrassing it was to face her father after the news broke out? Do you know how many reporters I had to evade that day just on my way to the office? Do you know..." She seemed to be gritting her teeth, "how embarrassing it was to contact the wedding planner to tell her on the very last minute that the wedding isn't happening anymore? We lost almost a hundred thousand pounds for cancellation fees alone!"

"I'm really sorry, Ma. I should have told you sooner. I was... confused."

"At this point, I'm doubting if your brain is still in that head of yours. I am disappointed in you."

"I know you are, and you have every right to be. And believe me, I truly regret putting you in this position. But, Ma... She makes me happy. It's the first time I've ever felt genuine happiness ever since Pa died and this... this is new to me."

She didn't answer. The mention of my father probably took her back to the memory lane, too. But I need her to understand how I feel. After a few silent minutes, I heard a harsh exhale from the other line. My mother is trying to reign all her anger, I could tell. "I don't think you made the right decision, Vane. Whoever this woman is, I don't think I'll ever be ready to meet her. For all I know, she's just after you for the money, for your fame..."

"She doesn't know."

"Doesn't know what?"

"That I'm an actor. I haven't told her yet." I sat on the side of the pool as she talked. I dipped my legs on the water and swished my feet. "

"That's impossible," she snorted. "Of course, she's going to pretend that she doesn't know! She'll make you feel like you're special, that she sees something in you, but she's just trying to make you fall for her tricks... her dirty tactics."

"I don't think she's that type of person, Ma... You're misjudging someone you haven't met. You don't know her yet."

"And you? How well do you know this girl? What's her full name? Who are her parents and what do they do? Did she even graduate from college? What course did she take? What does she do for a living? Which city in Metro Manila does she live in?"

She took my silence as a confirmation. I hated how I don't have an answer to her questions, but does that really matter? I know that she's a good person, she cares for the kids, she's passionate about the causes she believes in, and she's kind to the people around her.

"See? She's practically a stranger. My goodness! For all we know, she's just playing with you!"

"She isn't!" I tried to maintain my cool, but I guess it isn't always easy. "And even if she is, I don't care. I don't really care, Ma!"