Heart of Stone (Part III)

III. Chapter 23 | Part 1 - Aubree

"Mom?" Aubree's voice was throaty with emotion as she pressed the phone to her ear.

"Aubree?"

Squeezing her eyes shut, Aubree took a shaky breath in and released it slowly. "Yeah."

"What happened to your old phone?"

The corners of her lips quirked up a bit as she gave her head a gentle shake.

She suspected her mother would ask about her phone number changing. She went with Stone and Gwen to the mall first thing after training that morning to file the last of Aubree's paperwork as Luna to the Blauwald Pack with Mr. Johnson, pick up her new IDs, and new phones and numbers for her and Gwen. Now, Gwen had her own phone to stay in contact with Lance. The poor girl was glued to that thing since she got it.

"Oh, you know," she shrugged, trying to sound more convincing while shaking off her nervousness. "Just found a great deal somewhere else. Figured I might as well get a local number while I'm at it."

Her mother sighed. "Makes sense."

Silence fell as Aubree twisted a lock of her hair around her finger. She chewed on her bottom lip as she looked across the room and met Stone's blue eyes looking back at her over the rim of his reading glasses. Pen in hand, poised over the papers he was signing on his desk, he was stiff as he waited for the conversation to unfold.

"So, Mom... About the last few weeks, I—"

"Aubree, don't say another word," her mother cut in.

She drew air into her lungs and held it as her mother continued.

"I was wrong. I know it, and I... I'm sorry."

Exhaling slowly, she closed her eyes and felt herself relax into her chair, her legs pulled up to her chest.

Her mother sighed. "I honestly don't know what came over me. I was just... I was so excited and so happy for you and Dan that I couldn't understand why you would call off the wedding so suddenly. I took it too personally when I should have been thinking about you. I don't know why. I mean, yeah Dan was a good boy, but if things weren't meant to be then why should I get upset when I should have been thinking about you?"

She sighed again. "I'm so sorry, hun. Your father straightened me out and made me realize how terrible I had been to you when you needed me most. I wanted to call you, but..."

Shaking her head, she waved her mother's guilt off. "It's okay, Mom. I forgive you. We all make mistakes, and I've made plenty of them over the last few weeks. I just want to put this all behind now and move on."

"You sure you're not mad?"

Her lips tugged up some more. "I'm sure—but on one condition."

"Oh? What's that?"

"You have to give my new boyfriend a chance."

Her mother huffed. "I suppose, I can do that."

Her brow arched. "Mom."

"All right, all right. I'll give him a chance and be nice."

Her lips pulled up in a full smile now. "Good because he's a keeper, and nothing you say is going to change that."

She scoffed. "Oh, is that so?"

Aubree lowered her legs over the edge of the seat, crossed one over her knee, and leaned back. "Yup, 'fraid so mother-dearest."

"I hate it when you call me that. Makes me sound like an old hag..."

Aubree snickered. "So, what are you and Dad doing for the Fourth of July?"