Thanks Sherry and Paige!
BPOV:
The drive to mother's house was a tumultuous one. My lack of experience behind the steering wheel, the darkness that caused the roads to barely be visible to an untrained eye, as well as my anger which I could barely get under control made for an almost disastrous experience. When I finally do arrive, I can barely contain myself long enough to put my vehicle in park before I burst out of the automobile.
I can see a light on from the kitchen and I know that mother is still awake. Drinking as she usually does when she hasn't gotten her way. The front door is unlocked, something which the old me would reprimand her for, but I'm too angry to care about her welfare. I'm too angry to care about anything anymore.
"Bella?" Mother questions in shock as I burst into the kitchen.
She is in her silk nightgown and robe with a glass of wine in her hand. She stares at me in shock, before finally, a smirk appears on her attractive face. Does she find this funny? She knows I am hurt and yet she is amused?
"I came to talk to you."
She controls the amused look on her face and sits up straighter in her seat. "What can I do for you, sweetheart?"
"I saw you. I saw you come onto my husband. How could you Mother? How could you do that to me?" I question, feeling like a lost little girl all of a sudden.
She makes me feel so young and naive, as she sits at the table with one eyebrow arched with indignation. Mother knows me too well and she senses my anger, but instead of being regretful or even worried, she is amused.
"Bella, come on, you're a big girl now. Yet, you're clueless when it comes to men. Do you think that most men are faithful? I'm sure he is quite satisfied with you now, but it won't always be that way. One day he will look for something more...substantial," she finishes with her holier-than-thou voice.
"So, you are saying that he should find that with you?" I question, too furious to see straight.
"If not me, he'll be finding it with someone else," she answers ominously. "How well do you know your husband, Bella?"
"Well enough," I say with a curt shrug of my shoulder, "Why, mother? Do you claim to know him better?"
"I'm not saying that," she responds with a laugh, "But, I do know men, and men are something a young girl like you has no concept of. All men are the same, Bella. Certainly, you don't need your mother to tell you that. They don't exactly think with their brains. Sooner or later he will find someone else. If he hasn't already."
"You think my husband would be unfaithful to me?"
"All men are, Bella. I was merely trying to teach you a lesson. I knew you were watching."
I stare at her in disbelief. Is she honestly trying to play this off as if she had done me a favor? She was merely trying to educate me when she was attempting to seduce my husband? This is just too much. I won't allow her to patronize me anymore. I'm not the same girl I was before I was married.
"Please, Mother. You are not a good actress. I know for a fact that if Edward would have given into your advances, you would have engaged in an affair with him behind my back. I know you too well to think otherwise. You lust after every single man you meet! Whether it be a young waiter, the city's doctor, or even your daughter's husband. Edward is not attracted to you, he is attracted to me. He married me! How can I have a relationship with you, if I feel that you will stab me in the back the first chance you get?"
Mother has a calm mask on her face, but I know that my accusation has angered her. She treats me like a child, and yet she is not mature enough to own up to her actions. The irony soothes my anger for a moment.
"I wouldn't have had an affair with your husband. I am going to be engaged to Dr. Dwyer soon, and he is the only man I could ever need."
Now it is my turn to smirk. One man being enough for my mother? The thought is comical. She has been unfaithful in every relationship she has had.
"Don't lie to me Mother! I didn't come here to have you lie to my face."
"Why did you come then?" she asks, before taking a long drink of her red wine.
"I came to say this." I take a deep breath and allow my new-found confidence to flow through my veins. "Stay the fuck away from my husband. If I even catch a whiff of you around him, our relationship will be over like that," I say with a snap of my fingers. "You're my mother, and I may love you because of that, but I will not allow you to come near my husband. Stay out of my marriage or I will cut all ties with you."
Mother studies me for a moment, before leaning back in her chair with a small smile. "My, oh my. You are different, aren't you? What happened while you were away?"
My mind plays the events of my honeymoon like a film. Losing my virginity, shooting a man for the first time, watching someone die before my very eyes… When I finally return to the present, I find my mother giving me a curious look.
"Nothing," I say with finality. "Remember what I told you."
"Of course, sweetheart," she smirks.
"Don't call me 'sweetheart'."
Mother laughs at my remark and questions, "What should I call you then, darling?"
"Bella, just call me Bella."
"Alright, Bella," Mother says with a small chuckle. "Gosh, my daughter is all grown up."
For a moment, our relationship feels as if it once did. However, the thoughts of her with my husband come rushing back and I realize that we will never be the same. Mother has already destroyed my trust, and I won't allow her to do any more damage.
My empowerment dissipates on the drive home when I have time to contemplate her words. "All men are unfaithful." I don't want to believe that. I don't want to believe that Edward would ever be capable of doing that. While he hasn't said he loves me, I know he cares for me very much and I know that he is attracted to me. That must mean something. That's more than many married women can say about their relationships.
My sexual appetite is enough to exhaust my husband; therefore, I couldn't imagine him making love to another woman. I may not know much about men, but I know that I keep my husband satisfied. My mother is wrong about him. She's wrong about our relationship as she is most things.
Edward is awake by the time I return. I wonder how long he has been up. With a glass of liquor in hand, he is sitting on the living room couch in the dark. A mirror of how mother was a little while ago, as he takes a sip of his drink and gives me an incredulous stare.
"I needed to talk to my mother," I say, answering his unspoken question.
"In the middle of the night?"
"The night is still young," I say with a coquettish smile before joining him on the couch.
A/N: So what are you thinking about this confrontation? Thoughts?
I'm going to be putting a lot of Bella's outfits on my facebook group The Highlander Princess's Clan...so join if you're interested!
