Becoming Strangers Again by Lily

RYAN

| had taken the boys out to the park for sfresh air. It felt good to step outside for a while, and | was relieved

when | received a call saying that my mom had gone out herself.

She had been cooped up in the house for too long, and | had been worried it was affecting her mental health.

She hadn't been herself lately, snapping at everyone except the kids over the smallest things. | figured it was the

weight of everything she was bottling up-grief, frustration, and perhaps a feeling of helplessness.

After spending stwith the boys, | decided it was tto head home. We walked up to the front door,

and the boys, full of energy, rushed inside ahead of me. | followed, glancing around the living room but finding

no one there. The house felt quiet, a little too quiet. | headed toward the bedroom, looking for Lily. As |

approached the door, | carefully pushed it open, just in case she was resting. The last thing | wanted was to

disturb her if she had finally managed to get ssleep after the stressful day. But when | stepped inside, | saw

her sitting on the bed, not asleep but reading a book.

She looked up when the door opened, and the moment our eyes met, | could tell something was wrong.

"What's wrong?" | asked, my voice soft but concerned, as | moved closer to her. | took her hand, sitting beside

her on the bed, trying to comfort her, though I had no idea what had upset her so deeply. "Did something

happen while you were out?"

Lily pulled her hand away, crossing her arms defensively over her chest, her expression hardening. "Your mum

thinks I'm cheating on you," she said through gritted teeth, her frustration clear. "She cright out and said it

to my face-that I'm cheating on you."

| sat there, stunned, my mind struggling to process what she had just told me. My mother? Accusing her of

cheating? | blinked, speechless, caught between disbelief and anger.

"I guess she sawwith Amell during the furniture shopping trip," Lily continued. "And instead of asking me

any questions to clarify what she thought she saw, she jumped straight to accusations. She toldI'm

ungrateful too."

| could feel the blood rushing to my face. My mother-whom | respected deeply-had crossed a line, one she should

never have approached. Without saying another word, | stood up from the bed, anger boiling inside me. Lily

doesn't deserve this.

| marched out of the room, my feet moving quickly as | sought out my mother to set things straight. She had no

right to make those kinds of accusations, and | wasn't about to let her drive a wedge between Lily and me. Not

now, not ever.

The first place | searched for my mother was her bedroom. | knocked on the door twice, and when she opened it,

she greetedwith a warm smile. "You're home," she said with a hint of relief in her voice. "I was beginning to

miss the boys." "Can | cin?" | asked, my voice tight and flat, betraying my rising frustration.

Her brows furrowed into a frown as she sensed my upset demeanor. After a moment of hesitation, she nodded

and pushed the door wider to letin.

| stepped inside.

"Is everything okay?" she asked, closing the door behind her.

"Absolutely not," | snapped, the words spilling out before | could temper them. "What was that you said to my

wife?"

She scoffed, jutted her chin out defiantly, and rolled her eyes. "I see she ran to complain to you," she mumbled,

as if dismissing the issue altogether.

"As she should!" | retorted, my voice rising slightly. "Why on earth would you call my wife a cheat?!"

"Because | know what | saw!" she fired back. "I saw how close she was with that man at the coffee shop!"

Running my fingers through my hair in frustration, | glared at her, trying to rein in my anger. "You used to love

Lily. Why are you letting your grief get in the way of your relationships with everyone?"

"| still like Lily," she argued, her voice defensive. "But that doesn't mean I'm going to keep quiet if | think she's

doing something wrong."

"She is not cheating on me!" | growled, my voice rising in intensity.

"I know what | saw, and-"

"I don't care what you saw!" | interjected, cutting off whatever nonsense she was about to say. "This is our

private life, Mom, and would appreciate it if you didn't interfere. Even if my wife were cheating on me-which she

isn't-it's none of your business but mine. You do not have the right to confront her like that."

Her jaw dropped in shock. "Ryan..."

"I'm telling you nicely, Mom. If you can't show Lily the srespect she shows you, then | will have no choice

but to send you back to New York. You will not make my wife uncomfortable in her own home."

She licked her lips, her expression shifting as she absorbed my ultimatum. "Fine. | won't say anything about this

anymore," she said reluctantly, though I could see the defiance lingering in her eyes. "But when it all dawns on

you and you ccrying to me, don't expectto comfort you."

"And when you realize that it was all just in your head," | shot back, "you're going to owe Lily an apology." With

that, | turned on my heel and walked out of the room, slamming the door behind me.

As | made my way back to the bedroom, planning to apologize to Lily for my mother's outrageous behavior, my

phone suddenly rang. | glanced at the screen and saw Angelo's nflash before me. | answered the call.

I" : : : : [1

Maya is granting more interviews,

[1

he deadpanned. "We need to do

something before, stie(Syarts £ Gain

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the public §sympathy. If we don't act

5 oq f 3

quickly, this isn't going to end well for

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you, and it's definitely going to get the

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board talking." The content is on

novelenglish.net! Read the latest

chapter there!

Pushing the door open, | strolled into

the bedroom, my mind racing with

thoughts of how to tackle the mess

: [1

that Maya was creating. "Let her

speak to the public. Let her paint her

q " q q 3

own narrative," | said, pacing slightly

I" |

as | formulated my ldo) Whilé she's

atitlh wah you to reach out to the

angry ex-wives who Salruined

homes for. Get them to record their

stories about what she did to their

marriages. Once we have that

footage, we can release all the

9 7 q

pictures of the men she's had affairs

with together with the videos. And

then my mom can give interviews

about how traumatized she is from

q ' Tr

everything that's happened. I'll finish

q q q a "

it off with an interview of my own.

"Yes, boss."

That woman clearly had no idea who she was dealing with. Did she really think she could manipulate public

opinion in her favor? She was simply new to this game, and | was about to show her how it was played.

If she had approachedwithout

ofe

: |

threats, if she hadn't cacross as

selfish and opportunistic, | might

have considered TR Sle] of my

PRIREON Bi rhaps even

scash that could set her up for

life. But she had chosen to make me

her enemy, and that was a decision

she would cto regret. The

content is on novelenglish.net! Read

the latest chapter there!