Free Unbroken by Emma Fawkes

me.”
    “Mom,” Madi says sternly. I’m surprised by the warning in her voice. Madi never stands up to our mother.
    “Don’t “mom” me, Madison. Milly needs to hear this.”
    “No, actually, I don’t!” I stand, placing my napkin on the table and picking up my purse.
    “Milly, wait,” I hear Madi call after me, but I can’t turn around. I’ll have to call her in the morning.
    I don’t want my mother to see the tears that are now creeping down my face. Her words run through my head. Earlier, I’d thought that Mother didn’t deserve to be with an asshole like James Watson, but at this moment, I decide that they may be perfect for each other.
    I get into my car, but I’m still too upset to drive. Wiping away my tears, I reach for my phone to call Cameron. I’d promised to call him when the dinner was over after all. It just finished a little earlier than scheduled.
    “Milly?” Cameron’s voice is soothing, even over the phone. “That was a short dinner. Did your mother cancel again?”
    “No,” I say, trying not to sob into the phone. “We got into a huge fight and I walked out.”
    “I’m so sorry. Want to talk about it?”
    “Yes. It actually has to do with us—with you,” I say, not sure how to explain what’s going on.
    “Wait, what? Me? You talked about me?”
    “Yeah, I hope that’s okay.” I blanch. Had it been too fast? Are we just casually seeing each other? I really hope not—I just picked a fight with my mother over him.
    “No, it’s fine. It’s sweet, actually,” he reassures me. “What’s going on?”
    Thank God . I’m immediately relieved.
    “I like that you told your mom about me.”
    “Thanks,” I say, smiling through my tears. “Only, she didn’t react well. That was the reason why we fought.”
    “What do you mean?”
    I pause for a moment. The dinner conversation with my mom was so ludicrous—and the revelation that she was dating Cameron’s dad so crazy—that I don’t actually know where to start.

Chapter Ten
Cameron
    “ M illy ? You still there?” I ask into the phone after almost a full minute of silence.
    “Yeah,” she says shakily.
    I can tell she’s been crying. Even though we haven’t been together long—are we now officially together ?—I find this upsetting.
    “Talk to me,” I say as soothingly as possible.
    “Remember last night, when you told me that you thought your dad might be dating someone?”
    “Yeah.” Well, that came out of left field. Is she trying to change the subject?
    “Well, as it turns out, he is. He’s dating my mother.”
    “What?” I practically shout into the phone. I’m so confused. Do they even know each other? “How? When?”
    “So… a few days after you were admitted to the ICU, my mother stopped by, completely randomly. She never visits me at work. She asked about you—said you were a son of a friend. But then she ran into your dad and introduced herself, so I knew she was lying about her being friends with your dad. I figured she just wanted to introduce herself to your father for political reasons—I knew he was someone important. I guess they hit it off and have been dating ever since.”
    I really don’t know what to say. I don’t know what to do with this information. It doesn’t make any sense. It’s like a weird joke that’s not funny.
    “Are you sure?” I ask.
    “Yes. We fought about it.”
    “Why?” I asked. “Obviously, if she’s dating my dad, she couldn’t think I’m that bad of a person.”
    “It’s not that,” Milly tells me. I can hear her taking a deep breath over the phone. I’m still so confused. “I guess it’s serious.”
    “What’s serious?”
    “Things… between my mom and your dad. They’re talking marriage.”
    I close my eyes and shake my head, as if that will cause this information to make any more sense. Marriage? My father has never even dated anyone, as far as I know.
    “Cameron?” Milly asks after a moment.
    “Yeah, sorry. Just trying to