Kiana sat down on the edge of a chair and poured herself lukewarm tea from the pot.
“How are you doing, dear?”
Her mother-in-law was smiling widely, but her eyes remained cold and scrutinizing, taking inventory.
“Working a lot. Tired, as usual.”
“Oh, your accounting work is so stressful,” Ms. Sterling said with fake sympathy. “Numbers and reports all day long. I’d go absolutely crazy doing that.”
She took a delicate bite of a cream puff and dabbed her lips carefully with a paper napkin.
“Darius mentioned you’re planning to redo the kitchen.”
Kiana met her gaze directly.
“I am.”
“It’s probably terribly expensive, isn’t it? Everything’s so pricey nowadays. Cabinets, appliances, countertops—it’s just awful what things cost.”
“I’ll manage fine.”
Ms. Sterling shook her head with the practiced air of a life expert who’d seen it all.
“That’s good, of course. But you know, Kiki, maybe you shouldn’t rush into it. Money sitting safely in the account is a good thing. A cushion for emergencies. And the kitchen is perfectly fine as it is. It can definitely wait a while longer.”
There it is, Kiana thought with cold clarity. It’s starting exactly as I knew it would.
She slowly stirred sugar into her tea, watching the spoon move in circles.
“I don’t like this kitchen. I want to update it to something more modern.”
“Well, I understand that feeling, dear.”
Her mother-in-law leaned closer across the table, and the overwhelming scent of cheap floral perfume wafted over.
“But think about it carefully. What if you suddenly need that money for something more important? Medical treatment, for example, or some other emergency?”
Darius sat completely silent, staring into his cup of tea as if it held the secrets of the universe.
His face was strained and tense, as if he expected an explosion at any moment.
“If I need the money, I’ll use it,” Kiana replied evenly. “But I haven’t needed it yet for anything urgent.”
Ms. Sterling sighed so theatrically it deserved an Oscar nomination.
“I, for example, saved all my life, penny by penny, putting away every spare dollar I could find. And what happened in the end? Now I’m retired, barely scraping by month to month. Utilities are expensive. Medication is expensive. At least Darius helps out when he can.”
Kiana raised an eyebrow slightly.
“He helps out financially?”
Darius visibly flinched.
“Well, sometimes I slip her some cash when I can, bring her groceries, help with bills.”
Kiana nodded slowly, processing this information.
Interesting revelation.
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