“You called this meeting, remember? What do you need to say?” Mitzi prompted.

“Graham is mine. He always has been, since high school, and he always will be. A man never forgets his first love,” Rita said.

“You’re married, aren’t you?” Mitzi asked.

“For now,” Rita answered. “Seeing Graham again brought back all those old feelings, and I will have him again, right along with my daughters.”

“I think seeing that Graham now owns the dealership put dollar signs in your eyes, not love in your heart. And, honey, everyone in high school knew that Graham wasn’t your first love. I don’t know which one of the football players was, but you made your way through several,” Mitzi told her.

Rita’s hands knotted into fists. “Are you calling me a slut?”

“If the shoe fits,” Mitzi said. “Frankly, I don’t care if you’re a slut or a saint. What I don’t like is the way you’ve treated your daughters. They think you’re embarrassed of them because of their size, and that’s why you left them and never even came back to see them for so many years. That scars a kid. You should be ashamed.”

Rita’s lip curled in a sneer. “You should know all about that fat business. Trust me, Graham likes small women, not b-big old . . .” She stammered when Mitzi pushed away from the wall and stepped closer.

“‘Big old’ what?” Mitzi asked.

“Tubs of lard,” Rita shot out the answer.

Mitzi wanted to snatch the woman baldheaded, but that would make Rita the victim, and create more drama. “There’s two sides to every person. The one that the world sees, and then that inward one. You might be little and cute on the outside, but the inside of you is black with rotting evil. If that’s all you’ve got to say, then I’m walking out of here. But before I go, just remember that one woman’s trash is another woman’s treasure. I intend to cherish every precious moment I can spend with your beautiful daughters and with Graham. Y’all have a good day.”

Mitzi left her standing at the vanity looking like she could kill someone with her bare hands. She slung open the bathroom door with such force that if Graham hadn’t been there to catch it, the bang it made against the wall would have startled everyone in the room.

“You okay?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” she bit out. “There’s no blood and she still has all her hair, which is a miracle.”

“Graham.” Rita brushed past them both and went straight for the champagne table.

“Rita.” He barely acknowledged her as he wrapped an arm around Mitzi’s shoulders. “I guess we should be leaving, right?”

“I hate to leave the girls with that woman, even if she is their mother,” Mitzi said through clenched teeth.