CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
I opened the front door, a gentle smile gracing my lips. “Come in, Mother.”
The edges of her eyes crinkled with worry as she searched the empty foyer behind me for monsters. When Mother found none in sight, she hissed, “I’m getting you out of here. Come on.”
I inhaled, and stated calmly, “Come inside, Mother. It’s not as bad as you think.”
Mother’s eyes glared into mine, and penetrated, searching for the reason for my ‘madness.’ She growled, “Is that creature drugging you?”
Mr. Mason popped his head around the corner to my right, calling out, “Hey, beautiful. Finn wants you to order pizza when you’re done with your visit. The meeting’s going to take a while longer than expected.”
He wasn’t coming any closer, though.
Staying far away from the ‘upset mother.’
I chuckled. “I can’t believe he sent you out here.”
“He’s evil like that.” He glanced at my mother’s frozen frame outside the doorway, then back to me. A mischievous glint entered his eyes. “Kind of like a creature from Hell.”
I sighed, both amused and irritated. “Tell him I’ll order the pizza. But how many should I get?”
His black head of hair teetered in thought. “Maybe fifteen?”
“There’s only eight of you back there!” I exclaimed. Along with the five corporate kings, Poppy and Theron had shown up too. Then Cassander had strolled in as if he hadn’t been nuclear this morning. “Isn’t that a little extreme?”
His black brows wiggled suggestively. “The creatures must be fed!” Then he disappeared around the corner, but his devious laughter could be heard as he walked away.
I shook my head in exasperation, still staring where he had been standing. I muttered under my breath, “That did not help at all.”
My patience was wearing thin when I turned to face my mother, but I understood her dismay. I had been in her place only a few days before. Except, I stopped to stare at her features, surprise and humor running amok in my head.
I stated, “Mother, you are a married woman.”
She jerked her attention back to me, turning from where she had gawked after Mr. Rune Mason—New City’s playboy. She lifted her chin. “I have no idea why you felt the need to remind me.”
I pointed at her chin. “You’ve got a little drool there.”
She didn’t, but it was still fun to tease.
Mother shook her head. “Not funny, Mina.”
Then she stared. Her lips twitched.
I opened the door wider. “Are you coming in now?”
“Tell me this first. Why are you staying here?”
To make sure you and Father are safe.
And, perhaps, because I want to.
“I enjoy Finn’s company. We get along surprisingly well. And I know what you’re thinking, but he isn’t evil. He’s a good man…that just happens to wear a fur coat every once in a while.” I snorted, remembering his words. “A fur coat that he is particularly proud about.”
“You like him,” Mother said, her awe of the truth washing over her face. “Are you falling for that creature?”
“Quit calling him that,” I snapped.
Mother’s eyes narrowed.
“My apologies,” I amended. I recovered my etiquette—with much mental force—and pulled myself up to my full height. “Though, please do try to be courteous inside his home.”
“I’m not inside his home.” She pointed down at her feet on the doormat.
“Jesus, Mother, just get inside.”
I grabbed her arm, done with the niceties. She was family, after all. I didn’t have to be perfect all the time. I used my taller frame to pull her and my luggage she carried inside his home. It wasn’t a scene we would have wanted the public to witness, though.
When we were done with the struggle—her digging in her heels, me digging in my bare feet—we were both a little breathless.
But I had prevailed!
“That was uncalled for, Mina,” Mother griped and fixed her hair where it had come askew. She huffed in aggravation. “And when did you get so strong?”
“When I turned twelve. I grew taller than you then,” I muttered. I stared at my wrist, a tiny cut there. “Just how sharp do you need your nails to be, anyway?”
“That wasn’t my nails. It was my ring,” she grumbled, twisting her wedding ring to its proper position. “The damn thing catches on my clothes too. Your father is going to buy me a new one soon.”
Mother received a new—and better—wedding ring for every five years of marriage they made it to alive. It was stated so in their wedding contract.
My mother loved jewelry.
Father always found it humorous when the time came to buy her a new one. A new wedding ring for an ‘old’ wife, he would say.
“So, now that you have me inside, what are your plans? Feed your too-short mother to them?”
“Mother!”
She waved a hand in the air. “I’m kidding.”
My brows puckered. I was fairly certain I had offended her. I murmured, “You’re the perfect height for you. And Father seems to like it.”
She snorted…but nodded. “Yes, he does.”
“Is there anything you would like to ask me?” I crossed my arms and leaned back against the doorjamb. “Anything at all?”
“I just want you safe, Mina. That’s all.” Mother opened her arms wide. “You were frightened of him one night, and the next, you’re here. So I’m worried, even if you say he’s a good man.”
“Don’t you trust my judgment?”
“I do. You are the smartest young woman I know. But I’m still worried.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I love you.”
I wrapped my arms around her and tucked her head under my chin, holding her tight. I whispered, “I’m okay. I swear to you. This is where I want to be right now.”
Her voice was muffled against my shoulder, breathless, as she whined, “You’re squeezing too tight.”
I loosened my arms—a little.
Then she hugged me back. “If you’re really going to stay here, then you’ll wear that bracelet your father and I bought today. I want to be able to contact you anytime I want. And for you to call me…daily. Maybe twice a day.”
“Of course, Mother.” I kissed the top of her head.
She didn’t stop hugging me. “Are you sure you’re safe here?”
“Yes.” I hoped.