"Relax, Mr. Barbarian." She took a deliberate sip of her coffee as she settled deeper into her chair; legs crossed.
“What are you doing here, mother?”
She pursed her lips. “A mom can’t come to see her son without a reason?”
I gave her a pointed stare. Her posture suggested casual conversation, but her eyes remained those of a lioness, protective ferocity disguised as maternal indulgence. She sighed with exaggeration. “Fine. Firstly, Cassian told your father a fun little story about what transpired at the Darzi residence, who naturally shared it with me.”
"Cassian exaggerates."
"I'm sure," she replied, amusement warming her eyes. “Secondly, I came because I've already had six phone calls this morning from women whose daughters had been under consideration."
"Consideration for what?"
She gave me a look that suggested I was being deliberately obtuse. "For this position, of course."
"Ah." I leaned back in my chair. "The one you were going to try and fill for me, you mean?"
“With a proper research committee," she defended with a hint of amusement. "You way turned out much better."
“Thank you for the blessing—yet again,” I deadpanned.
A softness crept into her expression. "Are you happy, Alaric? Do you think you can be?"
The question caught me off-guard, which was rare in itself. "I'm satisfied," I replied carefully.
"I just don’t know if you'll break each other apart or forge something unbreakable.”
"Your maternal instincts are touching.”
"I'm stating facts. She's the first woman who's looked past your bank accounts and bloodline because neither fascinate her."
"I’m well aware of all this."
Her expression shifted, almost imperceptibly, to something genuine. "Then make certain she never has reason to doubt who you truly are.”
"When did you become a relationship counselor?" I asked.
"When you finally found someone worth the effort and brought her home to me and your father. I actually came to see her today, not you. That was the main reason for me being here.”
“You just saw her yesterday. I want her to get settled in here.”
“All the more reason for us to meet up with Penelope and Angel to go shopping,” she replied.
"To go where?"
"Shopping," she repeated slowly, as if I might not understand the word
"I’m not sure she’d be interested in that."
Now she looked at me as if Iwasobtuse.
"I know exactly what I'm doing," she huffed, rising from her seat. "I'm establishing a relationship with your future wife, my daughter-in-law."
"You've never done this before," I called after her.
She paused at the threshold, glancing back over her shoulder. "Consider it a measure of my approval, then."
Before I could respond, she disappeared down the hallway with the practiced grace that made her so effective in all things she did. I remained staring at the empty doorway as the implications settled into place.