I squirm under her scrutiny.
“No, they don’t know,” I tell her. “Bloody hell, I’m beginning to see how my siblings felt.”
“Language,” she says, and it’s my turn to scowl.
“I’m thirty-seven,” I tell her, but find myself shrinking under her scrutiny.
“Oh, no, you don’t. You’ve got away lightly,” she says, smirking. “Besides, Pen is family—she’s not someone you mess with.”
I lean forward and whisper, “You think I don’t know that?”
I sit back and run a hand through my hair, picking up my teacup and taking a swig. The hot liquid burns my throat but gives me clarity. I meet my mother’s gaze.
“I care about her, Mum. But it’s complicated. There’s Lottie, Kris?—”
“Complicated,shmomplicated. Why does it have to be we make things complicated? Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”
“It’s still early days.”
Mum looks at me and laughs, the sound one of pure delight.
“Early days?” She chuckles to herself. “You two have been dancing around each other since the moment you met. Eighteen years. Early days, indeed! You were made for each other. Always were. If other forces hadn’t intervened, things would have been different. You and Pen would have been together.”
My mum’s words hit me in the chest.
“What do you mean?”
My heart sinks. I thought I’d hidden those feelings, locked them away.
As if sensing my unease, she reaches forward and pats my hand. “I’m your mother, Elijah. But anyone with eyes in their head, who knew you two, could see it. Darra knew it. You understood one another on a level that is not usual.” She smiles at me. “I have to admit when you first brought Pen home, she was a littleleft field. Her makeup, her piercings, but watching you together, the way your friendship developed.”
I laugh at the memory, thinking back to Pen’s white foundation, her array of piercings, and her dyed black hair. Her all-black wardrobe made her look like an extra from the Addams Family.
“But it wasn’t long before I realised she was special,” Mum continues.
I look over. “She was and is special,” I agree.
I sink into the chair.
“All I’m saying is. You and Pen. You need to give each other a chance. That woman has loved you for so long.”
I turn my head sharply to look at my mother.
What the?
“Don’t look at me like that. She has loved you and supported you. When she announced her engagement to Kristophe, I must admit I was surprised, as was Louise. Especially with your divorce going through.”
Ahh, our relationship mole. Louise and Mum have become close friends over the years.
“I’ve never…”
“Oh, Eli. The heart wants what the heart wants. I think you know that better than most.”
“I tried to fight it. It’s why I stayed away from her.”
“I know. I’ve watched you both battle your feelings. Neither one of you letting them surface.”
“I was a bad husband.”
