“This woman—Irina—will bemy wife. Right now she’s my fiancée and she deserves a lot more respect than what you’re giving her.”
Irina looked up at him with a reverent respect that made him feel ten feet tall.
“Can you please start acting like an adult?” Mom asked. “What can you possibly want from her that you can’t get by simply living together?”
Well, now she was actively trying to piss him off.
“You may not accept us, but that doesn’t change anything. Yes, she’s a major pie tease. She promises pie and then doesn’t deliver.”
Irina made a strangled sound.
“And, sure,sometimesshe tastes like glue. Also, when I text her, my phone autocorrects her name to Urine. I don’t know why.” He looked to Irina, held her gaze with his. “But the wedding ison.”
“Are you done?” Irina asked, eyes super wide.
With her? Not by a long shot. With his mother? Yeah.
“Learn to accept her as part of my package, or don’t bother with any future attempts at manipulating me, because I’ll be checked out.” He drew a deep breath and wished for a beer. “I mean it, this is important to me. Support us, or don’t. I don’t care anymore. But if you don’t, you can expect a holiday card and that’s it. Your call, the ball is now in your court.” He crossed his arms.
He’d never stood up to his mom like that before. The whole thing was…different. A little thrilling, but also scary. Scary because Mom stared at him as though he’d grown an extra ear, and his eyeballs had turned purple.
Maybe he should’ve tested these waters before diving right in.
“You’re serious?” she asked in a tone he couldn’t recall her ever using before.
Irina slugged him gently on the arm. “I don’t always taste like glue.”
“Not anymore, obviously. But when you were doing hair and makeup and coming home after.” He made asortaface.
“You aren’t exactly Mr. Spectacular,” Irina huffed. “Your hair is too long, and you smell like lumber.”
“You like longer hair, and Iknowyou don’t mind the smell of my woodsy cologne.” Knox crossed his arms.
She’d said she liked it when they were on tour. Said he could probably pick up a truckload of groupies with the scent. Not that he needed the cologne to pick up groupies. Still…
“Not the point,” Irina countered.
“Oh, I know I’m better than a seven-point-five. You may not be ready to admit it, but we both know it’s the truth.”
“All right.” Mom held up her hands. “I’ve heard enough.”
Suddenly, tossing down that line in the sand didn’t feel like a win. It seemed like he was stepping forward into an uncertain future by pinning his everything to a woman they both agreed was temporary.
Mom reached into her bag and removed a red velvet jewelry box. “I wore this at my wedding. I’m sure your grandmother would want you to have it for your wedding day…so…here.” She passed over the box to Knox.
He opened the velvet box and inside was a gorgeous red-stoned bracelet with silver accents that seriously looked expensive. Not that he knew anything about jewelry, but he could go do some MyTube research and confirm.
“Hello, gorgeous.” Irina moved closer to touch the stone.
“It’s horrible luck,” Knox said, glaring at his mother.
“There’s no such thing as luck.” Mom shrugged. “But if there is, maybe it’ll hurry things along for you two and we can be done with this nonsense.”
“That is a massive ruby,” Mach added, not getting close, but the thing was big enough he could get a good look all the way across the room.
“Get married, if that’s really what you want, but you can’t say I didn’t warn you.” Mom waved at the box like she was glad to be rid of it. “I’ll see you at the wedding.”
Just like that, she sauntered to the door and let herself out, leaving Knox holding the jewelry box and a lot of questions in her wake.
