The bitter taste of sorrow and uncertainty lingers in the air.
She groans her frustration and wipes her face, slumping. Immediately uncomfortable with the way she’s sitting, she grunts as she sits up.
When I see her struggle, I take a step forward. “Are you okay?”
She waves a hand in dismissal. “I fell off the step stool trying to get all of this.” She gestures to the pile of stuff on her desk. “From the top shelf in the closet.”
I dip my chin. “Mom—”
“I’m fine, just a little sore.”
I step closer, cranking my neck to see what “stuff” was worth hurting herself over. From my view, it’s a box of mementos from old photos, invitations, save the dates and more. “Hey.” I reach for a white band, and the pain from my movement is already much more bearable. “Is this my hospital bracelet?
She smiles at it in my hand. “Yeah. You were so tiny. Carried you for three months and endured twelve hours of labor just for you to come out looking just like your father.” Mom trades me the bracelet for another photo. “And look at this.”
I laugh at a photo of my dad lying on the hospital floor with a nurse trying to fan him awake. “What’s he doing?”
“I told him to stay by my head, but he didn’t want to miss a single second of you.”
Placing the photo down, I grab a small velvet onyx bag. I point to it. “What’s that?”
She clutches in the bag her hand. “Thatis the reason I went searching for this box in the first place. It’s something I thought I’d pass down to your mate.”
Moments of silence pass as she gazes longingly at the jewelry bag, caressing and rubbing it gently with her thumb.
“I really thought it could be her.”
My chest pinches at her disappointment. It hurts me to see her hold out on hope over something that will never happen. Jay may have killed my father, but I’m killing my mother. I can’t let her continue to let her believe that my mate might appear. I have to do something. “I’m going to take a chosen mate.”
“Oh, honey, that’s not necessary. I’m just a little disappointed. I’ll get over it. I’m fine.”
That might be more convincing if she hadn’t said that already.
“You’re not fine.” I turn her arm over. “If you were, these bruises would’ve healed by now.”
She jerks her arm out of my grasp and uses her hand to try to cover a bruise but is barely able to. “Your mate is out there. You’ll find her.Thenyou can take my place,” she says.
“I’ve been looking for months and there’s been no sign of her.”
She contemplates my words, biting on the inside of her cheek as the wheels turn in her head. “No. We’ll wait. You’re not giving up your fated mate.”
“I want you to be happy is all.”
I move toward her, resting my hand on hers. “Mom, I will be.”
Her tear-filled eyes look up at me.
“You can’t keep going like this, and I can’t sit back and watch you. The disappointment is only speeding up your condition, and it won’t be long until the council sees this and insists you abdicate. We’ll lose everything.” I pause. “I can’t lose you so soon, Mom. Don’t you want to be around for your grandpups for me?”
She averts her gaze, covering her mouth, trying not to cry.
I move around the desk to embrace her.
She cries into my shoulder. “I’ll submit to the council my letter of approval for you to take a chosen mate.”
Chapter ELEVEN
Jay
