Page 93 of Ravaged By Lust

“Hello, mother,” Axel grumbles. The man might try to appear dead cool, but underneath all that bravado and male charisma, he’s still a little boy who loves his mom.

Mom takes our hands and sighs happily. “I am so happy to see both of you,” she says with a beam across her face. “I am so proud of what you’ve both accomplished in your own way.”

Underneath the baseball cap, I see a flicker of blush on Axel’s perfect cheeks. “Let’s go inside,” he hastily suggests.

“Can’t handle a bit of love from your mom?” I ask him. It’s so fun to give him a little ribbing.

“Let’s. Go. Inside.”

We sit down by the window booth, watching the unique sights of Venice Beach pass us by as we eat enough sushi to feed a small army. I have to hand it to him; Axel’s picked a great spot here. You wouldn’t be able to get sushi like this back in Crystal River.

“It seems like you all had a merry time yesterday,” Axel remarks to us. “According to Maddie.”

“Oh no,” I say. “What did she tell you?”

“Don’t panic, her lips are sealed. Well, except for one name. Winston West. Does that ring a bell, Mom? I’m sure it must.”

My mother’s face drops.

“You know exactly who he is, Axel. He’s done publicity for your band.”

“There’s more to him than simply a job title, isn’t there?”

Mom laughs then. “I am here to see you both, not to meet up with some guy from decades ago.”

“So you’re keeping your lips sealed as well, Mom?”

“I certainly am, Axel.”

* * *

Axel offers to drive us both home to our respective places. Mom to her hotel. Me to Bishop’s.

It’s when we drop Mom outside her accommodation when Axel turns to me in the passenger seat.

“You know Maddie is cooking up some plan to get Mom and Winston in the same room?” he asks me.

My jaw opens. “No, I did not know that. Sneaky girl.”

“She’s unwilling to pull the trigger unless you’re involved, though, and you give your approval.”

“I bet.”

“What do you think?”

I cross my arms. “No, what do you think, Axel? I’m sure you have an opinion on all of this. You’re her son.”

“Well, what I’ve heard is that Mom used to be a wild girl in her younger years. It might be good for her to experience some of that youth again…”

I smile. “She has been on her own since Dad.”

“Exactly.”

I scratch my chin, pondering over it for a moment. “I mean, we can try. Mom is pretty strong-headed, though. If she truly doesn’t want to see him again, then she’ll just walk out of any situation Maddie and us puts her in. We won’t be able to stop her from leaving.”

“I hope she doesn’t get angry at us.”

I chortle. “Scared of Mom, are you? Such a big boy.”