Page 76 of Forget me Knot
I can hear the barely concealed frustration in her voice. I’ve been dodging her calls for days, ever since she started up with her matchmaking nonsense again. “I’m fine, Mother. Just been busy with work and other things.”
“Other things?” She latches onto that immediately, as I knew she would. “What other things? Have you finally met someone?”
I hesitate for a moment. This isn’t how I wanted to tell her about Lily, but I suppose there’s no time like the present. “Actually, yes. we have.”
There’s a pause on the other end of the line, and I can practically hear the wheels turning in her head. “Oh? Do tell.”
“Her name is Lily,” I say, unable to keep the smile out of my voice. “She’s an old friend of Jack’s and perfect for us.”
There is another pause, longer this time. When my mother speaks again, her voice is carefully neutral. “I see. And how did this come about?”
I launch into an abbreviated version of events, leaving out the more intimate details. As I talk, I realise how crazy it all sounds and how quickly everything has happened. But I also know, deep in my bones, that it’s right.
When I finish, my mother is quiet for a long moment. “Well,” she says finally, “this is certainly… sudden.”
Her tone sets my teeth on edge. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing, darling, nothing.”
I feel my hackles rising. “Lily is everything we’ve been looking for. I thought you’d be ecstatic.”
“Hmm,” she says, noncommittal. “And what does she do, this Lily?”
“She owns a flower shop in Keeley,” I say, pride swelling in my chest. “Forget Me Knot. She’s incredibly talented.”
“A flower shop,” my mother murmurs. “How quaint.”
My grip on the phone tightens. “It’s not quaint, Mother. It’s her passion, and she’s damn good at it.”
“I’m sure she is, darling,” she says in that placating tone that drives me up the wall. “I just want to make sure you’re not rushing into anything. You know how important it is to choose the right omega for the pack.”
“We have chosen the right omega,” I growl, my patience wearing thin. “Lily is perfect for us. End of discussion.”
There’s silence on the other end of the phone before she says carefully, almost too carefully, “Well, I can’t argue with that, can I?”
“No,” I say firmly. “Now, you can cancel that summer fair idiocy and I have to go, I have work to do.”
I hang up before she can say anything else, tossing my phone onto the desk with more force than necessary. Anger simmers under my skin. How dare she question our decision?
Taking a deep breath, I try to calm myself. My mother’s opinion doesn’t matter. What matters is Lily and our pack. We know we’ve made the right choice. Theonlychoice. We might be moving quickly, but it’s right. Lily is ours, and we are hers. Nothing else matters.
Determined to shake off the funk my mother’s call has left me in, I throw myself into work. But even as I review reports and crunch numbers, my mind keeps drifting back to Lily. To her smile, her laugh, and how she fits perfectly in our arms.
If anything, all this phone call has done is push me to make a decision. I’m going to ask Lily to move in with us. Tonight. I can’t bear the thought of spending another night without her, and I need to know she is safe. She wasn’t wearing her scent-masker when she came here, which worries me.
Knowing work is futile and also knowing that I’m risking my job but not really giving a fuck, I pack up my things. My heartbelongs to Lily now, completely and irrevocably. Sitting here, twiddling my thumbs and worrying, is pointless and irritating. I am usually a man of action, and this act needs to be taken.
I head out of the bank without even a glance back. Would it be the worst thing in the world if I got fired?
I’m not at all surprised to realise that, no, it wouldn’t be. If anything, it would be the push I need to change my life, switch things up, and do somethingI’mpassionate about. I want to write a book—several books. I want to be at home in my library while I write about fantastical worlds with mythical creatures that can send the readers into a wonderland of adventure and passion.
But right now, my adventure is Lily, and I need to get to her before I lose my mind and my senses.
Chapter 38
Lily
The drive back to Keeley feels longer than usual, my mind racing with thoughts of Max and what just happened between us. I can still feel the ghost of his touch on my skin, the lingering ache between my thighs a reminder of our passionate encounter. My fingers grip the steering wheel tightly as I try to focus on the road, but it’s a losing battle.
