Page 100 of Spellbound & Speechless
“Now tell me…” She watches me with a steely expression, like she’s seeing right through me. “Where did Mac go?”
“Oh.” I play with the hem of my dress. “He’s visiting the other werewolves, I think. He does that from time to time. They’re nice people.”
“Ah…” There’s a shift in the older woman, but I don’t know her well enough to decipher what it means.
She may be my mother-in-law, but we’re still strangers, and I have to fix that.
I force myself to perk up. “Would you like some tea? I can brew something up!”
“That would be fine.”
Fine. It’s not the exuberant reaction I’m hoping for, but it’s better than a rejection. I set a kettle on top of the roaring woodstove and bustled about, finding two matching teacups for us.
“Today seems like a black tea sort of day,” I mumble. “Caffeinated to wake us up and spiced to keep us warm. What do you think? A little cinnamon?”
I watch her from the corner of my eye, desperate for her acceptance.
She grunts again.
I’ll have to start taking the sound as a good sign. Otherwise, I’ll go crazy. I hover near the woodstove as I wait for the kettle to whistle.
“I’ve been meaning to bring this up, but… what should I call you?” I ask hesitantly.
Surely I shouldn’t call her Mom… right?
“Edith is fine.”
I smile softly. “Is that your name? It’s pretty.”
“It suits me fine enough.” She shrugs. “You don’t need to keep me company, you know. I’m used to living alone.”
My smile drops. “You truly live all by yourself? What about Mac?”
“Always traveling. He spends a lot of time searching for the witch.” There’s a brief flash of pride behind her eyes, and then it’s gone. “The corrupt witch, I mean to say. I have nothing against witches like you.”
I laugh nervously. “That’s good to know.”
“In fact.” She sits up straighter and adjusts the blanket on her lap. “I would like to spend more time with you while I’m here. Mac probably told you how I feel about mates, but?—”
“He didn’t.” My brows crinkle. “Not really.”
“Ah… but you know I lost my mate, don’t you?”
I nod. The kettle whistles, and I turn away to pour our tea. Having my back to her seems to make it easier for Edith to open up.
“I didn’t always handle the loss as gracefully as I could have.” She sighs. “Losing a mate feels like losing—well, it’s more than losing an arm. It’s losing your heart. I didn’t want Mac to go through that.”
I wince and set the teacups on the coffee table. “I can only imagine the pain.”
“I hope you only have to imagine it, but if something happens to Mac… you will know. You will feel it.”
“No one can blame you for being cautious.” I sit on the rocking chair next to the couch and smile warmly. “It must have been a shock to learn Mac and his mate were… well, that we are…”
Married. We’remarried, even if that feels so rocky right now. I can’t get the words out.
“Yes. It was,” she says. “But you’re a good person. Your family is. I’m getting older, and it puts me at ease to know Mac will have someone to keep him company when I’m gone.”
Mist forms over my eyes. “He’ll have a lot of people. We all care about him. Even Ozan.”
