Chapter 13 Lincoln
LINCOLN
I was going to throw up. Not literally, as shifters didn’t unless we’d had too much to drink.
Nope, my belly was churning because I was sitting in my car outside Bronson’s mom’s house.
Veronica, or Ronnie as she was called, had let her son know that she didn’t approve of our relationship.
She’d lined up a conga line of blind dates for her son, and he’d rejected every one.
And then all of a sudden, he and I were together.
She’d seen me once, but we’d never officially met. That first night she threw her temper tantrum and walked out. And since then, my mate had been putting off getting us in the same room until she settled down. Try as he did, he couldn’t hide the tension when she texted or phoned.
And so, I’d taken it upon myself to meet her, not having told Bronson. I hadn't contacted Veronica ahead of time, because she would have let Bronson know. This could be an epic mistake, bigger than my fib about being a nature photographer.
My beast didn’t understand the bond between an adult child and their folks. He’d never had one which was a little sad, and we were more like siblings, though often I took on a parental role.
Why can’t we shift and hunt? I don’t want to be here, he whined.
We have to make this right with our mate’s mom. If we don’t, it might affect me and Bronson.
I thought back to the day I met Bronson.
Revealing the me inside and telling him he was my fated mate was the most difficult task, I’d assumed.
How wrong I was. His mom’s disapproval loomed over us like a dark cloud, and as my mate was frozen in a state of indecision, I had to make it right.
But if I messed up, I'd make it ten times as wrong as it was now.
My palms were sweating rivers as I got out of the car holding the bunch of pink roses that Bronson said were her favorite. As I strode up the path to the front door, a curtain twitched. My mate had sent her pics of the two of us, so she was aware who was about to appear on her doorstep.
I raised my free hand over the wooden door, but it opened before I knocked.
“Lincoln.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Veronica.” Was that too informal? Damn, should I have called her something more formal? Or perhaps I could have referred to her as a generic ma’am? Yeah, that was better. “These are for you, ma’am.”
She took the flowers but didn’t sniff them or thank me. Instead she asked what I wanted. I was still standing at the entrance, as there’d been no invitation to enter her home. Though I didn’t expect a warm welcome, I hadn’t anticipated being stuck at the door.
“Bronson doesn’t know I’m here, but as he is very dear to both of us, I was hoping we could resolve your doubts about me.” There was no reaction from her other than a blink. “You don’t have to like me. I’m not asking for that, but I care about your son and want him to be happy.”
She didn’t respond. Other than saying my name, she hadn’t spoken, and I thought I’d blown it and would have to shuffle off and admit I’d failed. But she opened the door wider and ushered me in.
I stood in the living room and was reminded of the first time Bronson came to my house.
“I’ll put these in water.” Veronica disappeared toward the back of the house while I studied the photos of my mate on the sideboard, piano, and wall. Him as a baby, toddler, student, and adult wearing sports uniforms and Halloween costumes.
Bronson’s mom appeared holding a vase with the roses, so she hadn’t stomped on them and yanked out the petals one by one.
“Would you like coffee?”
I thanked her and said yes, and when she returned, she placed a tray of coffee and brownies on the coffee table. The brownies indicated I must have gone up a tad in her estimation.
“So, you wanted to talk.” There was a strength in her voice that my mate had inherited. “And you’re doing it behind my son’s back.”
Oh yikes, now she was saying I wasn’t to be trusted.
“That’s true, because he’s conflicted. He adores you and wants your approval of our relationship.”
“What makes you think I don’t approve?”
Yikes, she was making me spell it out. “The way you ignored me at the restaurant and keep trying to set him up on more dates? The way you’re looking at me as if you’re waiting for me to do something that will prove your suspicions correct.”
She picked up her fine china cup and tipped the coffee. I’d made an accusation, and no matter if I was right or wrong, she might be pissed.
I gulped as she put down the delicate cup in the saucer. “And what would those suspicions be?”
“That I’m hiding something and I’m not who I say I am and that I’m going to hurt your son.” She was right about the first two but not the last. I would never deliberately hurt my beloved mate.
She stared at me as if she could see inside me, and I told my beast to lie low. While Veronica’s suspicions centered on me being a possible jerk, I couldn’t give her a reason to think I was otherworldly.
“And will you?”
Her penetrating gaze was unnerving me, and I took a deep breath to settle my nerves. It didn’t work.
“No. I love Bronson with everything I have.”
Veronica twisted a ring on her right hand. “You haven’t known each other very long.”
I nodded. “But sometimes you know. Maybe it’s destiny or chemistry, but I fell in love with Bronson at first sight.”
“It sounds like the plot of a romcom. But life isn’t like the movies. There are dirty socks on the floor and morning breath.” She covered her nose and her eyes had a faraway look.
Awww, she was recalling a happy memory.
“And the under-the-bedcover farts!” Her cheeks paled.
I was lost for words. Really, I couldn’t speak, but what burst out of me wasn’t a gassy burp, but a giant belly laugh. I couldn’t help it. The thought of Veronica being gassed in bed was too funny. I held my stomach because laughing so much was painful.
For a moment I thought she was going to throw me out of the house, but she smiled before giggling and holding a cushion against her belly.
“That felt good,” she admitted. “And if you love my son as much as you say you do, call me Ronnie.”
Whew. That was a giant step in the right direction. “Thank you, but I was also coming to you for advice, which was why I didn’t tell Bronson.”
She tilted her head, and I wondered if she thought we were already experiencing problems in our relationship.
“I want to marry your son, and I was hoping to run some ideas past you on how to propose.”
“You really are serious about him, aren’t you?”
“He’s my everything.”
She asked me to tell me ideas, and I had to confess I didn’t have any. “I’ve never proposed before.”
She grinned. “I’m glad.”
We went back and forth about Bronson’s likes and dislikes, and Ronnie told me he adored grand gestures.
“Something very public that he’ll be able to talk about even at the end of his life.”
Doing something in front of a horde of people wasn’t my style. My panther and I preferred to stay in the background, but it wasn’t as though I had to shift and reveal the existence of my kind. I didn’t fancy parachuting onto his office building or proposing while rocking climbing on a sheer cliff.
“I know.” Ronnie was sitting on the edge of the sofa. “A flash mob.”
That sounded not what I wanted, but this was about my mate and what he preferred.
You can’t dance.
I’ll have to take lessons.
“We could do it at the park nearby and have music and dancers. It’ll be amazing, and you could get down on one knee at the end.”
I gulped and pictured the amateur dancers on those reality shows. Some had real skill and rhythm, while others had two left feet.
“Wonderful.” Ronnie clapped. “I’m so excited, and thank you for agreeing to do the flash mob. Most people would have said that was ridiculous, but you’re willing to do it because Bronson will love it.”
I didn’t recall agreeing, and I was terrified.
Two hours later, I left my future mother-in-law’s with a wad of notes. The proposal would be in three weeks, and I had to take dance lessons, write a speech, and attend rehearsals all without Bronson suspecting what was up. Ronnie suggested we have a violinist too.
I had no idea what I’d gotten myself into, and what if Bronson had taken a dislike to flashmobs? What then? It could be a huge disaster. But perhaps seeing me dance might blot out any embarrassment he had at a very public proposal.