Page 120 of Love Without Demands

Saturday had gone perfectly. Lehra and I showed Mama the sights of New York City, doing all the touristy stuff as well as showing her our favorite local places for gelato and bagels.

We had dinner with Quinnie, Flynn, and Noelle in the evening. The Italian restaurant was boisterous and fun, exactly like my family, and Noelle had eaten her entire spaghetti meal sitting on her grandmother’s lap, which thrilled Mama.

Of course, Lehra fit right in with everyone, which thrilled me.

“I’m stuffed,” Mama lamented, leaning back in her chair and toying with Noelle’s pretty little curls. “But I still think my favorite thing I’ve tried today was that bagel. I’d pack up and move here for the bagels alone.”

Quinnie’s eyes met mine before she turned back to our mother. “You should move here, Mama. Flynn was offered a position at the hospital once he finishes his residency, so we’ll be staying here.”

Jumping in, I said, “You could bring Eli, or he could stay back and run the private investigation business since you said he’s been working there.”

“Oh, he’s nowhere ready for that,” Mama demurred. “I’ll hand it over to Phil when I retire. He was with your father almost from the beginning, and he was invaluable to me when I was getting my license. His wife, Trina, took over my job as office manager when I stepped into my investigator role.”

“Are you thinking about retiring, Stella?” Flynn asked, voicing the question that had risen in my own mind. She’d never seriously mentioned retirement before.

“Always in the back of my mind. It would be nice to slow down and enjoy my family instead of working six days a week. This has been the first time I’ve relaxed in years. I’m rather enjoying it.”

Lehra, who was sitting beside my mother, reached for her hand. “It would be so nice to have you around all the time. I’d love to spend more time with you.”

We ended the dinner with my mother announcing, “I’ll think about it.”

Chapter 38

On Sunday, I toldMama I wanted to spend some time alone with her. I needed to have the difficult conversation with her about my paternity.

“This is the nicest parking garage I’ve ever seen,” she exclaimed, eyes wide as we passed the glassed-in security booth in our apartment building. “So well lit.”

I waved to the two guards, and they returned the gesture. “Over here, Mama,” I said, leading her to Auburn’s black Bentley, which had a prime parking space since the man owned the whole damn building.

“What a snazzy car!”

“It’s my boss’s. He has a few, so he lets me drive this one for errands on the weekends.”

“How fancy of you,” she teased, sliding into the front seat when I held the door open for her.

“I wanted to show you where I work,” I told her once I was seated behind the steering wheel. My nerves were buzzing,making the tips of my fingers and toes a little numb, and I prayed she didn’t freak the fuck out.

It only took a few minutes to arrive at the office, and I parked at the curb in front of the black stone building withBOUVIERstamped in bold, blood-red letters.

“This is where I work, Mama,” I told her quietly.Shit. Here it comes.

Her eyes rose, taking in the name above a set of dark-tinted glass doors. She was quiet for a long moment before turning to me, and was that…amusement on her face?

“Auburn’s certainly done well for himself.” There wasn’t an ounce of surprise in her voice.

My mouth dropped open as my mind worked to play catch up. “You… you knew?”

“Mi hijo, I worked in your father's investigation office for over twenty years, and now I’m a licensed investigator. Did you honestly think I didn’t know where my son was working?”

“But…” I scrambled to think of what to say next. “But you never said anything.”

“You’re a grown man, Cruz, and you know I want you to live your own life. I didn’t pry into any of your personal affairs, but I did run a background check for your places of employment and your residence to make sure everything was on the up and up. I’m a mother, after all, and no matter how old you get, I still worry about you.”

“Okay, wow.” My head felt like that brain-exploding emoji, and I massaged my temple. “I wasn’t sure how you were going to take all this.”

“As soon as I saw where you were working, I knew it couldn’t be a coincidence.” Mama reached over and placed her hand on top of mine on the steering wheel. “I’m assuming you’ve met Paul?”

“I have.” I turned my hand over until my palm met hers and wrapped my fingers around her small hand. “Are you mad at me, Mama?”

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