Page 60 of Hawthorne

But even now, with my own place, it feels like I can’t set my boundaries. Will my mother keep barging whenever she feels like, as if this manor was hers as well?

“I’ll meet them downstairs in a few minutes. Thank you, Camilla.”

She nods and silently begins heading out. That’s when impulse takes over and I call her name. We’ve both been miserable thispast week, and it stuns me how fucking attached I already feel to her.

She turns back to face me with a questioning look. Maybe expectant? Yes, she seems expectant.

I open my mouth and close it several times, lost about what I should tell her. There’s so much I want to say, but nothing seems right...

That’s why I go for the stupidest thing, “Could you prepare something to eat and drink?”

“Of course, Your Grace.” Her eyes dim before she nods. “I’m on it.”

And then she just leaves me.Again.

“My sweet boy,” mother’s voice coos at the same time she stands up to greet me.

She doesn’t waste time walking to me with a wide smile. Sarah is in such a good mood today; what’s that about?

Even though her constant presence is unnecessary, I still lightly smile at her and open up my arms to hug her.

As soon as she reaches me and my body bends to accommodate her shorter figure, I notice some movement from the corner of my eye.

What the…

Giving it a double-take, I scour the long couch where my brother Edgar is sitting down. His presence is not what catches my attention; it’s the person sitting right next to him.

My ex. Eleanor.

“What’s this?” I whisper in my mother’s ear as she wraps her arms around my torso.

“Be nice,” she advises sternly. “We came to pay you a visit.”

“I was only expecting you two. My housekeeper announced family,” I grit out.

“Don’t be silly.” She chuckles, untangling from my hug and swatting at my chest. “We’re family. And Eleanor has been saying she’s missed you and wants to know how you’re doing,” she adds. “I thought bringing her for some tea and meeting your new house was perfect.”

“If I wanted to catch up, I would,” I hiss, hoping no one else hears, but Edgar’s cough tells me otherwise. Fuck it! At this point, I don’t even care anymore. “We agreed to do it on my terms. Can you please not interfere anymore?”

Her mouth thins into a flat line, and she nods curtly before she heads back to the couch she was seated on before. I follow her, and Edgar stands up for a hug.

Or so I thought.

Instead, he just taps my shoulder and snides, “You look like you need to have some fun, brother. Working too much? That’s not healthy!”

“Shut up,” I cough out, pushing him away.

“Vincent,” Eleanor’s voice sounds, and I twist to face her.

“Eleanor,” I acknowledge her.

I slightly bow, hoping she’s okay with just that, but instead, she extends her hand, letting me know she expects the full treatment. Of course.

Sometimes, I wonder if we were traded at birth because she’s more like my mother than me…and I’m very similar to her father—a simple man in a lair of snakes. I wonder how he survives.

Delighted that I took her knuckles to kiss, she smiles widely at me and reciprocates with a curtsey.

“How have you been?” she questions before sitting on the couch.

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