Page 72 of Lyrical

He hugged her before leaving the room, and Perry and I just stared at each other. “What the…?”

“I didn’t know what to say, Jills. I couldn’t just stomp all over him by telling him no right away. Did you see his face? Fuck, he was like a puppy begging for a steak dinner.”

“And what about the wedding? He already assumes they’re still going to be together then. What the hell’s up with that, Perry?”

“Shit, I don’t know. This is really fucked up. All I can do is tell him later that Sam couldn’t add another person, although… maybe we could incorporate her into the murder mystery somehow. She’d be dead long before anyone figured out it was real.”

“You two coming?” Stephen yelled. “Daniel’s been waiting to tell his news before we eat.”

We passed a look between us before joining everyone in the dining room. The smell of bolognese sauce wafted around me like it had hundreds of times before, but I was too keyed up to enjoy it.

Daniel was standing in the middle of the room with his arm hooked around Cassie, but she was the one reeling him in. I could see it in her dopey-ass expression as she gazed up at him. That wasn’t affection; it was deception. Luckily I hadn’t eaten yet, or Frank’s good food would’ve been wasted all over the floor.

Chase left my mom to come and stand by me. I gave him a weak smile, and he took my hand. I inched in closer and tilted my head, resting it on the top of his arm. Cassie’s gaze flicked towards us, and I detected a flash of green in her brown eyes before she quickly resumed her role as adoring girlfriend.

I fucking knew it.I don’t care what she told my son—she was not over Chase.

“Go ahead, Daniel,” she squealed. “Everyone’s here.”

Daniel opened his mouth, and I squeezed Chase’s hand. If he was going to announce their engagement, or God forbid, an unplanned half-demon baby on the way, I was going to—

“… and I’ll be starting on Monday.”

Cassie’s screech snapped me out of it further and I blinked hard, feeling horrible for zoning out into my own world for the first part of his sentence.

“You got a job, Daniel?” I asked.

He laughed. “Yes, Mom. Weren’t you listening?”

“I’m sorry. Tell me again.”

“I was hired on with Lydell & Barnes, and I’ll be starting Monday.”

“The firm in Chicago?”

“Yes, but you’ll be happy to hear they also have a branch in Milwaukee. I’ll be commuting to Chicago two days a week, and the rest of the time I’ll be here. Unless I’m traveling, which I’ll be doing a few times a year.”

“Oooh… my boyfriend is an international business man. How exciting.”

I mentally shoved her head in the sauce pot to shut her up and just focused on Daniel. “That’s wonderful. And this is the big news?”

He laughed again. “Yes, were you looking for something bigger?”

“Oh my God, no. This is fantastic, Daniel. I’m beyond thrilled for you.” I plucked him from the leech and hugged him hard, smacking my lips on his cheek. “God, I’m so proud of you. You knew exactly what you wanted, and you went out and got it. And only two days in Chicago? I think I can handle that.”

“I thought you’d like that part.”

I pulled back to see his beautiful grin. “I do. I love all of it. Congratulations. After all your hard work, no one deserves this more.”

I returned to Chase while everyone else took their turns with congrats and pats on the back. He kissed my forehead. “Great news, Jillian,” he whispered.

I nodded. Yes, it was. In so many ways. I was even ready to scarf down a plate of pasta and make Frank recoil when I doused his bread in butter instead of olive oil.

“Hopefully you’ll be rid of me in no time, Mom. I’m going to start looking for my own place soon.”

I loved having him home again, but he’d be close by, and we could still visit often. And once Daniel did move out, I could speak to Chase about my idea to have him stay with me. Permanently. He’d been there most nights anyway before Daniel, so why not live there officially?

“And don’t forget, Daniel,” Cassie said, face so close it looked like she was suctioned to his neck. “If you need somewhere to go in between, you can always stay with me.”

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