Page 100 of Pucking Strong

“Mama, meet Henrik,” calls Shae.

Teddy’s mother gives his shoulders one last squeeze before she steps around him, her hand outstretched towards me. “Mr. Karlsson? I’m Keziah Wilson, Teddy’s mother.”

“Please, call me Henrik,” I say, shaking her hand. I don’t miss the way Teddy wipes under his eyes, his shoulders stiff, as he lets his family expertly handle me, buying him the time he needs to rebuild his walls and box me out. Goddamn it, what did they say to him?

“You two really know how to make a statement,” she says, dropping my hand. “Is all this attention really necessary?”

“My team’s PR director seems to think it is,” I reply.

She purses her lips. “Hmm. And you trust this woman? This Poppy?”

“I do,” I say. “Implicitly.”

Teddy finally turns. “Poppy’s the best in the business, Mama. I told you that.” He stays by her side, just out of arm’s reach of me.

Fuck.

“We all thought we’d go out to dinner to celebrate your big win,”says Jayla, stepping in at my left.

“And your big news,” says Shae. “Our baby brother is married. Can you believe it?”

Their mother just crosses her arms. “I can’t believe we had to hear about it from a stranger before we ever heard it from him. My only son, married, and I wasn’t invited to attend. According to him, y’all don’t even have a picture.”

Teddy groans. “Mama, I said I was sorry—”

“I’m afraid that blame lies with me,” I say over him.

All eyes look to me.

“Henrik, don’t,” Teddy whispers, shaking his head.

His mother’s frown only deepens. “You, Mr. Karlsson?”

“Yes, I’m afraid I asked Teddy not to tell anyone what we’d done, including friends and family. Not until we returned to Florida and sought the counsel of my PR director. I trust you watched the press conference just now?”

She holds my gaze, her eyes framed by red, thick-rimmed glasses. “We sure did.”

“Then you see how sensitive situations like this can be, given the public nature of my job. It was unfair of me to ask it of him. But I wanted us to have a plan in place first. Especially since I also have my niece’s safety to consider.”

Her lips purse. “Of course. Your niece must be a serious consideration for you.”

“She is my only consideration,” I assure her with a nod.

A smile flashes on her face as she slowly turns to Teddy, patting his arm. “Hear that, baby? What a loved and truly wanted little girl. We should all be so lucky.”

Teddy looks stricken as he turns away with a muttered, “’Scuse me.” Then he slips away, disappearing into the bathroom.

I don’t know what happened, but I feel confident I just made an error. I only meant to protect him. He doesn’t deserve to shoulder the ire of his family alone. If his mother needs someone to be mad at, she can be mad at me. “If it’s any consolation, my parents weren’t at the wedding either,” I offer.

“It’s not, Mr. Karlsson,” she replies flatly. “But thank you.”

“It was a quick affair,” I add. “Little more than a quarter of an hour spent at a Stockholm administrative building. And I believe thereisa picture in the official public record.”

Jayla pats my arm. “Honey, stop. Keep digging and you’ll be in China.”

“What?”

“I said, do you like Chinese food?”

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