When I reached for the sex toy box, Mom slapped my hand away.
“Keep your dirty hands off! This is my gift and I’m not returning it!” Mom said sternly. “I’m keeping these toys for myself.” Mom looked at the sex toy box with sparkling eyes.
I stared at my mother in shock and looked to Eleanor for help. Eleanor found the situation hilarious and was already explaining to my mother what each gel was for.
I’d become a puppet to Julia and Eleanor. When I turned around, I saw Mom holding the vibrator. It was turned on, the clitoral suction part pressed against her palm. She had a brilliant smile on her face, looking at Eleanor, raising her eyebrows with flushed cheeks. Dear God, what had I done?
Because of the gift mix-up, we had lunch with Mom and Julia, and they drove me crazy with it.
“Mom, I have one more thing for you.” I pulled out the card that beautiful stranger had left at the mall store from my jacket pocket and handed it to Mom.
“What’s this?” Mother asked.
I told the story, and the three women in front of me laughed like children, mocking me. Mom read the card, then passed it to Eleanor and Julia. She laughed until tears came, wiped the corners of her eyes, and said, “Joseph Garcia, I’m a good mother and I raised you well! Your behavior in that store was unacceptable. I suggest you go back and apologize to that saleswoman, and if you ever meet that young lady again, apologize to her too.”
“Mom, I’m not going back to apologize,” I replied.
“Oh yes you are! Joseph, you’re better than this. You need to go back and apologize because I didn’t raise you to be an arrogant asshole!” Mother’s tone was serious, and I knew there was no room for negotiation.
“Yes, Mom, I’m sorry,” I replied, taking her hand. “Now, Mom, can you please return the box I mistakenly sent you?”
“Absolutely not!” my mother immediately replied. “This is the best gift you’ve ever given me. I won’t return it, and I’m going to put it to good use.”
“Mom…” I said in shock.
“Joseph, what’s wrong with you? Just because she’s your mother, you think she doesn’t enjoy sex? Or do you think she doesn’t have sex because she’s older? You know, that’s ageism!” Eleanor confronted me directly.
“Eleanor, she’s my mother!” I simply replied.
“So what? Do you think you sprouted from a vegetable garden?” Eleanor mocked.
“Joseph, you’re so naive,” Julia said. “My husband and I enjoy toys too. When he’s not in the mood, I play by myself.”
“Julia, TMI,” I said, burying my face in my hands while all three women burst out laughing.
Back at the office, Eleanor directly called me a sexist and said I should be ashamed for not realizing my mother was a beautiful, vibrant woman who could absolutely have sex toys and even a boyfriend. My innocence was shattered instantly!
It was all that woman’s fault for making me look like a fool. Next time I see her, I will definitely teach her what “do not leave things behind” means!
Ava’s POV
The smell of my mother’s herb-crusted roast chicken greeted me when I opened the door to my mom’s home.
After a year away, everything looked the same. The worn but comfortable sofa was there. The shelf was filled with magical herb jars that looked like ordinary spices.
“Mom? I’m home,” I called out. I followed the delicious smell to the kitchen.
My mother, Odelia, stood at the stove. Her honey-blonde hair was pinned up in a messy bun. When she turned, her eyes lit up with joy. They were the same deep green as mine. In seconds, I was wrapped in her warm embrace. Her familiar scent of lavender and sage surrounded me.
“Ava! Oh, my sweet girl.” She held my face and studied me. “You’re thinner. Your eyes are red. You must have been crying. He broke your heart, didn’t he?”
I sighed and dropped my bag on the floor. “Is it that obvious?”
“A mother knows.” She guided me to the kitchen table. It was already set for two.
“Sit. Food first, heartbreak later.”
She placed a steaming plate before me. I realized how much I had missed this. Not just her cooking, but the sense of belonging that only home could provide. The first bite of chicken nearly made me cry. After a year of instant noodles and takeout, this taste of home was overwhelming.
“God, I’ve missed your cooking,” I said with my mouth full.
“And I’ve missed you.” Mom took her seat across from me. “Now tell me everything.”
I stabbed at a roasted potato. “Not much to tell. Isaac decided Cybele was more his type. Apparently, a wolfless Omega wasn’t ‘mate material’ after all.”
“That worthless, spineless excuse for a wolf.” Mom’s eyes flashed dangerously. “I knew he was trouble the moment I met him.”
“Yeah.” I waved my fork. “You were right, I was wrong. Happy?”
“Ava Flynn, don’t you take that tone with me.” Her voice was stern but not unkind. “I take no pleasure in your heartbreak. I just wish…” She stopped and sighed heavily.
“Wish what?” I asked.
“That you would consider dating a human instead. Someone who won’t abandon you the moment the Moon Goddess shows them their fated mate.”
“I know. It’s just… Isaac made me feel needed when he loved me. Something that felt… right.” Until it wasn’t.
“Mom, I wish I could go see your grandmother with you tomorrow, but I need to be at work early,” I said, changing the subject.
Mom nodded. She understood I wanted to change the topic. “Hilary will understand. She knows you’ve just started your job. Besides, the drive to Silver Creek is long. That little cottage of hers in the woods isn’t exactly easy to reach.”
“Classic Grandma,” I laughed. “A witch living in a cottage in the woods. Could she be any more typical?”
“She embraces what she is,” Mom said with a fond smile. “Something we could all learn from.”
The atmosphere grew heavier as she pushed her plate aside and reached for my hand.
“Ava, I need you to understand why I was so against Isaac. Against any werewolf. It’s not prejudice.” Her eyes grew distant. “When a werewolf man abandons his partner for his fated mate, the pain is…” She swallowed hard. “It’s like death. Only you keep living through it.”
Pain flashed across her face. “And if you’re not the fated mate, there’s no competition. That bond is… unbreakable.”
I squeezed her hand. “What if I did find my fated mate someday? Would you object then?”
Mom gave me a sad smile. “Sweetheart, without a wolf, your chances of finding a fated mate are practically zero. Why not love a human? Live a normal life without all this supernatural heartbreak?”
Isaac’s betrayal flashed through my mind. “Maybe you’re right. Werewolves aren’t exactly proving themselves trustworthy.”
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