“I was in the army when my parents passed away, and I chose to return. I had the qualifications to work at the company, but I did not immediately receive the CEO position. I had to work for it for a year, and at the end of that year, I was accepted by the board of directors and other heads of the company.”
Camila’s eyes flashed between the two of them, wondering why this sounded more like an interview than a friendly dinner between their families.
Her mom didn’t stop it with the probing questions, either, and Camila felt like she and Brianna had completely turned to decorations in the whole thing; they were being ignored and hardly got to get a word in. Samuel, though, took the probing like a champ, answering all the questions Morganna had for him concisely and in a way that she couldn’t retort. When she thought she had a loophole and tried to take advantage of it, Samuel deflected like a pro.
Well, he technically was a pro. As a CEO of a company, Camila didn’t doubt he probably dealt with problematic clients if they were high enough in the food chain. She just felt a bit uneasy, and yet at the same time as if she wanted to laugh, that this ‘problematic client’ was her mother.
Camila felt so awkward about the whole thing, not to mention uneasy, she could barely stomach the food, no matter how delicious it tasted.
At the end of the dinner, when her mom got up and left with Brianna to find the bathroom, she let out a sigh and she slumped into her chair, feeling like she’d just let go of a heavy weight that she’d been carrying for a lifetime.
Crap.The night wasn’t even over yet.
Simon chuckled at her, and she shot a quick scowl at him.
“How can you still laugh? How the hell do you even stay this calm, huh? I know I wouldn’t be able to do it.”
Samuel sighed. His hand reached for hers across the table, only for him to pause and look around, making sure they were alone, before taking her hand. Her scowl deepened, but she still squeezed her fingers around his hand.
“Camila,” he said, his voice lower, soothing. His eyes bored deeply into hers, drawing her in and making her forget what it was she was mad about in the first place. “She is your mother. And after the trouble Adrian gave you, I don’t blame her for being cautious. She’d just worried for you. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
“But all that questioning,” she murmured feebly. “Like you were in front of the inquisition or something.”
Samuel just chuckled again at her wording.
“Don’t worry about it. If I can’t take even this much, then I really don’t deserve you, don’t you think?”
Samuel was giving her his gentle look, his eyes softened, a smile playing around his mouth. Camila sighed and her eyes strayed away, behind him, where she saw her mom standing in the doorway, watching them, with Brianna behind her.
Camila didn’t know how much she heard, but there was definitely an impressed look on her face, that was quickly wiped away when Samuel realized they were back and casually sat back in his own seat.
Her mom sat back down, but didn’t resume the inquisition, and she dared to hope that things would be better from now on.