And with that, Elena slammed the door in her mother’s face. She leaned her forehead against the wood, letting the cool surface soothe the headache that was coming on. On the other side, she could hear Jessica shouting, but neither sister moved. Eventually, Jessica left. Elena could hear her walking away with fierce, angry strides.
Fleur watched her sister with a frown. “Are you sure that you want to allow her to meet your children?” she asked. “She’s going to have a fit once she finds out there are six of them.”
“Once she behaves herself and shows that she can listen to us, she can see them. But if she steps out of line, she goes again.”
Fleur shook her head. “She exasperates you the most, and yet you keep giving her chances.”
“What can I say? She’s our mom. I love her, even if she makes it difficult.” Elena absently rubbed her belly as she straightened up. “Maybe I’m starting to think more like a mother now. While I don’t like her actions, I do understand them to an extent.”
Fleur shuddered. “Now you’re beginning to scare me.”
Elena smiled. “Don’t worry, I won’t do any of that. I just want to give her a chance, and then I can say I tried.” She took Fleur’s arm and led her towards the kitchen. “Now, didn’t you say something about a lasagna? I’m starving.”
CHAPTER23
JASON
Jason was looking forward to seeing Elena. He still wasn’t quite sure what he was going to say, but he was going to make the most of their time together. Maybe he could persuade her to go back to Wenstown with him after the game. They could sort things out from there.
Hopefully, she would accept his apology. Jason planned to say sorry until he was hoarse, until Elena believed him. He had been stupid, and it was embarrassing that he had messed up and focused on the Wolves instead of the woman he had fallen in love with. But panic had taken over, and Jason focused on what kept him on an even keel.
Elena was his rock, and she was gone. The team had been fine, but Jason wasn’t. He missed her badly, and not contacting her until she contacted him had made the last month feel really horrible. This was his fault, and it was killing him.
If he could get her to forgive him, he was going to make sure he put her first for good afterwards. No more moving her to one side. As far as Jason was concerned, Elena would be his priority. Her and their children.
Children. That still felt weird to think about. He would be a dad soon, to lots of kids. How were they going to manage? With difficulty, if he had to guess.
But they could do it. He would make sure of it. After all, they had all the finances and resources they could need. They would make it work.
As he dropped his bags into his hotel room and looked around, Jason hoped that things would go as he intended the next day. He had contacted Fleur and sent tickets to the game they were playing on the outskirts of Everett, close to where the sisters had grown up. Fleur had said she would check with Elena if she wanted to go, but he had nothing back as yet.
The wait was painful. Jason didn’t like it.
You’ve waited for a month already. A couple more hours is nothing.
There was a knock at the door, and Jason turned. “Who is it?”
“Fleur Duncan.”
Fleur was here? Did that mean Elena was here as well?
Jason hurried over and checked through the peephole. Sure enough, Fleur was out in the hall, wearing a thick sweater and jeans, her blond hair in a ponytail. Even inside, she looked cold. There was no sign of Elena.
His mood deflating a little, Jason opened the door. He gave Fleur a small smile. “Hey.”
“I got her here,” Fleur said, ignoring the greeting. “The journey was exhausting for her, though, so she’s sleeping in our room right now.”
“So she’s here?”
“Yes, she is. It’s best that you leave her for now.”
Jason didn’t want to, but he trusted Fleur’s judgment. She knew her sister, after all.
He stepped to one side. “Do you want to come in? If you want to talk, it’s best that we do it in private.”
“If you don’t think me coming into your room might be considered scandalous?” Fleur asked with a slight smile.
“At this point, I don’t really care. I’m too tired to bother what everyone else is thinking about me.”