Page 62 of That Prince is Mine
“And you.” Auntie Soo turned to Emma. “Did you also think I would oppose you dating someone you chose? Do you kids not understand that all I want is your happiness?”
“But the Crones…” Emma said, chastised for doubting the depth of Auntie Soo’s love for her.
“I will handle the Crones.” The icy determination in her godmother’s tone made her believe her. Emma had no idea how, but the Crones had better watch out. Auntie Soo was coming to handle them. When her godmother snapped her finger at her, Emma remembered she wasn’t off the hook yet. “What is your suitor’s name, age, and occupation?”
Emma straightened in her chair. “Michel Chevalier. Thirty-four. Professor of international relations at USC.”
“Is he the reason you’re taking a break from the matseons?” Auntie Soo demanded.
“Yes?” Emma croaked, casting a furtive glance at her dad. She didn’t want him to know she’d been worried about how he was taking the news of her matseons. “But also, because of what I told you that day.”
“Humph.” Her godmother studied her with shrewd eyes but didn’t continue with the interrogation.
“Is Michel good to you, sweetheart?” her dad asked with a gentle squeeze of her hand.
“Yes, Appa.” She blinked away sudden tears. “He is very good to me.”
“Well, that settles it.” Auntie Soo stood abruptly from the table and began gathering the empty dishes. “Invite Steven and Michel to dinner this Saturday.”
“But Steven is in San Jose—” Jeremy made a valiant attempt to take back some control of the situation.
“He will take an hour flight to LA on Saturday and drive back up with you on Sunday.” Auntie Soo didn’t pause in clearing the table, and her son knew better than to contradict her a second time.
“Imo.” Emma went to Auntie Soo’s side and placed a hand on her arm. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Michel sooner, but… I didn’t plan for any of this to happen. And I’m so sorry if my actions are hurting your chances of signing the YogurtBerry—”
“I already signed the YogurtBerry family,” her godmother blurted. She placed the empty plates back on the table and sandwiched Emma’s hand between hers. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. It only happened last week. And… I thought it would help motivate you to resume your matseons if you had that added pressure hanging over your head. I… I’m a no-good meddling ajumma. But I thought I was helping you find happiness.”
“That’s okay. We’ll call it even.” Emma patted Auntie Soo’s hand with her free one, her relief trumping her indignation. “Besides, meddling is what aunties do best.”
“You’re a sweetheart.” Her godmother side-eyed her. “But I’m not sure about the even part…”
“Congratulations on signing with the YogurtBerry family. I’m so happy for you,” Emma gushed, stepping on her godmother’s words. “How did you do it?”
Auntie Soo gave her a conspiratorial wink. “Their daughter is also on the brink of turning twenty-nine. We commiserated over our failings as parents.”
“Imo!” Emma tugged her hands back and stomped her foot. Her dad gave her a startled glance, then shrugged, resuming his trek to the kitchen with an armful of dishes. “I told you that’s an antiquated way of thinking…”
“Oh, pishposh.” Auntie Soo stacked some empty dishes on the table, glancing at her son, who was stealing bites of lasagna directly from the pan. She cleared her throat raucously until she got his attention. “Jeremy, you and I will have a long talk tonight. I… I’m sorry I didn’t make you feel safe enough to tell me about Steven sooner.”
“It’s okay, Umma.” He walked around the table and pulled his mom into a tight hug. “You’ve always made me feel safe. I just needed to do it in my own time.”
Emma sighed in relief, wiping away a tear. Harsh words and hurt feelings were successfully avoided. Everything was going to be okay. But now she had to introduce Michel to her family and somehow deal with the fallout when he left in a month and a half. Her chest tightened at the reminder that Michel would leave soon, and she couldn’t draw a proper breath.
With a mumbled excuse, she escaped to Auntie Soo’s living room and covered her mouth to muffle her sob. She couldn’t fall apart. She’d made her decision to be with Michel until he left. It wasn’t fair that a month and a half was all she got, but she would make every day count.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Michel jumped when Emma dove into the back seat and yelled, “Drive!”
“Sophie.” He nodded at his royal guard, who squealed out of the driveway without further prompting.
It wasn’t the most auspicious start to their long-awaited date. They hadn’t seen each other since the picnic, because of Emma’s dinner with her godmother, and Michel had to cancel their date last night to deal with a situation back in Rouleme. Two days might not seem long to others, but his time with Emma was precious, and the wait had felt like an eternity to him.
Emma wordlessly stared out the rear window until her house was out of sight. Then she sat forward with a sigh of relief and gave Michel a rueful smile.
“My dad.” When he arched a quizzical eyebrow, she elaborated, “I didn’t want either of you to deal with an awkward interrogation. He would feel obligated to grill you as my father, but he really isn’t much of a griller. Besides, Auntie Soo will do that at dinner tonight. She’s very thorough. My dad will get all the answers he wants and more.”
Michel swallowed and resisted the urge to tug at his suddenly tight collar. “I appreciate that.”
