Octavia could see right through her son. She knew he had zero interest in the girl
his family had picked out. But there was no way she would just stand by and let him run wild. He had to at least give things with Mabel a shot.
After all, marrying Mabel was miles better than ending up with Claire, that walking disaster. As far as Octavia was concerned, anyone but Claire would be fine as a daughter-in-law. Just thinking about Claire made Octavia tense up with a weird mix of fear and resentment. If her son actually brought Claire home, she'd end up like Pandora, lonely and stuck in the middle of nowhere. The thought of Pandora living all by herself in the countryside made Octavia feel like her own future was doomed.
Dinner was painfully awkward, everyone picking at their food and barely speaking. When the plates were cleared, both mothers almost tripped over each other coming up with excuses to leave, eager to push the two young people together and see what would happen.
"Wanna go for a walk?” Lance suggested, breaking the silence.
Mabel already knew from their stilted dinner conversation that Lance wasn't interested in her at all. Still, she was curious about what he was up to, so she agreed.
They walked outside for a bit, the air getting just a little lighter with each step until Lance finally spoke up, not bothering to hide anything.
"I'll be honest, Mabel. I already have someone I like."
Mabel didn't even hesitate. "Then what are you doing out on a blind date? That's actually kind of a jerk move."
Lance grinned sheepishly. "I didn't agree to this either. My mom set the whole thing up on her own. Honestly, I had no idea this was a setup until I got here."
And he was definitely telling the truth. That took Mabel by surprise. She had only found out herself at the last minute, but at least she'd gotten a warning. He, apparently, was ambushed.
Wow. Octavia was not messing around. Mabel suddenly felt a little less annoyed and a lot more awkward about the whole thing. Arranged relationships weren't her style anyway.
"These things can't be forced. Seriously, don't worry about it. I'm not the type to stalk you or anything."
If Lance wasn't already hung up on someone else, maybe she could've considered a pragmatic partnership. She came from a good family Matter all and wasn't about to play charity with her love life. She wasn't really looking for some fairy tale, just someone who wasn't after her family's money or out to hurt her.
You never know. Being an only child with money came with its own set of risks.
"Thanks for being so cool about it, Mabel.”
Lance felt totally relieved. Actually, he found himself liking Mabel a lot more.
"So... the girl you like. Your family doesn't approve?" Mabel was in a way better mood now that she knew he wasn't going to end up as her fiancé. With that out of the way, she couldn't help being a little nosy.
Lance nodded. "Yeah. It's
complicated. My dad might be okay,
but my mom... she's a whole
mom......
different story." He hesitated for a
beat, letting out a sign. “Exert if¶ gets,
past her, Claire's not exactly easy to win over. She's impossible to get through to."
"Well, good luck then." Mabel didn't push further—that was his business. Still, you didn't need a crystal ball to know there was probably a huge gap between their families.
"I'll talk to my mom when I get home. You might want to have a word with yours too,” she suggested.
Lance smiled. “Yeah, I'll make sure my mom hears me this time. Hopefully, she'll
chill out with these setups in the future.”
"Don't worry about it. I got a free dinner, so it's not a loss." Mabel really did have a great attitude. If Claire wasn't in the picture, Lance thought maybe he wouldn't mind getting to know someone like Mabel after all.
FindNovel.net
Kon