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“Um…Well…Uh,” I hem and haw.
Ariella straightens my shirt, which she had scrunched in her fists while I kissed her just seconds earlier. “No, it’s still you and me tonight, Alex. Are you all done playing video games and ready for bed?”
When we have meetings that Alex shouldn’t be a part of, the safest place for him to be without adult supervision is in the basement. There are no windows and only one door, which is under the stairs that lead to the second floor.
“Grandma said she would tuck me in and read me a story after I brush my teeth,” Alex says excitedly.
“Oh, what story?” I ask.
“Jonah and the whale! Grandma said it’s about trusting in God’s plan and having faith that He’s got everything under control.” Alex yawns as he climbs the stairs to get ready for bed.
One side of my mom’s mouth quirks up. “What can I say? It seemed like a relevant story for our situation. There’s a lot to be afraid of, especially with all the uncertainties we’re facing. You’re not alone in this, Ariella. God has you right where you need to be, surrounded by love and support.” She hugs her daughter-in-law fiercely, something Ariella seems mildly uncomfortable with.
When my mom and Alex are out of earshot, I ask in a low voice, “Does my mom hugging you bother you, Ari?”
“No. It’s not that. It just surprises me every time she does it. My mother has never been affectionate with me like my father has, even though I know she loves me. It’s gotten even worse over the years. She’s changed so much from the woman I once knew. But Charlie has given me more hugs in one week than my mother has given me in a lifetime. It just takes getting used to.”
I lean and whisper, “You know Ari, we are married. You can call her Mom instead of Charlie. I know she would love it as much as she loves being called Grandma.” I nip her ear for fun and enjoy the goosebumps that erupt across her skin as she shivers from my touch.
“Maybe when we get everything worked out between us like you said we should,” she tells me. I can’t blame her for that. I know I want to stay married to her, but we still haven’t talked about what comes next for us when all of this is said and done. She promised she wouldn’t keep Alex from me again, which gives me a glimmer of hope. But for all I know, she could be talking about letting him visit me on weekends and holidays.
“You’re right. We have a lot to figure out first,” I admit. I head to the kitchen to put on a kettle to make tea, Ariella following close behind. “Do you still like lemon balm tea before bed?”
“I do. It helps relieve my stress and anxiety enough for me to fall asleep. Otherwise, I’m tossing and turning all night, going through my mental ‘to-do’ list and overanalyzing everything. I’m surprised that Charlie has any. That’s not a normal item to have stocked in a pantry.”
My mom walks into the kitchen just as Ariella makes her comment. “That’s because as soon as it was determined that you and Alex would be staying here, my boy sent me a very specific grocery list, which included a Ghirardelli cocoa powder and lemon balm tea.”
“He’s a pretty great guy. It’s one of the reasons I married him,” Ariella says, winking at me.
My mom continues putzing around the kitchen, grabbing a glass from the cabinet and filling it with the filtered water from the faucet. When she notices that the conversation between Ariella and myself hasn’t resumed and that our eyes are on her, she says, “I’ll be out of your hair in just a second. I came down to get our thirsty little prince some water,” she says with a smile.
Ariella looks amused. “Charlie, you don’t have to wait on him hand and foot because he’s royalty.”
My mom laughs. “Oh, you sweet, adorable child. I’m not serving him. I’m spoiling him rotten. It’s my job as his grandma to dote on him, feed him lots of sugar, and let him eat everything he’s not allowed to. Then I get to let you handle the fallout. It’s in our job description as grandparents. You’ll see one day when Alex has kids of his own.”
We watch as my mom leaves to fulfill her grandmotherly duties, the smile never leaving Ariella’s face. “Alex is loving it here. He’s getting so much attention and thriving despite spending so much time indoors.”
“Does he not get attention and affection back in Cothena or Brachha?” I ask her.
“He does, just not in the same way. Kiernan treats him like a little brother more than anything. They hang out together and have a special bond, but it isn’t fatherly for obvious reasons. My father dotes on Alex when he sees him, but it still isn’t in the same way that your parents spend time with him. Back home, Alex is a prince first, grandson second.”
I can’t imagine what it must be like to grow up with such high expectations put on you at such a young age. Ariella had told me a lot about her childhood, but as second in the line of succession and a female, it wasn’t as rigorous for her as it was for her brother, Aaron. Since Alex is next in line, the weight of responsibility for him is heavy. It’s with that last thought that my world flips upside down. If Cothena doesn’t accept me as Ariella’s husband, I may have to let them both go. Ariella might get away with leaving the life of royalty behind, but Alex surely wouldn’t be able to without the royal family putting up a fight.
Not unless Aaron and Julietta have a son, and soon.
The following morning, we’re all sitting around the dining room table enjoying a nice country breakfast.
“What’s this goopy stuff?” Alex asks, scrunching his nose at the bowl filled with a gruel-like substance.
“It’s sausage gravy, and it goes over your biscuit.” I grab two biscuits from the basket, handing one to Alex.
“Ooh! Hot!” he exclaims, dropping it on his plate.
“Sorry. How about I cut it for you and let you pour the gravy?” I cut both our biscuits so that they are open-faced and then hand him the ladle. He puts a small scoop of gravy on top of one half of the biscuit and then hands the ladle to me. I smother mine and then hand him back the scoop, figuring he’ll want to add more now that he sees how it’s done. “We have a saying in this family. ‘You snooze. You lose.’”
Alex giggles.
“You might get lucky, and there will be some extra. But that’s never a guarantee, especially when your grandma cooks. So, make sure to take your share when it’s your turn. Not too much, but not too little either. We want to make sure there’s enough for everyone.” I try to explain.
