Protect Me Not ((Un)Professionally Yours 2)

That was definitely a snort. Her focus swung up again, and this time she caught his gaze in the rearview mirror. She narrowed her eyes in warning, and his brows lifted in question.

The innocent “who me?” expression did not fool her for a second. His focus shifted to the road, and she fixed her attention back on her mother.

“—so lovely that you and Bella have spent some time together. Is she still with that boy? What’s his name—Mark? Mike? No, don’t tell me! Matt? Oh, yes, Peter, right?”

“Yes. She and Pete are still together. They’re getting married.”

“Oh, how lovely! Her mother must be so happy. She’ll probably be a grandmother soon.”

Aah, there it was…the old maternal guilt trip.

“At the rate Miles and Charity are going, you’ll probably beat her to grandmother-hood, Mum.” Vicki valiantly refrained from rolling her eyes. “Speaking of babies, how’s Ryan?”

It was enough to divert her mother completely. She spent the next few minutes enthusing about George’s seven-month-old grandson, Ryan, and how popular he was at his baby yoga group. It was clear that her mother adored the boy as if he were her own grandchild.

“And how are Miles and Charity?” Vicki asked after her mother had finished raving over little Ryan’s brand-new bottom teeth.

“They’re fine. Your brother is planning a surprise birthday party for her next month.” That led to a comical discussion about how secretive Miles was being about those plans. Vicki was entertained by her mother’s lively chatter, even though she still couldn’t quite believe her big brother was so completely smitten.

George drifted into the kitchen, waved at Vicki over her mother’s shoulder, and turned to leave again.

“Georgie, run my bath, please,” her mum called after the man’s retreating figure, before turning to chat with Vicki again. “Oh, I’ve been meaning to tell you, George has asked me to marry him…and I said yes.”

Vicki stared, open-mouthed, before blinking and staring some more.

What?

Chapter Four

“Vicki? Is this thing frozen? George, the laptop is frozen again…”

“Oh, my God, Mum,” Vicki shouted finding her voice. “What the hell? You lead with the impending nuptials. You don’t just drop it into the conversation after mundane discussions about knitting and teething babies and birthday parties.”

“I didn’t think those things were mundane.”

“Ugh, that’s not what I meant…this is big news, you should have mentioned it first.”

“It is big news, isn’t it? I just thought with us being so old and this being a second marriage for both Georgie and me, that it would seem—what’s that word? —lame, if I got too excited about it!”

“It is exciting, Mum! And wonderful. I’m so happy for you. I’m happy for both of you.” George’s head popped around the kitchen door again and Vicki grinned, spotting him before her mother did. “George! Come over here. You need to tell me exactly how you proposed to her.”

The handsome fifty-something-year-old smiled, his dark eyes wrinkling at the corners, as he approached the kitchen table and sat down next to her mother. They were a cute couple. Mum so pale with her English complexion and bottle black hair, and George, mixed raced and brown complected, with short salt-and-pepper hair.

“So, you’re okay with it?” George asked uncertainly, and Vicki waved her hand dismissively.

“Of course, I am. This is brilliant news. Am I the first to know? You didn’t tell Hugh or Miles yet, right? Or Nina?” Nina was George’s only child. “I’m the first, yes?”

“You’re definitely in the top four, love,” her mother said with a smile, and Vicki grinned.

“Great! As long as I…hey!” They all laughed at that.

“So how did you do it, George?” Vicki settled back in her seat and took a sip of coffee, preparing to be dazzled.

“Well, I asked. And she said yes.”

“How did you ask?”

“With words.”

“George!”

The man chuckled and elaborated. “I took her out to dinner, and during dessert, I whipped out a ring and told her we’re too old to be wasting time just living together. When it’s right, it’s right. So, I asked her to marry me. And she said yes.”

No nonsense, very much like the man.

“That’s perfect. Show me your ring, Mum.”

Her mother lifted her left hand to the camera, showing off the modest diamond glittering there, and Vicki squealed.

“Oh, I wish I could hug you both right now. When’s the wedding?”

“So…I don’t want you to be too stressed about this, but George and I don’t want to wait very long, and we’ve decided on the second Saturday of November.”

Record scratch. The was the only description for the noise that echoed through Vicki’s brain at that bit of information.

“Mum, that’s only ten weeks away.”

“I know, sweetheart,” her mother hastened to assure her. “I know it’s short notice and that it’ll mess with your schedule, but it’s the only date the chapel will be available. October to December is peak wedding season in South Africa, we were lucky to find an opening this late in the year.”