Royal Pain by Megan Mulry

Author:Megan Mulry
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, pdf
Tags: Contemporary Women, Contemporary, Fiction, Romance, Historical, General
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

The car started to slow down as it entered the tree- lined streets

of Englewood Cliffs, coming to a stop in front of a 1970s ranch

house. The home Bronte grew up in was straight- down- the- line,

middle- class fare: set back about thirty feet from the curb, one- car

garage to the right, six steps up to the front door approached by a

curving path from the driveway. Freshly cut lawn, mature shrubs

running neatly along the home’s perimeter, a single shady tree in the

front yard.

Bronte took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and let her head slip

back to rest on the fake leather headrest. She wanted to cry. Or at

least not get out of the car.

She adored her mother, she really did. Cathy Talbott was just…

needy. As a friend had once pointed out, “She loves you… to death!”

“What is it, Bron?” Max’s voice was much closer to her than

she had expected, and intimately low. She turned her head toward

him, still resting on the headrest, and opened her eyes slowly to look

into his.

“It sounds so mean… then I just add guilt to my original feel-

ings… but I’m just tired of how much my mom loves me… isn’t

that ridiculous? Even saying it out loud sounds so ungrateful. I love

her— you will love her— ”

Max squeezed her hand and smiled, encouraging her to go on.

“She is truly lovable, and supportive, and smart and every good

thing, but she really wants in on my life… does that make any sense?

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178 Megan Mulry

And I don’t really… I’m not a really good sharer… and now with

you and our big news, everything just feels sort of crowded.”

“Shhhh. Bron. Let’s go have dinner with your mom. It’s just

dinner. We are not getting married.” Her eyes widened at the words.

“I mean we are not getting married this minute, so let’s take it a little

at a time.”

One of his fingers circled the center of her palm in the most

calming way. Normally, she would have snapped back with an

angry, are- you- shushing- me barb, but instead all she wanted to do

was curl up like a cat onto his lap. Was that a good thing or a bad

thing? Capitulation or comfort? Was she being paranoid or rational?

Her eyes were starting to drift closed, enjoying the rhythm of

his gentle touch, when there was a smart rap on the window behind

Max, her mother’s beaming smile coming through the tinted glass.

“Game on, m’lord,” she muttered so only Max could hear. He

kissed the palm of her hand where he had been touching her and

opened the door with his best smile for Cathy Talbott.

“And you must be Maxwell Heyworth!” Cathy gushed before he

was even fully out of the car. Max smiled again, about to speak, when

Cathy plowed on, “And here comes Bronny!”

Bronte just looked at Max with a slight widening of her eyes, as

if to say, “Don’t even think of ever calling me Bronny!”

“And you must be Mrs. Talbott. Please call me Max; only my

grandfather called me Maxwell, and only that when he was utterly

incensed.”

“Oh, Bron, isn’t he charming?”

“Mm- hmm.

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