AMELIA’S P.O.V

Kaden was the only person who looked casual in his button up shirt and black slacks. He sat at the edge of the table between his mother and I and I was gratefulat first until I realized that it left me sitting directly opposite her. She barely looked at me but whenever she did, it was with a frown or an upturned nose. Kaden didn’t seem to notice it because she was telling him all about her day and he was patiently listening.


I started to feel like I was eavesdropping on their conversation but Kaden suddenly intertwined our fingers. He shot me a warm smile to assure me that I wasn’t forgotten and I quickly returned it. His mother cleared her throat making both of us turn towards her and I could see her sporting a frown on my face. I couldn’t help but feel like I did something wrong and I pulled my hand out of his grip. He frowned especially when I placed my hand in my lap when suddenly, he placed his hand on my thigh.

“Perhaps we should start eating,”Kaden said in an attempt to reduce the tension brewing. “Thank you for the meal, Amelia, it looks amazing. I didn’t know you could cook.”

“Do we really know anything about her?” his mother muttered under her breath making Kaden frown. When she saw his expression, she sighed. “Youhaven’t known her long. I don’t even know her family.I was just saying the truth. This is why I prefer a girl whose family we know, that waywe can learn the-”


“Mother,” Kaden’s tone was curt and direct. “Don’t start this now, it is disrespectful.”

She looked like she wanted to protest but at the end of the day, she smiled coldly and nodded. The room was quiet for the next few minutes with nothing but the scraping of utensils as everyone served themselves. I watched with bated breath to see their reactions after eating. I knew I was a good cook so I hoped my food was going to be able to win her over. I wrung my fingers silently but I noticed that Kaden’s mother wasn’t eating.


I wanted to speak but I decided to hold myself especially when Kaden sang my praises as he ate. He either didn’t notice his mother playing with her food or didn’t care but I did. He excused himself after a while to get some wine and I used that opportunity to speak.

“Is something wrong?” I asked and she lifted her eyes to me and shrugged. She played around with her food for a few minutes and I glanced at where Kaden had disappeared to wondering when he would returnbefore turning back to her. “Do you have any allergies?”

“Don’t insult me, I come from one of the strongest lines, do I look like I have an allergy?” she sneered before placing her fork down.“Couldn’t you make anything with less calories in it? I understand that Kaden needs all of that, he is Alpha and he needs his strength but you,”

She made a show of running her eyes over me and I couldn’t help but feel self-conscious. I always knew I wasn’t a typical size zero girl, I had curves and sometimes I struggled to fit into my jeans but I was by no means fat. I was a size ten at most but the way she spoke had me feeling like I was obese.

“If I were you, I would cut down on my calorie intake. Have you seen the kind of girls that Kaden likes? Lucy is a prime example of the kind of woman that he should be with. She is young and beautiful with a promising future and a great family. She looks the part of a future Luna, you do not.”

“I don’t know why youdon’t like me but I am trying,” I began slowly trying to keep my tears at bay. “I know you want the best for your son and you don’t know me but if you just gave me a chance-”

“There are no chances,” she cut me off. “My son deserves the best and that is Lucy.You are not the right fit for him.”

The sound of glass shattering caught our attention and we turned to see Kaden standing there looking furious. I was unsure of how much he had heard but I knew it was enough. His mother either didn’t realize how pissed he was or she thought she could handle it because she smiled and chuckled.

“You spilled the wine, Kaden,” she began in an attempt to change the subject. “This is why I always tell you to have your maids live-in. Are you going to leave it until tomorrow?”

“I think you should leave,” his voice was strained from the force it took to reign in his anger. “I don’t want to say something that I will regret and I will if you stay. Get out of my house.”

“This is quite unfair, Kaden, I am your mother.”

“You should have thought about that before you spoke to my mate that way. I tried, mother, I tried to stay silent when you ignored her throughout dinner and the only reason I left was because I hoped that it would help you bond. I did not sign up to have my mate disrespected.”

“Kaden,” she began again but he cut her off.

“Leave, now, you canreturn when you are prepared to treat her right. She is stuck with me for life and so are you, I would prefer it if you both got along but I will not allow you do this to her.”

She opened and closed her mouth repeatedly shocked by his words. I wanted to say that it was okay, I wanted to tellhim that I was fine but I couldn’t. A part of me felt bad about everything that happened because I didn’t want to get betweenthem but another part of me was glad that he defended me, it made me feel wanted. I watched as she grabbed her bag and walked out of the house without another word. It wasn’t until the door shut that Kaden turned to me. I feared that he was going to get upset with me too but he came to stand in front of me and grabbed both of my hands.

“I am so sorry,” his voice was barely over a whisper. “I didn’t know she was going to be like this. She promised that she was going to behave.”

“It’s fine,” I forced a small smile on my face. “She just doesn’t like me, it happens sometimes.”

“It isn’t really about you, she just doesn’t want me with my mate,” my brows scrunched together in confusion. He sighed and delved into an explanation. “My mother believes that I would be better off if I mated with someone who wasn’t my fated mate. I have tried to ask her why but she refuses to give me a reason.”

It sounded absurdbut I could tell that he was saying the truth- it wasn’t the full truth but I accepted it. I could have pushed for the rest of the story if I wanted but I knew there was a reason he wasn’t giving it and after defending me the way he did, I was willing to overlook it for the time being.

“I just wanted her to like me,” I murmured and I saw the intense guilt on his face. “It’s fine though, we can always try again later.”

“I don’t want you to feel pressured.”

“There’s no pressure, like you said, we are stuck in each other’s lives so we might as well learn to live together, am I right?”

I smiled hoping it would spur him to do the same but it didn’t. I sighed and began clearing the table but he stopped me.

“You have done more than enough today, I’ll handle this,” I opened my mouth to protest but he cut me off. “It is fine, Amelia, I can do this.”

I reluctantly let him clear the table while I stripped out of my dress. I took a long shower to relax and settled for one of Kaden’s shirtsto climb into bed. I had just gotten out of the closet when I saw him walk in with a tub of ice cream. It was one I had bought earlier and there were two spoons in his hands.

My mouth watered at the sight but I remembered his mother’s words and grimaced. “I don’t think I can eat any more,” I lied.

Kaden narrowed his eyes at me as he made his way closer. He turned on the TV and placed the tub in my hands. I wanted to protest but he cut me off with a sharp look. “I will force feed you if I have to,Amelia, don’t test me.”

“I’m serious, I don’t want any.”

“Baby, I know my mother said a lot but you have to realize that she was just trying to hurt you. If I wanted someone different then I would have them. I fucking love your curves, I love how soft you are and how you fit against me. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with your body or that you have to change it.”

“It wouldn’t hurt to eat less,” I joked but Kaden didn’t find it funny. He let out a small growl. “it was a joke, relax.”

“I didn’t find it funny. No one gets to make fun of your body, not even you. Now, you can take the ice cream or I can force it into your mouth, it is your choice really.”

I knew he wasn’t joking so I took a large spoon. I saw him nod in approval as I placed it in my mouth. I almost moaned when I realized he picked the cookie doiugh which was my favorite flavor. He turned away from me once he saw I was content with the ice cream and started sifting through the TV for movies.I leaned my head against his shoulder and he wasted no time in wrapping his arm around me.

“I’m really sorry that dinner was bad,” I mumbled. “It was fun cooking though, yoir card is in the drawer, I’ll give it back tomorrow.”

“It’s yours,” he said off-handedly and I turned to him but he wasn’t even looking at me.

“Whatdo you mean ‘it’s mine’?”

He finally turned to me. “I mean it is yours to use however you please and for whatever you want. It doesn’t have a limit so you don’t have to worry about overspending. I’ll handle the credit.”

“I can’t take that, I won’t be able to pay you back.”

“Take it, break it, throw it away,” he shrugged. “It’s yours to do with as you wish. I am your mate and it is my job to take care of you. We can spend the next ten years arguing about it but I am not taking it back. The way I see it, you can either say thank you and watch a movie with me or we can argue and then watch the movie.”

“But-”He raised a brow and I sighed. “Thank you.”

He smiled. “Good girl.”