Cast Aside Without a Mate

Chapter 16: Mama's Pride & Joys

Chapter 16 Desmond's POV

Dante c****d his head like a dog and smirked. "Sounds like someone is on their way to meet us." a coy smile played on his lips. I wondered who he could be hearing, and now that my senses were heightened, I picked up the sounds of high heels, clicking against the marble flooring, heading in our direction as the sound of them grew louder. The footsteps I heard on the stairs were now on the third floor. A female, but I did not pick up a scent as there was no way to pinpoint a smell from their distance through a wall and door. I stared at Dante as he mouthed "Mother" and looked at the door. The clicking sounds gradually slowed and stopped outside the bedroom door before a gentle knock sounded throughout the quiet room. Dante pinched my cheek playfully as he walked past me toward the door. I glanced at Dante and considered how he knew it was our mother outside of everyone behind the door.

I sighed inwardly when Odin's gruff voice ran out, "Looks like Mama has come to visit before lunch. She never fails to check up on us in her loving ways." Odin doted on my mother passionately as he wagged his tail. He was memorized as soon as he caught sight of her. Odin cherished our mother because Menyakas are closely connected to the mother figure in the family until they find their mate. Then, the connection between mother and child lessens over time. It is not a sad distancing of family, but a strengthening of one's pack and honoring the ancestors who placed you with those they decide are chosen best for one's destiny. This does not mean all mates are perfect or that they always fall in love with each other. We still have choices that lead us to what our ancestors created for us. A future that we ask for. I thought about how Dante said he knew it was Mother, and I was drawn to how he knew that. I could sense her approaching but could not pick up on her just by the sounds of her footsteps.

As Mama stepped into the room, her elegance and confidence radiated from her body. Her honey-gold blonde hair bounced around her waist. Her electric green eyes were wide with innocence and love, and her lips fully complemented her features. She was 5 feet 11 inches tall, and her high heels brought her to around 6 feet 2 inches. She had beautiful curves to her body and an authoritative demeanor that demanded respect when she was present. "Mama is an incredible person. I am thankful to have been blessed to be her son." I wholeheartedly agreed with Odin regarding how we viewed our mother figure. She was pure joy and elegance. I am always proud to be her son.

"Boys, I was checking to see if you were preparing for the garden lunch. You have only ten minutes to straighten up and head downstairs. I do not want to rush you on your special day, but you have responsibilities as Alphas that require you to run the entire pack. Please remember your duties to your people." My mother's cheerful and assertive voice rang out into Dante's bedroom. She looked between us, and a warm smile crept into her eyes. "I want you boys to know I am proud of both of you. I know you have been working hard and come a long way. Please know to be on your best behavior because this only happens once a year for four years, and then it will end. It will fly by, and you will wish you had more time to do it again." Mama's voice began to break, and tears came to her eyes. We both watched her, and I watched as Dante reached forward and wiped a tear from her cheek. I walked to where the two stood, reached for my mother's hand, and squeezed it gently.

"Mama, we are good boys, and see, we are even already ready ten minutes before we need to head down. We are growing boys. We will always make you proud." Dante puffed up his chest as he said we would make her proud. Mama smiled and dabbed her face with a tissue from Dante's table. As she sniffled, Dante hugged her and kissed her on the forehead. I reached over and hugged our mother as well and kissed her on the other side of her forehead.

Both my brother and I gently grabbed one of her hands and squeezed it, reassuring her we were ready. We both looked at her fondly, and Dante spoke gently, "Mama, we will prove we are ready to be men of the house and leaders of our pack. Just wait until tonight. I look forward to all of the exciting events that will be taking place." Dante patted the back of her hand as he held it with his other, gesturing that everything would be okay in our hands. She seemed soothed by our comforting efforts, which made me happy. "Mama, why don't we head down to the garden for lunch in advance? We can find a nice spot to converse once we are there." I said as I gently hugged her again and pulled away, gesturing towards the door.

As we ushered Mama towards the bedroom door, she still held on to each of our hands and walked slowly, not intending to let us slip away without her knowledge. Dante opened the door for Mama like a gentleman and improperly bowed to her as she walked past him. We joined her on the other side of the door. As I shut the door and turned to join Dante, we both turned and joined hands, with Mama escorting her down to the main foyer that led to the garden. We were greeted with beautiful white blooming roses and tulips outside in the garden. We continued to hold on to our mother as we walked her through the garden entrance past the beautiful arrangements of garden decor.

As we approached the right side of the garden, there was a small passage of blooming sunflowers. We walked through the wide entrance and into an elegant picnic level. There were portable tables set up with tablecloths over them. They were lavish silk tablecloths that were a cream-beige color reflecting softly off the afternoon sun. Our mother smiled at us as we took in the arrangements on the tables labeled with names, some we knew and others we had probably never heard of. Looking around, I found Dante and Desmond written on a placard by the fountain near the front and center of the garden's back side. I was happy to see that we would be seated with one another. Thankfully, I saw Mama and Papa sitting just to the right of our table, and four other names were seated with Dante and myself. Reading the Placard, I saw Lilth Black, Brenda Harris, Alexis Hawlthorn, and Alice Stormfield written on the individual placards at our table. I frowned, realizing they were all four females, and I could only guess why our parents arranged for them to be seated with the two of us.