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I play with a loose string on my comforter, not looking her in the eyes.
I’ve never felt beautiful. My whole life, I’ve always been reminded that I’m not as pretty because I’m a hybrid. I could never reach the same level of perfection because of my mixed blood. It’s going to take more than a few compliments for me to let that go.
“Your vampire half doesn’t make youless. It makes youmore.” Mom puts her hand on my shoulder.
I look up and see my mom watching me with her kind eyes.
My mom has always been so perfect. All the succubi and incubi community agree that she is the prettiest of my grandfather’s children. And when she had me, I never lived up to the expectations.
I think back to Damek telling me that I look just like my mom.
Do I really?
“I do like my vampire half more than I expected,” I admit. “I like it here. Nobody looked down on me for being a hybrid and everybody is so nice.”
Well, with a few exceptions.
Mom raises an eyebrow. “You’re going to argue that Queen Rune isnice?”
I giggle. “She could be nicer.”
She nods. “Yes, she could. And while I do promise to make nice with her when it comes to wedding planning, I will not put up with her being mean to my only daughter.”
“That’s fair,” I say. “And I won’t be mad if you stand up for me. But she is better than she used to be. I think Damek has had a talk with her about her behavior.”
I hope that she will get to know me on this vacation and will grow to tolerate—maybe evenlike—me.
Mom stands up and begins packing again. “You know, my grandfather did like my dad.”
My eyes widen. “Wait… Pops doesn’t like Grandpa?”
“He doesnow.” Mom grins. “But I don’t think the two of them got along until I was a teenager. Pops was always mad at Dad for marrying my mom.”
I open my mouth, then close it.
“She was his only daughter,” Mom reminds me.
It’s true. Pops and Mimi had fifteen children and onlyonedaughter.
“You’d think that making his only daughter a queen would’ve been enough for him, but he wouldn’t have been happy unless Grandma had the entire world.” Mom gets a faraway look in her eyes. “The two of them used to go at it for hours. It always made Sunday dinners… interesting.”
I can imagine.
One thing I don’t miss about living with my mother is Sunday dinners. It’s still a tradition, but in a family as big as ours, it was chaotic. And with all of my cousins berating me for my hybrid blood, I hated every minute of it.
“I’m sorry about the way your cousins treated you.” Mom puts more clothes into my suitcase. “I tried talking to them, but it never did any good. I couldn’t get them to stop.”
I shrug, trying to show her it’s not a big deal. “It’s okay, Mom. It wasn’t your fault.”
She nods but doesn’t say anything. After a moment, she looks up at me and grins. “But you’re happy now and that is all I’ve ever wanted. I want you to be happy. You deserve it.”
My heart warms as I look at her.
I can’t stay mad at her anymore, not when she so clearly regrets her actions. I can see that it hurts her. And I don’t want my mom to hurt anymore.
“I just want you to know that I forgive you,” I tell her. “For all of it. I don’t resent you anymore for keeping me away from Dad.”
Her face softens. “Thank you.”
