Desire for Love | Desire Series ~ 2

Chapter 20

Matthias POV

"Did you behave in France? I hope you're not causing trouble for the company," I tease as I lean back on my chair while holding my phone next to my ear.

"Don't put me into the same bag as you," she answers as I can imagine her pout.

"Haha, so when does your plane land today? I can come to fetch you," I propose with a smile.

"Really?" she exclaims, sounding surprised. "What has gotten into you? You were never that nice."

"Can't I miss you?"

"Mmm, you can, but I have to refuse. I have to get ready for the big event tonight. I hope you're still not in bed, birthday boy."

"What if I am? Are you going to join me like the old times?"

"Haha, we are not kids anymore. Don't say anything that people can misunderstand," Katie scolds as I laugh it off. "I'll see you tonight."

"Later."

I end the call before placing down my phone on my desk. Katie, my sister, left for France a few months ago for a famous fashion show. She wasn't supposed to stay that long, but she claims that the city fell in love with her. Therefore, she couldn't leave.

Since she left a few days before Daniel stayed here, she, fortunately, does not know anything about my relationship with him. Although, I'm not the only one who has a close relationship with a werewolf. She doesn't show it, but I know she kept contact with Claudia, Daniel's sister. They are close for them just to be friends.

While the staff working here are running around busily to set up for tonight's party, I head toward the living room to watch the television. Although it is my birthday, I did not want to celebrate it with people other than my family and Daniel. However, the latter won't be possible since he is currently busy with his pack, which is disappointing. I was looking forward to our date. It is also because my relationship with him is a secret. Sometimes, I wonder when I won't need to hide him anymore. I know it's for the best, but it feels wrong. But again, if we make our relationship public, we will also need to address to his commitment. Will he ever let me drink from him directly?

As I am relaxing, I am suddenly interrupted by a maid who seemed very nervous. Something must have gone wrong.

"What happened?" I ask as I sit up from the couch.

"Your parents are here," she blurts out as I quickly stare at the clock. As soon as I hear that, it was my mother's decision. She is a punctual woman, but this is taking it to the extremes. She is hours in advance!

"Continue your preparations as usual. I'll greet them myself," I calmly answer as she nods before walking away.

I know it is not a big deal since it is only my mother that has arrived, but she tends to naturally nitpick and take control over everything she doesn't like. And it stresses out the staff. It is so hard to find competent humans. Plus, it is a chore to brainwash them, so they don't get suspicious of various details concerning my unchanging appearance or the bags of blood in certain areas of the house.

I close the television with the remote before heading toward the main entrance. There, I open the door, and the first thing I notice is her beaming smile. She seems in a good mood. I welcomed her with a hug before stepping aside to let her in and did the same with my father.

"I wasn't expecting you so early!" I comment as we walk toward the living room while trying to distract her from the working employees. "Did you miss me that much?"

"I miss my children every day even after five hundred years," she answers with a smile before taking a seat on the sofa after placing a pile of documents on the table. "This is why I have brought you these."

She pushes the pile of papers toward me as I grab it with a frown. What can it be? I open the file, and my smile immediately disappears. With a frown, I carefully read the first page before tossing it on the table.

"What is this?" I ask while trying to conceal my anger.

"Exactly what it looks like. These are the profiles of suitable candidates to be your partner."

"There must be a few hundred persons in this pile. You want me to meet them one by one to see if one of them is my mate?" I ask in disbelief.

"Haha, of course not," she laughs as if I just said the funniest joke ever.

"Then, you want me to marry someone who is not my mate. Mom, we already talked about this," I say in frustration. If only she knows that I already found my mate. No, that's a bad idea. She'll reject it altogether.

"Son, I'm not getting younger, and I want you to have a stable life with someone that can support you," she explains thoughtfully as I sigh.

"And you also want more grandkids."

"Of course, that's a given. You have to continue the pure bloodline of ours. This is to prevent any mistake from happening."

"Then, what about my mate? It seems quite unfair for her or him."

"Your mate would understand if you explain it to her or him. Isn't it, dear?" my mother asks her silent husband.

"Honey, you can't force your decision on the children. They have to decide for themselves. Matthias has a point. How would you have felt if I was already married to another woman?"

My father usually agrees with everything my mother says. But sometimes, they don't, especially when she tends to go overboard. Right now, I am grateful that he is taking my side and not hers. There may be some hope in this.

"You don't understand. His mate could be anyone or anything. We have to make sure our grandchildren will be able to fend for themselves in this world. Many girls want to be Matthias' wife. If we choose the right one, it will be beneficial to our family and bloodline."

"You said it. Matthias' mate can be anyone. We don't know yet. So take a deep breath and relax. We still have time before he makes his decision."

"But I worry so much about him. He needs someone to take care of him," my mother tears up as my father tries to comfort her. "What if he ends up alone for another few centuries?"

"I'll take a look into these profiles but don't get overly excited. I won't marry tomorrow and have grandchildren the day after," I finally concede and agree with her antics.

Soon after, everyone arrives at the party. I try to forget about it but I can't. While everyone is having fun, my mood has been ruined. I only want to sleep it off and forget about it. I know she only said it because she is worried about me. But sometimes, I find it annoying. We have already talked about it, but she keeps pushing. Also, it doesn't help that I had to keep entertaining my guests since I am at the center of the attention. As soon as my smile drops, everyone starts to worry. I just want to be alone.

While everyone is busy talking, I slip away after grabbing a bottle of whiskey and head outside to the yard. Sitting down on the stairs of the porch, I open up the bottle and take a big gulp. I welcome the burning sensation in my throat as I sigh with my head held down. At this point, I only wish for this day to end and go to bed. This year's birthday is one that I'll happily forget.

"Aren't you supposed to be celebrating inside with everyone else?" a familiar voice asks as I immediately snap my head up.

A genuine smile finally appears on my lips. "Trust me. Try celebrating it a few hundred times, and it'll get tiring," I joke as he chuckled before sitting next to me. "I thought you were too busy to come."

"Never too busy for you," he blurts out before grimacing. "That was cheesy."

"Haha, yeah, it was. But thank you."

"Hold old, are you exactly?" Daniel asks curiously after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

"I'm turning 506 years old today."

My Brazilian mate stares at me for a moment. "You don't look like it. You're very handsome," he compliments.

This is new. He has never been so cheesy and nice before, but I don't mind it. It is a nice change.

"And so are you," I reply before we lean in into a passionate kiss.