Drama Queen's Chauvinist (#3)

Time's Drift

One and a half years later...

Daniel

"For the hundredth time, old lady! I will be there for Aaron's birthday!" I yelled on the phone.

"You are not going to talk to me in that tone and get away with it, mister. I don't care if you are seven or twenty-seven. I am your mother till the day I die," Mom rebuked me.

"But, you have been going on and on for the last hour!" I scoffed, "I told you that I have booked my flight, closed the deal and I am going to start heading out in like three hours for the main city and I will see you in two days! What more do you want me to say to reassure you?"

She sighed, "I am just making sure. You have been so busy lately. Always running around from one country to another. I feel like I am getting old and I don't get to see you that often anymore."

I rolled my eyes, fighting off the smile, "Cut the drama, old lady. You are not fooling anyone here."

"What? It's true!" I could hear the laughter in her voice.

"I don't even go away that often," I dismissed her as someone knocked at my door.

I covered the phone and yelled, "Come in."

"Bullshit! You have been travelling all over the world for more than a year trying to find those places for your hotels and restaurants. I don't get it! What was even so hard? How can you not get one place that satisfies you in a whole year?!" she scoffed as the door opened and Hope walked in with a file.

"Because I am not working on just one project at a time. I have two overlapping projects as we are currently speaking. One in France and one in Russia. Business takes time and commitment, Mom," I told her, signalling Hope to wait for a second.

"Business is not more important than family," she told me.

"Inspite of all that travel you are complaining about, I have attended every single holiday and family event so far, didn't I?" I challenged her.

"You did. But, this time you are across the world in some town in Russia and it is so close to the date that I am not sure I believe you," she pouted.

"My secretary will forward you my tickets, old lady," I said in defeat, "Now, please let me go cause if not the flight, you are definitely going to make me late."

"My goodness! Why do you talk so much?" she scoffed and hung up.

I sighed and just shook my head, "Sorry for the wait, sweetheart. My old lady was high on drugs."

Hope laughed, "No worries, Dan. Here's the contract. I've read it through. Looks good to me."

"Great," I said as I picked up my pen and sighed the papers.

"There's one small issue though," she said.

I raised my eyebrows at her, "Don't you think you are a little too late to warn me now?"

She gave me a flat smile, "Not with this one, silly."

I smirked, "Kidding, sweetheart. When will you learn?"

She shook her head, "The construction guys need you to meet them on-site for verification purposes and it needs to happen today itself."

"So, what's the problem? We still have three hours before we leave for the airport, right?" I asked her, handing over the file to her.

"Well, we do but, the site is like an hour and a half's drive in the opposite direction and I can't come cause I have to pick up an order that I placed at a local shop which is two hours in the other direction," she cringed.