booth.
Eden looked across at her mother’s borrowed face. “Okay, we’re here. You have the floor.”
“You know how much I love you, Eden,” Caroline began.
Eden sighed. “I know. And I know you mean well, but you don’t know Darrak like I do.”
“He’s a demon from Hell.”
“This is an argument that is going to go in circles, so let me stop you right there. He’s great. He’s wonderful. If he was a human guy I’d just met on the street I’d be damn lucky if he’d even look in my direction.”
“But you’re not happy, are you?”
“My current level of happiness actually has very little to do with Darrak himself. It’s complicated. I know you’re trying to help, but you have to give me space to deal with this.” She glanced at her watch. “I don’t have much time. What’s your plan? Are you going to stay here in Toronto?”
“I haven’t decided yet.” Caroline took a sip from her coffee, black with two sweeteners, just like Eden remembered.
Her mother had always been on a diet to keep her figure as fat-free as possible. She’d saved up money when Eden was just a little girl to buy herself breast implants. She’d looked exactly like a Vegas showgirl, blonde and glamorous—everything that Eden knew she herself wasn’t.
Not that she ever wanted breast implants. And Eden never had a great desire to be a size zero. She was a six. Sometimes an eight. She didn’t overeat, but she didn’t really pay too much attention to it. She figured if she did pay too much attention she might become like Caroline, concerned with every calorie. Finding her pleasure with a diet of cocktails instead of a good meal.
It wasn’t exactly a surprise that Caroline had chosen the svelte, beautiful, young body she had. Eden would have been able to call that particular decision from a mile away.
Caroline had always valued beauty and her outward appearance because it bought her what she needed—men to take care of her when the tables didn’t pay out right. Beauty was a commodity, and she’d had it in spades. Eden knew, at the time of Caroline’s death when she’d been pushing fifty, that her fading beauty was an issue for her.
“So now what?” Eden asked when Caroline didn’t say anything for a moment. “Do you need money?”
Caroline laughed. “I can take care of myself.”
“Half of Triple-A is yours. Maybe you want it back.”
“No, I don’t want anything from you, Eden.” Her expression shadowed. “I know I was a lousy mother. It’s time for me to make up for that. I’m here for you in your greatest time of need.”
Eden reached across the table and took Caroline’s hand. “Things weren’t always the best between us, but I know you meant well. And I was really sorry to lose you like that, especially after we hadn’t spoken in a while.”
“That was totally my fault.” Caroline shook her head and took another sip of her coffee. “I should have stayed in touch. I got mixed up with an acrobat from Cirque du Soleil. Half my age. He was very . . . flexible.”
“Sounds interesting.”
She grinned. “It had its moments. And about your father . . . I honestly didn’t know what he was. I had no idea about anything supernatural in the world until after I died.”
Eden grew concerned again. “Were you okay? I know you were in . . . in Hell for a while.”
“I was fine. I felt like I was sheltered—like someone was looking out for me, protecting me. Then I was returned here with the knowledge that I had to redeem myself for the mistakes I’d made in life before I’d have the chance to go to a better place. It could take me a long time to do that.”
Eden knew who’d been protecting her mother. Lucas had. But only because he was using Caroline’s soul as a bartering tool to get Eden to do what he wanted. Still, she was glad her mother hadn’t had to suffer. She stood up, knowing they had to wrap this up. The sun was setting. “You know I’m here for you.”
“I know, honey.” Caroline stood as well. “I’d like to spend more time with you while I’m here. If that’s okay with you.”
“I think that could be arranged. But you’re going to have to let the subject of Darrak go. Him and me—we’re together. For better or for worse.” Eden inwardly cringed. That phrase made her think about his proposal again.
She threw her coffee