The words echoed in the spacious office, and Grayson immediately wanted to punch himself in the gut.

Since when had he become so defensive about Neville’s romantic prospects?

Since when had the thought of his secretary dating anyone—let alone his closest friends—become such a visceral idea?

Gloria’s smile turned cheerfully predatory.

"Why are you so against it? With your best friend as his lover, that would be a win-win situation for your company and your friendship!"

"Mother, please," Grayson rubbed his temples, feeling a headache building behind his eyes. "Let’s not talk about this anymore."

"Then, can you let me talk about your relationship instead?"

Grayson’s mouth snapped shut with an audible click.

Checkmate.

"See?" Gloria’s voice took on the scolding tone she had perfected over decades of motherhood. "Your sister is already married, and you’re getting older now. You know how hard it will be for your sister and brother-in-law to have another child, right? So I want to see yours soon."

The weight of expectation pressed down on Grayson’s shoulders.

His sister, Elara Maxwell Miranda, got married to his best friend Thiago Miranda. Since they were both alpha and even served in the military during wartime, they got incredibly lucky to have their first child this early.

The joy of that moment had been tinged with the bittersweet memory that their father would never be able to see his grandchildren from his son.

Grayson sighed heavily, his head hanging low.

Silence stretched between them, thick and uncomfortable.

Then, in a moment of temporary insanity, an absolutely unhinged, completely irrational, and impulsive idea bloomed in Grayson’s mind that he would for sure regret later.

"It’s not..." he began slowly, his words careful and measured despite the nervous hammering from his chest. "It’s not that there isn’t a relationship between Neville and me."

Gloria’s body froze.

Grayson wasn’t looking at her; So, he missed out on Gloria’s expression of holding her breath not to scream in joy. She even lifted her arms away from Grayson’s peripheral vision in case he saw her shaking her shoulders.

"We’re just..." Grayson suddenly lifted his head and forced himself to meet his mother’s suddenly laser-focused gaze, "going through a rough period."

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then, before Grayson could find something amiss, Gloria started clapping her hands together. Her enthusiasm almost made Grayson jump out of his chair.

"I KNEW IT!" she exclaimed, her silver eyes sparkling. "I knew my sixth sense never failed me! Mother’s intuition is never wrong!"

Grayson immediately regretted every life choice that had led him to this moment.

"You’re even struggling in your relationship?" Gloria laughed, the sound filled with equal parts sympathy and barely concealed glee. "Well, I kind of predicted this already, so..."

She activated her light brain, and a holographic display materialized between them. Grayson stared in growing horror as his mother scrolled through what appeared to be an extensive amount of documents that seemed to go on forever.

"If you’re struggling, you can rely on this," Gloria said proudly, transferring the file to Grayson’s light brain. "I made a female and male version, and there’s also a secondary gender version in case you planned to expand your options. I’ve just sent you the male omega version since Neville is a male omega."

The file notification pinged in Grayson’s light brain, and he reluctantly opened it to find:

GLORIA’S COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO COURTING AN OMEGA (MALE VERSION)

The table of contents alone was fifteen pages long.

"Mother..." Grayson weakly started, but then he saw the look in his mother’s eyes.

He was done for.

"Promise me you’ll read it," Gloria said softly. "I want to see you happy, Eason. Not just successful or powerful. But Happy."

Grayson looked at his mother, really looked at her properly for the first time since she had entered his office. He saw the worry and hope crinkling around her eyes.

"I promise I’ll read it," he said quietly.

For the sake of your unwanted wrinkles, this is the least I could do.

Gloria smiled brightly and rose from her chair with the grace of someone who had achieved exactly what they had set out to accomplish. She went around the table and pressed a kiss to her son’s forehead.

"My stubborn son," she murmured against his hair. "I’ll leave you to your work now. But remember—don’t let the good ones slip away while you’re busy conquering the galaxy."

With that parting wisdom, Gloria swept out of the executive office with all the dramatic flair of a seasoned performer exiting the stage.

Grayson watched her go, his mind still reeling from the conversation.

What had he done?

Why did he say that?

There was no relationship between him and Neville, nothing beyond the professional relationship of a CEO and his secretary.

And yet...

The thought of his mother parading his secretary in front of potential suitors had been intolerable.

The thought of Neville smiling at someone else—

Grayson shook his head, forcibly clearing the thoughts away. His fingers drifted unconsciously to his chest, where that strange tightness still lingered.

Through the frosted glass wall of his office, he could see the silhouette of his secretary coming back with Bryan.

His mother really did like Neville enough to consider selling her own son as a potential match—enough to compile a comprehensive courting guide just in case.

He didn’t know whether to be touched or terrified.

He walked out of the door and watched as his mother approached Neville. Even from this distance, he could see Neville’s surprised expression.

"Come with me shopping tomorrow, will you?" Gloria’s voice rang out cheerfully.

Neville’s gaze immediately panned toward Grayson’s office and saw Grayson by the doorway. He seemed to be asking with those cute and earnest ocean blue eyes if he could agree.

It seemed that he was mainly concerned about how this would affect their professional relationship.

Grayson nodded.

What else could he do? Refuse his mother’s request and invite even more trouble and suspicion?

Grayson watched as Neville agreed to the sudden addition to his schedule.

Gloria departed with a final wave to Neville and a knowing smile directed at Grayson. He could practically hear her victorious laughter echoing down the corridor.

Left alone in the aftermath of his mother’s visit, Grayson allowed himself one long, steadying breath.

Then he activated his light brain and sent a message.

G.M.: [Hope. Come to my office.]