"How in the hell am I supposed to be calm?" Eric shot back. "I thought you were still mourning Dad. I thought you were still in love with Dad."
"Of course I am," she said quietly. "That will never change. Ron was my mate in every way that mattered."
Eric swallowed. His throat tightened despite his best efforts to stay angry.
"But Eric," she continued gently, stepping closer, "it's been nineteen years. Nineteen. I buried a husband, raised a cursed son, held a pack together. I may be your mother, but I am a woman first. And I need intimacy."
"I don't need to know that," Eric groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "I just want you to go back to my very innocent mother who was still a virgin."
Claudia laughed. "Oh, Goddess help me," she said, wiping at the corner of her eye.
"Mum!"
"Now, you are just being a child," Claudia chuckled, folding her arms.
"I am," Eric shot back immediately. "I want to be. Is this why you stepped down? Is this why you are leaving me?"
