Eli squeezed Lydia’s hand back tightly and he gave his mother a sharp look, jaw clenched. “That was entirely too personal a question, Mother,” he told her in a restrained voice, brown eyes hard.Â
“Calm down, Eli,” Katie said gently but she too was giving her mother a disapproving look. “However I do agree. You didn’t have to answer her, Lydia.”Â
“You really didn’t, it wasn’t any of her business,” Eli agreed in a softer tone, glancing down at his girlfriend and squeezing her hand again gently.Â
“Alright alright,” Laurie relented, throwing her hands up in mock surrender. But when she gazed at Lydia again, her eyes were gentler and more friendly - closer to the way she looked at her own children though not quite the same level. “I’ve given you enough grief. I apologize if I overstepped my boundaries. Eli is my only son now and I’m…protective. Probably overly so.”Â
Eli relaxed slightly but still frowned at his mom, shaking his head. “Too far this time mom. We haven’t been dating long enough to be asking her those kinds of things. Could you stick with favorite colors and hobbies?” he told her, though his tone too was gentler than it had been before as well.Â
“Very well,” Laurie said as two valets pulled up, each with Eli’s truck and Laurie’s rental car. “For now, why don’t you give us the address of where we’re going. Katie can put it in her little map thingy on her phone.”Â
“Mom, seriously. Google maps has been a thing for ages. You need to upgrade from the brick you use,” Katie complained, pointing out the old beat up Blackberry phone her mom was gripping while pulling out her old iPhone.Â
Eli gave the address and assured them he’d try not to lose them in traffic anyways before opening Lydia’s door and getting into the driver’s seat himself. He groaned to himself and then turned to Lydia, his eyes full of embarrassment. “I’m so sorry for her,” he told her with a shake of his head. “She doesn’t know when to quit.”Â