Grace, her face lowered to the dessert in her hand, glanced up at her son:
"I thought you would say that you are just a loafer, and you feel like you will not be able to take on any responsibility."
The calm in the deep green pools felt worse than an open mockery. But having lived up to twenty-five already, it was not just his height and his weight that had grown. With his skin thick enough, he didn't show any discomfort, much less squirm in his seat. He laughed, and changed the subject:
"Hehe, let's not talk about that mom, let's talk about something else. I think I should find a driver for you."
Grace's disinterested eyes that had shifted back to her dessert returned to give the young man an inquisitive look.
Leyna stopped eating, and took it upon herself to retort:
"And why would the chairman need a driver? I don't think I have driven that badly while coming here."
Alex shook his head:
"Leyna, I'm not finding fault with you. If anything, I'm doing it for your own good."
Looking at Alex's face that was lamenting his good intentions going to waste, Leyna raised an eyebrow with half a smile on her lips:
"And how exactly is that doing me any good?"
Alex stopped looking at the dark-haired woman, and turned to his red-haired mother:
"Mom, you see, you can't keep overworking your assistant like that. With a driver to take off a part of her load, even if only a small part, she will have it easier. Even resting during trips will be good for her skin, making her more beautiful, and also easier for her to get married."
"Hurgh, cough– cough–, cough– cough–… Cough– cough–, cough– cough–…"
Red-faced, Leyna glared at Alex. At the side, a smile flashed past Grace's calm face before disappearing. She continued being a simple spectator, enjoying the play of her kids.
Joy suddenly made the dessert in front of her so much more enjoyable.
Leyna, after gulping down as much water as necessary, finally managed to regain her speaking capability. She took a deep breath, and spoke with as much firmness as she managed to muster:
"Alex, this is the third time you have brought up my marriage today. Whatever you want to say, be straight about it. Arland Group has drivers, and the Lenner family also has drivers. Stop looking for excuses, they are flimsy."
As if he didn't hear the dark-haired woman, Alex spoke to Grace:
"Give me some time, mom, I will find you a driver that will satisfy you."
Grace replied with a small smile:
"Then I look forward to it."
Alex nodded, a happy smile on his face as he returned his focus to his dessert.
Grace, feeling full, put down the rest of her dessert and pushed it to the side. Then, she looked at her son with a subtle smile in the depth of her eyes:
"Still, after what Leyna said, I also find myself intrigued. Are you trying to find a husband for her?"
Alex raised his head, then raising his eyebrows, questioned in astonishment:
"Why would I do that?"
He looked at Grace, then from her to Leyna, the astonishment in his eyes only growing.
He looked so sincere that it seemed as if those who were questioning him and having weird ideas about him were supposed to feel ashamed.
Leyna did indeed feel embarrassed, but Grace remained unflappable. Her calm putting the thick skin Alex had trained over two decades and a half to shame.
She leaned back, elegantly crossed her legs, and nodded simply:
"Then that's good. Because of you kids, I already lost Ga-yeong. I'm still waiting for her maternity leave to be over so that she can return to work."
Then scrutinizing her son, she asked with suspicion:
"You wouldn't be thinking of making Mark my driver to fawn over me, would you?"
"Cough… Ahem, mom, what could make you think that way?"
Leyna also looked at Alex with her greyish blue eyes filled with suspicion. He looked around, then suddenly raised his hand to call the waiter for the bill.
With an escape from the situation, his smile came back:
"Mom, since we are done, let's not linger."
Leyna looked at him with amusement, before focusing on finishing the dessert someone's embarrassment might make her miss.
Grace let Alex have his way. He used a credit card to settle the bill. With his smile bright, he went to invite his mother to stand up. He linked their arms together and led her to walk out of the restaurant.
Looking at the younger man's back, Leyna shook her head with a smile, and stood up to follow the mother and son duo. By the time they arrived outside, the restaurant had already brought their car forward.
Grace glanced at the profile of her son, and asked calmly:
"You have been doing all the talking, and I didn't get to ask you. How have you been doing?"
Leyna stepped ahead to take the driver seat of their car, and Alex went to hold the door at the back for Grace, happy that the matter was over, that he had avoided the bothersome previous topic. So he replied to Grace's question with a genuine smile:
"Oh, you know, mom, lazing around, having fun here and there, and also…"
He threw an smile in Leyna's direction, and continued:
"... thinking about when Leyna will get married. Overall, nothing new, just enjoying life as it comes."
But as Grace sat down, she threw a question his way, a question which froze his gracious smile:
"Since we are talking about marriage, when will you stop gallivanting and bring back someone for me to see?"
Grace turned back, took her purse from Alex's hand, and added:
"It has been ten years already, you are not getting any younger."
"Pfft…"
On the front seat of the car, Leyna stifled a laugh. That was really a rebound of karma. Really, no matter how much of a troublemaker a child was, if there was anyone he could never overcome, it was the mother that had fed him her milk and raised him for decades.