My Mother in Law

Trouble I

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This chapter is dedicated to my follower itsmehhhmia for the support she's giving me. Thanks for all your comments and votes. They inspire me❤
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After that night, Zachary and I seldom interacted. When Amira left, I made lunch. If he was home, we ate in silence. If he wasn't, I left his plate in the microwave. We both had busy schedules and were only really together in the weekend's when we had to share a bed. Yes I'd agreed to that having taken pity on him. But we're still confined to far opposite ends of the bed and don't even touch accidentally.

So you can imagine my surprise when I'm doing some work in the privacy of my room, hoping that I can shorten my office hours tomorrow, and am interrupted by a knock on my door. Since I don't make a habit of dressing out of my comfort zone at home, I grab the comforter and drape it over my exposed lower legs, covering the skin my mid thigh length oversized shirt failed to and then mutter a 'come in'.

Zachary's head pops in and his eyes roam the room and when they settle on me, the rest of his body comes in.

"Hey."

"Uh.. hi?"

"Are you free?" What the heck? What a wierd question.

"For..." I shoot back, expecting him to elaborate.

He does "My mom would like to see us."

My heart instantly plummets and I assume the worst. My voice gets stuck in my throat and I feel panic invading my senses. "Why?! Is she alright?" I manage.

Seeing my panicked expression he quickly reassures me that everything is fine but she just wants is to visit... in an hour.

Like seriously? "I don't know. I'll be ready in thirty?" I don't know why but I find myself asking.

He nods slightly and mutters "sounds good" before going out.
Thirty five minutes later, I'm dressed in a comfortable abai-style dress paired with a matching scarf and in Zachary's car heading to the hospital. It's really quiet, and while it's awkward, I have my gears churning a certain situation. Putting the pieces together for Zachar's behavioural trends which, might I add, have tons of ups and downs. Right now, he's staring out the car screen with an expressionless face but his eyes do tell a lot. He's got a weary look, but putting up a cold front.

As I'm about to leave the car once we're parked in the private long-term section, he stops me. "You know we're supposed to portray the image of a happily married couple." He turns properly in his seat so he's facing me. "So just a few ground rules."

This is not going to be good...

"Act normal. We're casual around each other. None of the awkward shit. No flinching away from my touch, don't avoid looking at me. We sit next to each other. And basically we avoid anything that might make mom grow suspicious. Okay?"

"Fair enough." I respond but he still looks distressed.

Let's just say the visit was unusual. After we were done with greetings, Amal looked so happy to see us together. Every time he had the chance to, Zachary touched me. If he was guiding me down the hall, his hand was on the small of my back. If he was leaving to "Check her progress reports with the nurse", he kissed my cheek. When we got up to leave, he snaked his arm around my waist after kissing his mother goodbye.

It wasn't uncomfortable or annoying, just weird. After hardly ever speaking to me for a couple weeks, he's going all sweet, considerate husband on me now. I wondered if this would last.