The Proposal

Chapter 6

Geralt and Jaskier were only beginning to doze off when Mary came crashing into their bedroom with another breakfast tray for the pair.

"Morning!" she greeted them airily, placing the tray on Jaskier's bedside table. "I trust that you both slept well?"

"Since we only went to bed about an hour ago, not really," Jaskier grumbled, pulling the quilt over his head to block out the sunlight pouring through the windows.

"Oh? Well, it sounds like you two had a busy night," she chuckled. "Don't bother telling me the finer details. I am your mother, after all."

"Mum, no," Jaskier groaned. "That wasn't what I meant."

Mary didn't sound convinced. "Uh huh. Well, when you're both feeling up to it, your father and I would like to have a word with you. Both of you, actually."

Jaskier pulled the covers off of his head to look at his mother. "What about?"

"Nothing bad," she assured him. "We just have some thoughts about the wedding. There's no rush! Just come down when you're ready."

Mary pressed a quick kiss to Jaskier's forehead before leaving the room, closing the door behind her as quietly as possible. Geralt, no longer feigning sleep, pulled the covers away from his own head and looked at Jaskier.

"What's your mother up to?" he asked suspiciously.

"I don't know, but it's probably nothing good," Jaskier turned to face Geralt. "Do you want to try and get some shuteye before we find out?"

Geralt shook his head. "No, I won't be able to get back to sleep thinking about it. We might as well get it over with."

After a quick shower to wake themselves up, Geralt and Jaskier traipsed downstairs to find Mary, Albert and Grammy sitting in the kitchen talking quietly amongst themselves. When the pair entered the kitchen, the conversation ended abruptly and the trio plastered smiles onto their faces.

"Morning," Jaskier greeted them cautiously. He didn't like the look of this.

"Hello, boys!" Mary beckoned the pair to sit at the breakfast bar while Grammy prepared them cups of coffee. "We didn't expect you to be up this early."

"Couldn't sleep." Jaskier took the proffered cup from his grandmother. "So...what was it that you wanted to talk to us about?"

Mary and Grammy looked expectantly at Albert, who cleared his throat and folded his hands together on top of the kitchen table. "I, um...your mother was a little peeved at me. Apparently, I wasn't a very gracious host last night."

"There's no 'apparently' about it," Grammy muttered darkly, drawing her son a disdainful look. "I've been to bottom-dweller taverns with better customer service!"

"Okay, so I was an arsehole," Albert relented hotly. "You can imagine my shock, though, when you said that you're getting married, considering that none of us even knew that you two were dating."

"That's fair," Jaskier mumbled. "I hadn't intended to spring it on you the way that I did."

Albert shook his head. "I should be the one apologising. I'm sorry to both of you for how I behaved. It won't happen again."

Grammy and Mary turned to Jaskier to gauge his reaction while Geralt's gaze remained fixed on his coffee. Jaskier could count on one hand the number of times his father had apologised to him, and to do it in front of the family was no small thing. As infuriating as his father could be, he hated fighting with him. So, he gave Albert a curt nod and said, "Apology accepted."

Everyone in the room seemed to let out a collective breath then and Jaskier asked, "Is that what you wanted to talk to us about?"

"There was another thing," Albert continued. "Your mother and I have a proposition. I happen to think it's a terrific idea."