Beneath This Man (This Man, #2)(184)

‘I didn’t go for a run this morning.’ he says.

‘You didn’t?’ I frown. ‘You had your running kit on.’

He laughs lightly. ‘I know. It’s not what I would have chosen to wear to meet your parents, but desperate times.’ He shrugs.

‘You’re making up for it now, Jesse.’ My Mum pats his suit clad arm and my mouth drops open.

What the f*ck is going on here? I want to swear my head off, but my Mum hates swearing just as much as Jesse. Well, Mum hates all swearing, full stop. Jesse just hates me swearing, but thinks it is perfectly acceptable for him to rant like a sailor.

‘I’m sorry.’ I reach up and rub my temples. ‘I’m confused.’

‘Sit.’ Jesse takes my arm and leads me over to a stool, taking a seat next to me. Mum resumes position next to Dad. ‘I spoke to your Mum late last night. She was understandably worried about you and asked me lots of question.’ He raises his brow at my Mum who laughs lightly.

‘Nosey, isn’t she?’ Dad tuts, and Mum slaps his shoulder.

‘She’s my little girl, Joseph.’

‘Anyway,’ Jesse continues, ‘I thought it was best for them to come and see for themselves that I’m not a raving loon, keeping you captive in our tower. So, here they are.’

‘Here we are.’ Mum sings. She clearly has no issues with the mature, stunning man who is gently stroking my hand.

I try and recover from shock. ‘So, you met them this morning? Why?’ I ask.

‘I felt I needed to explain myself.’ Jesse says. I look at him and could weep. I can’t believe he’s done this. ‘Ava, neither of us anticipated each other and for very different reasons. I know your parents opinion counts for a lot to you, and as it means so much to you, it means a lot to me too. My priority is you. You’re all that matters to me. I love you.’

I hear my Mum hit the deck in her mental faint and my Dad, although emotionally detached, gives an approving nod. ‘All any father wants is for their daughter to be taken care of.’ Dad reaches over and puts his hand out to Jesse. ‘I believe you’ll do good.’

Jesse accepts my Dads offering. ‘It’s my fulltime job.’ Jesse smiles, Mum swoons and I laugh.

Good God!

Jesse raises a sardonic eyebrow at me. He knows what I’m thinking. Are my Mum and Dad aware of how serious he is when he says that? I have to commend Jesse on his speech, though. He’s won them over fair and square, and I do feel like I’ve had a huge burden lifted from my shoulders, but I’m conscious that they don’t know Jesse’s business nature and what he did when he drank. Or about the punishment he subjected himself to because he thought he had failed me, because he thought he deserves retribution – or the fact that I could be pregnant. I could go on forever. That’s a whole other weight on my shoulders. Did he explain to them about the drinking? After Matt’s call to them, they must be wondering.

Mum gets down from her stool and makes her way around the island, her eyes all glazed. ‘Come here, you silly sod!’ She pulls me down from the stool and throws her arms around me. I hiss a few times, clenching my eyes shut. ‘You’ve got yourself in a right pickle. You’ve fallen in love, Ava. You should have told me.’ she soothes.

Oh, I have got myself in a pickle, but for a whole lot more reasons than she knows.

‘Right, are we eating or what? And I’m gagging for a pint.’ My Dad drags me back to the here and now.

Mum releases me and straightens herself out. ‘Do you mind if I use your bathroom, Jesse?’ she asks.

‘Sure. Do a right and an immediate right again. Knock yourself out.’

‘Pardon?’ Mum blurts.

I laugh.

‘I’m sorry.’ He smiles, flicking his eyes to me, then back to my Mum. ‘Go for it. Like I said, right and right again. By the gym.’

‘Oh, thank you.’ Mum gives me an oh-the-gym look and grabs her purse from the worktop, leaving me, Jesse and my Dad to make small talk.

‘So, what do you drive?’ Dad starts, and I groan. Dad’s passion for big, expensive cars is going to be fed good and proper now.

Jesse pulls me back onto the stool. ‘A DBS.’

‘Aston Martin?’ Dad asks.

‘That’s it.’

‘Nice.’ Dad nods and does a rubbish job of showing disinterest. ‘And the hotel is in the Surrey Hills?’

Jesse must feel me go rigid because he squeezes me slightly. ‘It is. I’ll show you one day, perhaps on your next visit.’

Never come to London again!

‘Sure, Elizabeth loves anything luxury.’ Dad rolls his eyes. My Mum is certainly high maintenance. ‘It’s a nice place you have here.’ Dad looks around the kitchen and then back at Jesse.

‘Thank you, but your daughter is responsible for that.’ He starts curling a lock of my hair around his finger. ‘I just bought the place.’

‘So, this is the big project that stole all of your time?’ Dad muses. ‘You did a good job.’

‘Thanks, Dad.’ I’m more than relieved when I hear the front doorbell. Dad and small talk are not a match well made.

‘Do you want to get that?’ Jesse pats my bum and I stand.

‘Who is it?’