Come Away with Me (With Me in Seattle, #1)(39)

Luke zips himself up, rights his seat and starts the car.

***

We arrive at his parent’s home a few moments later, just a few minutes late. I check my hair and makeup in the mirror, noting my bright eyes and rosy cheeks, compliments of a very satisfying bout of car sex.

“Nervous?” he asks me.

“Yes,” I admit and offer him a smile.

He leans over the console and takes my chin between his thumb and forefinger and gives me a gentle kiss.

“They’re going to love you. You have nothing to be nervous about.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“Come on.”

He hops out of the car and comes around to open my door for me before leading me up to the entrance of the large, beautiful home.

The house is a white colonial style home with manicured lawns and beautiful, colorful flower beds.

“Does your mom garden?” I ask.

“Yes,

she’s

passionate

about

flowers,” he responds and I can’t help but smirk. “What?”

“Like her son. My living room could rival her rose garden right now.”

He laughs as we approach the door and kisses my hand. “Are you complaining?”

“Not in the least.”

The red door opens and a very small, petite blonde woman greets us with a huge smile.

“Oh, Darling, you’re here!” Luke leans down so she can kiss his cheek and gives her a warm hug.

“Hi, mom. I’d like you to meet Natalie Conner.”

“Natalie, it is such a pleasure.

Welcome to our home.” She shakes my hand warmly and I instantly like her.

“Thank you for having me, Mrs.

Williams.”

“Please, call me Lucy. Come in, you two.”

We follow her through the vast foyer, toward the back of the house, which I assume is where the kitchen is. I briefly glimpse a formal living area with white furniture and a large formal dining room. Luke is still holding my hand and kisses my knuckles. I gaze up at him and he smiles warmly down at me, clearly happy to have me here.

Damn, he’s pretty.

“Luke and Natalie are here!” Lucy announces as we enter the eat-in kitchen. The kitchen is beautiful and large, in brown and bronze tones. The countertops are all dark brown granite, the appliances are stainless steel and the stove is enormous. Any chef would covet this kitchen. There is a casual dining area, opening up to a family room with a large television and plush, inviting furniture in more shades of brown, copper and bronze.

It’s incredible and comfortable.

“Welcome, Natalie.” A very tall blonde man is busy working in the kitchen. He wipes his hands on a towel and comes around the island toward me.

“We’re so happy to meet you.”

“Nat, this is my dad, Neil.”

“I’m delighted to meet you, sir.” He shakes my hand firmly and his kind blue eyes smile at me. Luke is a dead-ringer for his father.

Luke’s younger brother, Mark, who also looks like his father and older brother, is helping Neil in the kitchen.

“’Sup Natalie.”

“You must be Mark.” I smile at him and he nods.

“Yep, I’m the best looking one here, aside from you.” He gives me a Cheshire cat smile, and I can’t help but laugh. The Williams men are all handsome as sin and charming to boot!

“And this,” Luke interrupts us, glaring at his little brother, “is my sister, Samantha.”

Samantha is sitting on one of the plush couches with an iPad in her lap and a wine glass in her hand. She is simply beautiful and petite like her mother; blonde and blue eyed, with delicate features, but her eyes are shrewd, and she is not smiling or welcoming me into the fold.

“Natalie.” She nods at me once, and then goes back to her impressive piece of technology.

I look up at Luke, but he’s staring at Samantha. I can feel the tension in him, and remembering their phone call last night, I squeeze his hand so he looks down at me. Clearly, Samantha is going to be the hardest one to get to know in his family.

I shrug and smile at him and he smiles back at me, some of the tension leaving his shoulders.

“Natalie, come sit with me at the table so we can chat while the boys cook.

Luke, grab an apron, son. I think your dad needs help with the steaks.”

“I do not need any help,” Neil looks affronted, but I can tell this is a running joke in the family. “I can cook a steak just fine.”

Lucy rolls her eyes at him and leads me to the dining table. “Would you like a glass of wine, dear?”

“Yes, please.”

We settle at the table with our drinks and I take a large sip, mentally preparing myself for the interrogation that is about to come.

“So tell me, what do you do, Natalie?”

“I’m a photographer.” I glance over at Luke in the kitchen with his father and my mouth goes just a little dry at the sight of three very handsome, virile men bustling around the kitchen. What is it about a man who can cook?

“Oh, how interesting. What kind of photography do you do?” Lucy leans her elbows on the table and takes a sip of her wine. She’s genuinely interested in me, and it makes me relax.

“I mostly do nature photography. I live on Alki beach, not far from Luke, so I have a lot of opportunities to take photos of the water, the boats and such.