Before We Kiss (Fool's Gold #14)(42)

She reached for a hot dog puff and bit off two thirds of it, then handed the rest to Caramel.

“She can eat all this, right?” she asked.

Fayrene patted the Pomeranian. “She seems to like everything in the people food department and her stomach is rock solid.” She scooped Caramel up onto her lap where the dog did a graceful roll and settled so her tummy was exposed for rubbing.

“I love the sorbets, I love the mocktails and the appetizers are both kid-friendly and delicious,” Dellina said, happy to check so many things off her list.

They’d already gone over the items that would be part of the pasta bar. Dessert was going to be a make-it-yourself sundae. Messy but fun. Heidi had delivered her menu for Sunday; the kids’ band and theater troupe was confirmed. She scanned her list for the children’s program twice more, then tossed the sheets into the air.

“I am officially ready for at least half this weekend and it’s only Tuesday.”

“You’re more than half-ready,” Fayrene told her. “I’ve seen your other list. You got most of the goodie bag deliveries today. The rest come tomorrow. Which means you’re nearly there.”

Dellina hoped she was right. “I have dinner tonight at Henri’s for the final refinement on the menu and then that’s it except for the details.”

“A dinner?” Ana Raquel asked. “Not a tasting.”

They were all seated on the floor of her living room with food and drinks spread out on the coffee table. Overnight boxes spilled out of her office into the hallway. Her dining room table was filled with empty goodie bags and her head was swimming with details. It took a second for her sister’s question to sink in.

“It was supposed to be a tasting, but then it grew. Sam is coming with me, as are his parents.”

“Meeting the parents,” Fayrene teased. “You’re rushing things.”

“It’s work and you know it.”

“Sam is pretty good-looking,” Ana Raquel told her. “I mean, he’s no Greg, but still, he is a nice-looking man. You could do worse.”

Dellina laughed. “I’m sure he would be desperately flattered by that assessment.” She scrambled to her feet. “Thanks for all your help.”

Fayrene picked up Caramel, then stood. “She’s throwing us out.”

“I got that.”

Ana Raquel rose and then hugged Dellina. “You’ll do great. Call me if you need anything. Otherwise, I’ll be up at the hotel at noon on Friday prepping.”

Fayrene hugged Dellina, too. “What she said. You’re prepared.”

Caramel offered a quick kiss on the nose.

Dellina walked them out, then returned to her office where she studied her master list. It was very possible she was ready. She had her emergency supplies—sunscreen, aloe vera, a jumbo first aid kit, an assortment of phone numbers that included everything from auto repair service to the cell number for a private pilot who lived in town and ran an air service out of the local airport.

Ana Raquel was handling all the food and drinks the hotel wasn’t, she’d coordinated with Heidi for the afternoon on the ranch and she and Greg were ready for the wine tasting. Fayrene had the children’s schedule memorized, had helped confirm all the vendors and had verified the extra babysitters would be in place. The mani-pedis were scheduled, the golf course reserved and—

Someone rang her doorbell. She turned and left her office only to start walking faster when she heard pounding on her front door.

“What?” she demanded as she pulled it open.

Sam stood there. His hair was mussed, his eyes were wide and he seemed to be swaying on his feet.

“They’re here,” he told her. “They’re here and it’s worse than I thought.”

* * *

DELLINA GOT SAM inside. She moved papers around until there was room on the sofa, then pointed to a cushion. He stared at it blankly.

“Are you okay?” she asked.

“Fine. No, I’m not fine. They’re here.”

“We’re talking about your parents, right? Not an alien landing? Because if lizard people are taking over the world, I want to be paid in advance of the party.”

His head snapped up and he stared at her. “You think this is funny.”

“Sort of.” She sat next to him and, without thinking, took his hand in hers. The second they were touching, she was conscious of his maleness so close to her femaleness. Sometimes opposites were a good thing.

“Sam, they’re your parents. It’s not that big a deal.”

“You haven’t met them.” He shifted on the cushion, then swayed just a little.

She peered more closely. “Are you... Are you drunk?”

“Maybe. I don’t know how many martinis Taryn poured. Don’t worry, I walked.”

“You left your parents alone at your house?”

“I had to. They were going to have sex. Or a demonstration. Does it matter? Either way they were going to get naked.” He shuddered. “Why couldn’t I have normal parents? I could accept some level of eccentricity but not this.”

She wasn’t sure how much of Sam’s parents’ mythology she believed, but she was sure that it would take a fair bit of stress to get Sam drunk in the middle of a workday.