I'm Not Charlotte Lucas(70)

“Yes, so sweet,” Mom said. “Has everyone gotten enough to eat?”

There was a chorus of yeses around the table, and I nodded, stuffing another bite in my mouth. Beth got up to bring dishes to the sink, and Mariah pulled out her phone, her face glowing from the screen.

“Only a week until Mariah’s play premieres,” Mom said over the running water and clanking of dishes. “I got a little sneak peek last weekend, and I can promise you guys, it’s gonna be cute.”

“I can’t wait,” Beth said. I glanced at her sharply, and she lifted her eyebrows. I could read that expression. It was saying: don’t you dare tell your sister that I was planning on skipping the play this time. “You got me a ticket, right, Charlie?”

“No, I forgot,” I lied. “But we can grab another one.”

My phone buzzed, and I pulled it from my back pocket. When I saw Liam’s name on the screen, my heart skipped. I felt as giddy as I had the first time he texted me.

Liam: Are you free tonight?

Me: Beth is here now, but I’m not sure what we’re doing tonight.

Liam: I like Beth. Beth can come too.

Me: Where are we supposedly coming to? Maybe you should come here.

Liam: I’ll be over in five.

My heart went from speeding at the thought of seeing Liam to hammering in my chest. I glanced up. My parents were here. Mariah was here. Beth was here . . . but that didn’t matter as much. And now Liam was coming to formally meet them.

The first date hadn’t really counted. That was a blind date, but this . . . this was Liam coming to meet my family as my boyfriend. It changed things. And here I was, panicking about it. Was I not ready for that commitment?

The doorbell rang, and my breath caught. It didn’t matter if I was ready or not. He was here.

Mom turned off the water and glanced over her shoulder, her eyebrows drawn together. “I wonder who that could be.”

“I’ll get it,” I said, my chair scraping against the floor as I stood in haste. Beth shot me a funny look, but I shook out my hands and went to answer the door.

When I opened the door and came face to face with Liam’s kind, generous smile and seriously bright blue eyes, I wanted nothing more than to close the distance and feel his arms around me. It stopped mattering that I was insecure and worried about our future, because he was here now, and he was grinning at me like he was just as happy as I was to be reunited.

I took his hand and pulled. “Hey, come in.”

He squeezed my fingers back, and warmth flooded my body, filling every weak and tired crevice and making me feel whole again. Okay, why had I invited him over here? I should have gone to Vera’s, wished her good night, and spent the rest of the evening kissing Liam on the couch. We’d done that all week, and it had been a good routine. And I’d had such a long day today. I really didn’t need to mess it up now.

“Hi, Liam. How is Vera doing?” Mom asked, standing in the doorway to the kitchen, drying her hands on a dish towel. Her gaze trailed down to our hands, and her eyebrows shot up into her hairline, her mouth parting.

Liam turned toward her but didn’t release my hand. “She’s doing better. She can get herself around her room pretty well now, but I made her promise not to try the stairs yet.”

“Pretty smart move,” Mom said, her smile widening to a ridiculous degree. It was almost embarrassing how pleased she was right now, but I wasn’t about to call attention to that. Hopefully Liam just thought she was always super cheerful and not overjoyed because her daughter finally had a boyfriend she approved of.

“Is she alone?” I asked.

“Yeah,” he said, turning back to me. “But she’ll call me if she needs something.”

“Well, come in,” Mom said, ushering us into the kitchen. Mariah glanced up briefly on our entrance and wagged her brows at me. She knew about us, and Beth had already met Liam.

That really only left Dad.

“So . . .” Mom said, drawing out the word as wide as her smile. Her gaze flicked between me and Liam, and I felt like I’d handed her a puppy. But now I wanted to escape.

I gestured to him. “So, you guys know Liam.”

“Yes,” Mom said. “Welcome, Liam. Are you hungry? I haven’t finished putting away the stir-fry yet.”

I held his hand, and my other one wrapped around his arm. It was a weird, protective pose, but I wanted to be close to him.

“I ate with Vera. But thank you, Mrs. Lucas.”

“Call me Allison, please.”

Mom couldn’t stop grinning at Liam, and everyone was noticing. Mariah chuckled, and Beth just grinned. I wanted to be gone.

Then Dad stood from the table. I released Liam and went to my half-eaten plate at the table, carrying it to the sink.

“You aren’t going to eat that?” Mom asked.

“I’m done.”

Dad crossed the room to shake Liam’s hand. They were chatting now, and I wanted to stay far away. This was so weird for me, uncomfortable. I didn’t do this. I didn’t date men and then have them meet my family. What was the point?

It felt so fake presenting Liam as my boyfriend, like I was playing pretend. It was unrealistic, and it wouldn’t last, and now when we did break up, I’d have to tell them all. And yes, I did mean when we broke up. Because Liam was Mr. Darcy, and I was Charlotte Lucas, and history had already proven that those two things didn’t go together.