Until May (Until Her/Him #11)(49)

“Doll,” Aiden mutters, and I look over to find him smiling.

“What?”

“Romeo and Juliet?”

“Shut up.” I roll my eyes at him, then my gaze moves to my dad when he laughs.

“All right.” Dad pulls out one of the stools at the island and starts to take a seat but stops when the doorbell rings.

“Now what?” I sigh.

“That’s probably your mom,” Dad tells me, and I toss my arms up in the air before I walk to the front door.

“I told him not to come over, that he should call you,” Mom greets as soon as I open the door, finding her with her hair sopping wet and dressed in a pair of sweats and a baggie sweatshirt.

“He didn’t listen,” I point out, heading to the kitchen with her right behind me.

“Did you really leave while I was in the shower?” Mom asks him, planting her hands on her hips while narrowing her eyes on his.

“I knew you’d try to stop me,” he tells her, pulling out the stool right next to him.

“Yeah, because you were being an idiot,” she huffs, and he smiles at her, patting the chair. “Come here, baby.”

“I’m angry at you,” she says, then she looks at me. “I heard what happened last night. Are you doing okay?”

“Yeah,” I say, because really, there is nothing else to say.

She looks at Aiden. “And you?”

“Yep.” His eyes come to me and fill with warmth.

“Well, good.” She lets her arms fall to her sides, adding, “I hope I never have to be in the same room as your mom or your sister.”

“That’s going to be difficult when you start planning their wedding,” Dad mutters, and I drag in a sharp breath, while Mom mutters back, “True.”

“Oh my Lord, can you two not start?” I beg, and both my parents laugh.

Aiden steps up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist, then his lips brush my ear as he whispers, “Don’t worry, doll. We’ll go to Vegas.”

“Not you too.” I glare at him over my shoulder, and he grins at me.

“So what are you two doing today?” Mom asks, dragging her stool away from Dad and taking a seat, which does zero good, because he pulls her and the chair across my wood floors right back next to him.

“We’re having dinner with my best friend’s family, who I basically lived with growing up.”

“I never agreed to go with you to dinner tonight.”

“You’re coming.”

“I’m not. I have stuff to do.”

“Like what?” he asks, letting me go so he can pull down four coffee mugs from the cupboard next to the stove.

“Like… stuff,” I tell him, and he smiles. “I’m not going,” I repeat for good measure.

“Okay,” he agrees, and I sigh, because I know that “okay” means that, like it or not, I’m going to find myself going to dinner with him tonight.

_______________

WITH A BOUQUET of flowers sitting on my lap I look out the window as we drive down a dark two-lane country road, passing single-family homes of all different styles on lots about ten times the size of the one my home sits on. This afternoon with my parents at the house, Aiden took the dogs out for a walk, which gave me a chance to tell my dad about Aiden’s strained relationship with his family, his soccer career, and the reason why he came back to Tennessee.

Needless to say, my dad was much more open to getting to know Aiden by the time he came back to the house, which was a relief. I would like to say that how my dad felt about Aiden wouldn’t have any effect on my feelings for him, but the truth is, it would have taken a toll over time. I love my parents and enjoy spending time with them, and I’ve always envisioned having the man I care about feeling the same way about my family as I do.

When Aiden flips on his turn signal, I come out of my thoughts, and anxiousness instantly fills the pit of my stomach, which is strange, because last night when I knew I would meet his mother and sister, I wasn’t nervous at all. Maybe because, going in, I knew they wouldn’t like me but their opinion wouldn’t change the way Aiden feels about me. But I know that won’t be the case if things don’t go well tonight.

“Ready?” I look from the small ranch-style home sitting back from the road to him as he pulls down a long, paved driveway.

“Yep,” I lie, hearing him laugh as I reach down to grab my bag off the floor while he parks behind a long row of cars.

“How many people are here?”

“Noah, his mom Rebecca, his sister Candice and her husband and their son Billy, plus whoever else Rebecca invited.”

“Right.” I lick my lips, then turn my gaze to him when his warm hand wraps around the back of my neck.

“You already know Noah likes you. Everyone else is going to feel the same.”

“Okay,” I say softly, and he puts pressure on the back of my neck, leaving me no choice but to lean into him, then his lips brush over mine softly at first before he deepens the kiss. When he pulls back, his thumb brushes over my bottom lip as he watches, then his eyes meet mine. He doesn’t say a word, but the look he gives me makes me feel like everything will be okay no matter what happens. “We should go in.”

“Yeah.” He touches his mouth to mine one last time before he lets me go and opens his door. By the time I unhook my seatbelt, he’s got my door open and is waiting for me with his hand out. I take it and let him help me down, then hand in hand, we walk up the sidewalk to the house, where you can hear people laughing and talking inside.