Chapter 14
Lora
I awoke to a delightful sensation—Evan's lips pressing gently against mine. I slowly opened my eyes and kissed him back as I woke.
“Good morning, beautiful,” said Evan with a smile. “Did you sleep okay?”
“I did,” I said. “I slept really well, actually.”
“I'm glad to hear that,” he said.
“What time is it?” I asked.
“It's a quarter after six.”
“Oh,” I said. “I have to get to work.”
“True,” he said, nodding. It was strange; he seemed a little nervous, as if there was something he wanted to say but wasn't quite sure how.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
He looked uncertain, which was unusual for him. “Well uh, yeah, actually there is something.”
“Okay,” I said with a smile.
“So, there's going to be a family dinner at my parents' place in Dillon this weekend. And I'd like you to come.”
Wow, that wasn't what I had been expecting. I think he saw the look of shock come across my face, and I could see a little bit of nervousness once again enter his eyes.
“Oh,” I said. “Um, so meeting your parents, huh?”
He nodded. “Yeah, my dad called a couple minutes ago and told me about the dinner, and the idea to bring you along just popped into my head.”
“Did you tell him I was coming?”
“No, no,” he said hastily. “I just said that there was a girl that I'd like to bring along to the dinner.”
“Just 'a girl'?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.
Now he looked even more nervous. “Come on, don't put me on the spot like this,” he said.
“Well, what did you say? I'm just asking you what you said to him.”
He sighed and shook his head. “Ugh, it was a stupid idea in the first place,” he muttered half to himself.
“I'm not mad, Evan, and I'm not weirded out or anything, it's just, you know, it's a little bit of a surprise to be asked to have dinner with your parents so early on in our…”
I paused, not knowing what to say. Had I just been about to say our “relationship?” I guess I had. But did we even have a relationship, he and I? Now things were getting even more confusing. Now I was the one who was starting to feel nervous and awkward.
“Our what?” he said. “Our relationship? Is that what you were going to say?”
Yeah, now I definitely felt like maybe I had spoken too soon. This conversation was way too difficult to have first thing in the morning. But now we had both blundered our way into it, and it needed to be finished.
“Well, yes, that's what I was going to say,” I admitted. “Our relationship.”
He smiled—and seeing that look of happiness on his face immediately put me at ease. “I'm glad you were going to say that,” he said. “Because I told my dad you were my girlfriend.”
A small part of me was shocked. Things were moving a bit fast. But a larger part of me was delighted that he was referring to us as a couple.
A sudden urge took hold of me, and I wrapped my arms around him and planted my lips on his, then kissed him with passion. He seemed surprised for the first second or two, but soon enough he relaxed into it. In seconds, his tongue was in my mouth, and his hands were on my back, pulling and pressing my body more tightly against his. Arousal started to course through me, and I could feel a heat and wetness growing between my thighs—but then the rational part of my brain took over.
I disengaged from the kiss and pulled back.
“I'd love to take this further,” I said, smiling with delight, “but it's a work day, and we don't have time.”
“Not even for a quickie?” he said with a cheeky grin.
I chuckled. “Not even for a quickie. I need to get showered and get going…boyfriend.”
When I said that, his face lit up with joy.
“So it's official then?” he asked with a smile.
I nodded. “I guess it is.”
“Well then, go get that sexy girlfriend body of yours into the shower,” he said with a wink. “What time do you need to be at work?”
“Eight,” I said. “And I need to go home to get changed and get my car.”
“That's fine,” he said. “I can take you there. I don't need to be at the restaurant until ten.”
I made my way toward the bathroom. “I’ll be out of the shower in a minute.”
“Hold up.”
“What's the matter?” I asked.
“You didn't give me an answer yet about the family dinner.”
“Oh right,” I said, feeling suddenly unsure.
It wasn't that I didn't want to meet his parents—it was that I wasn't sure if meeting them so soon was a good idea. What if things didn't work out? What if we were moving too fast? There were so many questions.
“Listen, could I have a shower and think about it while I'm in there, and then tell you when I get out? I mean, it's not like I don't want to meet them or anything, it's just, well, it's a little sudden, you know?”
He nodded and smiled, and I could see that he understood my concerns. “Sure thing.”
“Thanks,” I said.
I walked into the bathroom, closed the door, and got undressed. It had been quite a while since I had last met a guy's parents. Jackson had been very secretive about his family, so I had never met them. I didn't even know their names or where they lived. Just thinking about meeting Evan's parents made me nervous. What were they going to think of me? And what would they say when they found out that we had only been dating for about a week?
Too many questions. I tried to clear my mind as I stepped into the shower. The jets of hot water helped toward easing my worries. Still, the questions kept popping into my mind.
Were we moving too quickly?
Was this going to turn out to be a huge disaster?
What if his parents didn’t like me?
What if they found out about Jackson, somehow?
Will they think I'm just with Evan because of his wealth and business empire?
I eventually finished the shower, and although it had been refreshing, I didn't really feel any more relaxed or clear-headed. All I could manage was taking a deep breath. I was thrilled that Evan wanted to be in a serious relationship with me, but this whole meeting the parents thing was happening rather fast. However, everything had been set in motion now, and I couldn't stop things.
The bottom line seemed to be that it would possibly reflect poorly on me if I didn't go. And hey, if the dinner went badly, at least I could get out of this relationship quickly and not waste any more of my time or Evan's. That was kind of a cold-hearted way of looking at things, but it was important to get to know a boyfriend's family and get a better idea of what he was about. It was an even more important thing for me after what had happened with Jackson. If I had been able to meet his family early on in the relationship, maybe I would have found out the truth about his past and the kind of person he really was. Maybe it would have saved me a lot of pain, heartache, and wasted time.
So, for better or worse, I was going to go to this dinner.
I dried myself off and then marched out of the bathroom and up to Evan. “Okay,” I said. “I will go to the family dinner.”
His face lit up with delight. “Aw, really? That's great news!”
I couldn't help the giddy rush that shot through me as well; his glee was infectious. We hugged and then shared a sweet, tender kiss before he pulled back.
“As much as I love kissing you,” he said, “it's turning me on way too much, and soon I won't be able to stop myself…and then you’ll end up late for work.”
I giggled. “All right, no more messing around. You need to get me to my apartment, mister.”
* * * * *
“Come on,” Janie said a couple of days later. “Don't stress yourself out so much about this thing. It's just a freakin' dinner!”
“That's the thing Janie,” I said. “It's not just a dinner. I have to meet Evan's parents!”
She rolled her eyes melodramatically. “Yes, you have to meet his parents, but is that really such a big deal? I know you want to impress them and make a great first impression, but remember, the bottom line is that you're dating him, not them.”
I curled my feet up underneath me on my couch, where Janie and I sat to share a bottle of wine. “But what if we get more serious? What if, you know, we get married one day? Then they're not just going to be his parents, they’ll be my in-laws…and my family.”
“What if, what if,” she grumbled. “You could be walking across the street tomorrow and a freakin' bus hits you. Sorry to use such a dark example, but worrying too much about the future means that you can't enjoy the present. Sure, it's good to be concerned a little about certain things, but doing it excessively is just gonna stress you out. Also, don't you think you're being a little too hard on yourself? Why wouldn't these people like you, anyway? What are they, royalty?”
I grinned. It was good to have Janie by my side to help ease some of my worries.
“They're not royalty,” I conceded.
She smiled and gave me a half hug. “See? We're making progress already. What exactly do they do? I know that they're loaded, ha-ha. But it’s just money. How did they make all that money, anyway?”
“Evan’s dad was some sort of high profile investment banker. Made a lot of money when he was young, and retired early. Retired from investment banking, anyway, and used some of his millions to dabble in the restaurant and bar business. He's mostly retired for real now, and only owns one bar, which, interestingly enough, is in Wytheville.”
“Ah, your home town. How about that? Did you ever go there, not knowing it was your future boyfriend's father's bar?”
I shrugged. “I don't actually know—he never told me which bar it was, and there are quite a few.”
“Hmm, so it's a mystery for now. Well, that's okay, you don't have to know everything about him yet. So, the dad was an investment banker turned bar owner. And the mom?”
“Well, step-mother,” I said. “His first wife left him for some guy in Canada.”
“No way! That's gotta suck.”
“I'm sure it did—especially for Evan, who was pretty young.”
Janie sighed. “Oh no,” she said, “that's so sad. So, Evan's step-mother?”
“From what he tells me, they don't get on too well. She's also got a son from her previous marriage.”
“And are you going to meet him as well?”
I shrugged. “I don't know. Evan hasn't said much at all about him. It seems that they don't get along. He seems to also be in the bar business, but Evan seems to think he's pretty incompetent.”
“Hmm, so there's some sibling rivalry going on, huh? Sounds like Evan had a pretty rough time with his family,” she remarked.
“I'd say so, from what he's told me. But I know he loves his dad very much, even if he's not that fond of his step-brother and step-mother.”
“Yeah, it seems that way, right? So, what about his step-mother, what was it that you said she did?”
“Oh, I don't think she does anything, really,” I said.
“Oh, so she's like, a housewife?” asked Janie.
“No, that would be doing something,” I said, “and quite a difficult job at that. No, they have servants who do all the housework and stuff. I guess she just sits around and lives a pretty comfy life.”
“Living the dream, huh,” commented Janie sarcastically. “Well hopefully all this time spent being idle hasn't given her too much time to get all nasty and gossipy and bitter, like all those rich housewives on reality shows.”
I laughed. “True Housewives of Dillon, that could make a fun reality show.”
We both laughed.
“Have you ever been to Dillon before?” Janie asked. “I know it's not that far away, but I've never been myself.”
I shook my head. “I haven't, either. I know that it's very small though. Definitely smaller than Wytheville, and smaller than Sala Valley. Evan's dad grew up in a big city, LA I think, and hated it. Evan said his dad always wanted to move someplace quiet and small, so that's how he ended up in Dillon after he retired from investment banking.”
“I see,” said Janie. “Well, how are you feeling about this whole thing now that we've had the chance to talk about it? Still stressed?”
“Still a little stressed,” I admitted. “But not nearly as worried as I was before. You're right; they aren't royalty, and I'm dating him, not them. And I don't know what the future is gonna bring. I shouldn't waste too much time worrying about things that might never even happen.”
She smiled. “That's it! Now come on, let's pick out a nice outfit for you to wear.”
* * * * *
“Did they say what the main course will be?” Ron asked. “I'm sure you know how important it is to pick a wine that complements the main course.”
“I know, Ron, I know all too well—but I haven't got a clue what they’re serving.”
Ron looked at me and scratched his chin. “Well listen…You're driving there, aren't you?”
“Yes, I am.”
Actually, Evan was going to be driving me, but Ron still didn't know that Evan and I were an item, and I didn't think now was the right time to tell him. All he knew was that I was going to an important dinner and that I needed to bring a bottle of wine.
“Well, since these people haven't told you what the main course is,” he said, “why don't you just take a bottle of each kind of wine? When you get there, find out what they’re serving, use the correct wine for it, and then on Monday just bring back the bottles you didn't use. It's not like they're going to go off or anything if they go on a little journey.”
“Are you sure?” I asked. “That would really help me out.”
He nodded enthusiastically. “Yes, of course. And actually, why don't you give a few bottles as gifts, too. It'll be a wonderful promotional opportunity for our little winery. The more people in this county—heck, the more people in the state of California—who know about the quality of Sala Valley Wines, the better!”
I smiled. “Aw, Ron, you're a great boss, you know that?”
“The best,” he said with a grin and a wink. “Heck, I'm no saint—I'm just helping out one of my favorite employees and promoting my business at the same time. Go on, take a whole lot of wine with you. Like I said, give some away, and bring the rest back. It's not like we have a shortage of the stuff here!”
We both laughed.
“No, I guess there's plenty to go around,” I said.
“Well go on, let's get this loaded into your car,” he said. “And then you can go off and have yourself a lovely dinner.”
“That sounds great. Thanks again, Ron.”
We loaded the wine into my car, and then I said goodbye to Ron and drove back to my apartment building. Janie was waiting outside for me.
“So, did it work?” she asked as I parked the car and got out. “Did you get some wine from your winery?”
“That was a great idea,” I said, smiling. “Ron was only too happy to help. He gave me a whole bunch of wine!”
“What did I tell you?” she asked, grinning. “Always listen to my ideas, Lora. When I get an idea, it's guaranteed to be good!”
“I have to thank you—you saved me a bunch of money. I can't believe I didn't think of it myself.”
“I can't either,” she said with a playful laugh and a wink. “I mean, you only work at a winery.”
“Okay, knock it off,” I said, still smiling. “Sometimes it's easy to miss the most obvious things. Especially when you're stressing about other stuff.”
“So, after all this, you're still stressing about this dinner?” she asked. “Come on, I thought we talked about that.”
“Yeah, we did,” I said, “but it's still stressful to think about.”
“Even though we picked out a killer outfit for you, and even though you just got a bunch of top quality wine to take with you? Come on, what else do you need to impress these people? You're just worrying yourself needlessly. Everything is ready, you're totally prepped, you got this, girl! Stop worrying, and just go there and have a wonderful time. Just be your kind, sweet, charming self, and they'll love you. There's nothing to worry about. Now come on, let's get this wine upstairs, and then we need to get you into your outfit and make sure your hair and makeup are great. Evan is picking you up in two hours, right?”
“That's right.”
“Well, come on,” said Janie. “Let's get you ready. And remember, you have nothing to worry about. Nothing at all.”
“Nothing at all,” I murmured.
Except that I wasn't so sure about that. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't shake the feeling—a sixth sense, almost—that something was going to go wrong at this dinner. Something was going to go very, very wrong…