I pulled open the front door of city hall, nodding distractedly at the couple of people who called my name. I was too focused on getting to my girl to pay much attention to anything else. Needing to see her. That wasn’t new—I could barely wait to see her at the end of her day or after a long shift. But today was different.
Today, she was meeting my parents.
Lola had put it off for weeks, always giving me an excuse as to why it just wasn’t a good time. She was too busy with classes. Too focused on finding a job. And I knew that’d been a major concern of hers—being able to tell my parents what she did for a living and not having to lie.
As of two weeks ago, she’d officially become the administrative assistant for Mayor Briscoe, and she loved it. Loved interacting with people, loved putting her skills to use. She was happy, but more than that, she was fulfilled.
Walking briskly, I turned the corner into the doorway to the mayor’s outer office, which housed Lola’s desk, colliding with someone coming from inside.
“Sorry, ’scuse me.” I pulled back, noticing the familiar face of my brother. Brows drawn together, I said, “Riley? What’re you doing in the mayor’s office?”
He glanced behind him toward the closed door that led to the mayor’s private office, then focused back on me and gave a shrug. “Wrong turn. I was paying a ticket. What good is it having a cop for a brother if he can’t get me out of tickets, anyway?”
My brows drew down. Besides the fact that everyone on the force knew my family and wouldn’t give them a ticket without letting me know, something in Riley’s body language was off. He was edgy…agitated. Totally and completely unlike him. I clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Everything okay? Lo and I’ll still see you tonight for dinner, right?”
He glanced again toward the mayor’s closed door. “Yeah, yeah, for sure. Everything’s fine. Just have to make a quick stop, and I’ll be over. See you in a bit.” He walked out, leaving me in the room by myself. I’d have to ask him later at dinner what was going on, but right then, I was too focused on seeing Lola to dwell on it.
Her desk sat empty, but I didn’t have time to worry about where she was before she came around the corner, looking hot as hell. Those damn tight, stretchy skirts she loved to wear did a number on me—especially since the night in the bar three months ago. I couldn’t see her in one without remembering what it’d been like to have her pressed against the wall, coming all over me in two minutes flat.
I walked straight to her, hands gripping her ass, and tugged her against me. “You look hot as fuck in this. Have I told you that?”
She laughed against my lips. “I believe you mentioned something about it this morning before you dragged me back to bed.”
“I’m sure Mayor Briscoe would’ve understood you being late.” I bent my head, nipping at her neck, focused solely on my girl, the rest of the world falling away.
At least until a throat cleared in the small space, breaking the trance.
Lola pushed at my chest, shoving me away and smoothing her clothes. “Mayor Briscoe, I’m sorry. Connor was just—”
She waved a dismissive hand. “Greeting his girlfriend the way every girl can only hope to be greeted.” She pulled her coat off the coatrack and slipped it on. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Lola. Officer Nash. Have a good night.”
After the mayor walked out of the office, Lola buried her face in my chest. “I can’t believe she walked in on that.”
With a gentle touch, I ran my hand up and down her back. “Look on the bright side, beautiful.”
“What’s that?”
“With our track record, it could’ve been a lot worse. Besides, I’m sure she doesn’t blame me. She has eyes. She sees how gorgeous you are.”
She pinched my side, causing me to jerk away with a laugh. “Not helping, Connor.”
“Sorry. How about if I help you get your coat on instead?” I grabbed it from the hook and held it out for her. “We’ve got twenty minutes to get to my parents’, and I wanted to stop and pick up a bottle of wine on the way.”
“Damn. I was hoping you’d forgotten about it,” she said as she slipped her arms into the sleeves of her jacket. “Or they canceled. Or your car broke down so we weren’t able to go.”
I snorted, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as I pressed a kiss to her temple. “Too afraid you’ll hate them, huh?”
She looked up at me as I led her outside to my waiting car, rolling her eyes. “You know that’s not the problem.”
“What I know is you’re out of your mind if you don’t think they’re going to be crazy about you.”
Once she was settled in her seat, I shut the door on any argument she was going to come back at me with. That was short-lived, because as soon as I slid into the car, she twisted in her seat toward me.
“What if they…figure it out? What if they already know what I did for a living?”
“Lo…my parents are in their sixties. They’re not exactly on the pulse of the nightlife on the island.” I reached for her hand, rubbing circles with my thumb. “You’ve already met Riley and Claire, and they both love you.”
“But you sprung them on me with no notice, and besides, this isn’t your siblings. This is your parents. I already have to deal with a mom who sees you as one of her babies and will hate me on sight for taking you away from her. Having to do that as a former call girl isn’t exactly making my life easier. What if they ask questions? What if they can sense the”—she waved her hands, obviously searching for a particular word—“the sex worker? Connor, what if they can tell?” She shook her head, hiding her face, picking at the edge of her skirt as if that loose thread held the secret to life. “They’ll hate me.”
“Beautiful…” I reached over and brushed her hair back from her face. Traced the curve of her cheek like I’d once only thought about doing. Leaned in and pressed my lips to hers, just because I could. “They’re going to love you. Do you know how I know?”
“How?”
I wrapped my hand around the nape of her neck, pulling her toward me. Letting my lips settle against hers with a single soft kiss. “Because I love you.”
It was as simple as that. Family protected family. Family loved family. If Lola made me happy—and she did, more so than ever before—then my parents would love her.
She sighed against my lips and rolled her eyes. “Fine. I’ll take your word for it. But if your mom kicks me out for sullying the good reputation of her first-responder oldest son, that’s on you.”
“I’d be more worried about them kicking us out for fucking in the bathroom, honestly.”
“Oh my God, Connor, we are not having sex in their house!”
I laughed at her outrage. Bringing her hand to my lips, I kissed her fingers. “Fine, I’ll give you a pass for the introductions. But all bets are off for future visits.”
She didn’t say anything, just shook her head at me. As much as she wanted me to buy her irritation, it wasn’t working. She could pretend she was annoyed all she wanted, but that dimple didn’t lie. I reached up, stroking it with my thumb, and she bit her bottom lip to stifle her smile.
“Ready?”
She pulled away, staring at me for a moment as her eyes darted between mine. Then she took a deep breath, gave a short nod, and squeezed my hand. “Ready.”
Her acquiescence was weighted, and I understood the importance of it. She trusted me, completely, knowing I wouldn’t lead her into a den of lions. And even if we somehow ended up there, I’d protect her however I needed to. Standing by her side as long as she’d let me.
Forever, if I had it my way.