FIFTEEN
Mellie cringed. Then, out of nowhere, before she could stop the words, it was like her mouth just started moving, her brain ignored every command to shut up, and the words leapt out of her and across the dinner table.
“I’m seeing someone new. He’s really quite amazing.”
There were various noises around the table, and her mom’s eyes widened.
“Oh, honey, that’s great. I’m so glad you’ve climbed back on the horse. Your father and I have been so worried about you, not to mention your brothers. We thought maybe you were going to be single forever.” She laughed.
“You don’t want to end up like Aunt Jilly,” Cal said.
“Who is this wonderful guy who farts diamonds?” Heath squinted at her.
“Well…” And again the words fell out Mellie’s mouth. “You see, he’s a professor of medieval history. I met him when he was lecturing at the museum.”
Which wasn’t entirely a lie, considering how she’d met the guy who ended up not being her coworker. His name was Connor. She cringed remembering the look on his face when they took him away for a psych eval. But on the bright side, with him locked up, he was the ideal fake boyfriend. And who would know?
Mellie knew enough details to make him sound like the perfect boyfriend. It would solve all her problems. He would always be busy lecturing, traveling around, and working. Let’s see…she’d have him working in another town, heck, maybe in another state, and they’d travel to see each other on weekends. And then, right when the big family reunion rolled around…suddenly they’d have a falling out and break up. It was going to be absolutely perfect.
“Tell us more about this guy.” Cal arched a brow.
Heath looked skeptical. “Yeah, we want to meet him. You’re bringing him to the reunion, right?”
“I am. He’s really excited to meet everyone. In fact, he wanted to be here tonight, but he had a conference in England for a week. He lives in North Carolina, and it’s a long drive, so right now we only see each other on weekends.”
“That’s awfully far, honey. I worry about you driving back and forth,” her dad said, but her mom patted his hand and softened her eyes as she smiled at Mellie.
“Don’t worry. Mellie will be fine. We can’t wait to meet him. He sounds delightful. What’s his name?” Her mom had that look, the one that told Mellie she was busy planning a wedding in her head as she spoke.
“Connor. Connor McTavish.”
“A Scot. What does he look like? Do tell,” Karen said as she and Sue leaned forward, shushing their children.
“Tell us. We always like to hear about a good-looking man.”
Warming to her subject, Mellie filled them in. “Connor’s tall, a little over six feet, and not only does he teach medieval history, but he also teaches sword-fighting workshops.”
Everyone laughed, and she chuckled. “I know, he doesn’t even need to go to a gym. He feels like a concrete wall when I hug him.”
“Ugh, too much information, sis.” Heath made a face, but Sue shushed him again.
“He has dark hair. It’s a little bit long—sorry, Dad—almost to his shoulders, and he has the most amazing blue eyes. They’re indigo blue.”
She took a big bite of pasta and chewed, aware that all eyes were on her. Their waiter brought dessert menus, and when he left, she continued.
“He’s originally from Scotland, and works at Duke. Some kind of exchange thing, I don’t know. Anyway, he’s got that wonderful Scottish accent. He’s very polite and a gentleman, and Connor is charming. I’m sure it’s going to work out. In fact, I know it’s only been a couple of weeks, but it’s getting serious.”
Oh my goodness, where did that come from? She wanted to smack herself. But, in this far already, she went on.
“He can’t wait to meet all of you, and I know you’ll love him. You’ll meet him at the reunion.”
But her parents and brothers all chimed in as one, and she wondered if they had a button inside that made them all speak at the same time.
“No, we want to meet him before then,” her mom said. “When he comes back from England, let’s all get together, we’ll go for dessert, on the water, at that place you love.”
“I’m sure he’d like that.”
But Mellie had no intention of anything of the sort. All she would say when the time came was that he was working on some paper or teaching a workshop on the weekend. She’d already planted the seed that he taught sword classes. When it was time, she’d say some rich guy wanted a private lesson for the weekend, and there you go.
Feeling quite pleased with herself, Mellie enjoyed her sorbet, eating in peace. When she stepped into her filthy apartment, she promised herself she’d clean in the morning.