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“Good, because she and Maeme have set their sights on us, and you have no choice.”
I turned back to see Maeme headed in our direction with a tall, elegant blonde woman that I knew had to be his mother. Nailyah was a younger version of her. Maeme being with her was going to make this easier. I relaxed and placed a smile on my face as Storm stepped in closer to me. I wanted to lean into him, but I didn’t. His mother didn’t need to think I was some clingy, crazy female.
“Maeme, Mom, you both look stunning,” Storm said when they reached us. “Mom, this is Briar. Briar, this is my mother, Annette.”
His mother had the same shade of blonde as Storm, but her eyes were more brown than hazel. Her sleek, short hairstyle gave her an air of sophistication. She smiled at me, and I was relieved to see it reached her eyes. There was no disapproval in them or judgment of any kind. I wondered how much she knew about me. If she knew about my past, I doubted she’d be so accepting of my being with her son.
“It’s a pleasure to finally meet the woman who has captured my son’s attention so thoroughly. I will admit, I never thought this day would come.”
I felt my face warm at her words as Storm’s hand squeezed my hip.
“Well, I’ve barely had it, and only time will tell how long I keep it,” I quipped, grinning.
Maeme laughed, and his mother’s smile grew bigger.
Storm pulled me closer to his side. “I’d say your chances are excellent.”
I tilted my head to look up at him, and he winked at me.
“I see Dovie has gone off with Nailyah. I did so enjoy having them over at the house the other night,” Maeme said almost wistfully.
I should make sure Dovie went to visit her. After staying there, it seemed like she might get lonely in that big house, all alone.
“Dovie has taken to Nailyah rather quickly. She’s normally more reserved and shy. It’s sweet of her to take the time to make Dovie feel welcome.”
Annette glanced up at her son and raised her eyebrows before shifting them back to me. “Nailyah and Storm have always been my charmers. People warm up to them easily. Lela is my wild card and hard to get close to. I expect once she hears about you, she’ll be home to visit.”
I couldn’t say I agreed with her about that description of Storm, but I smiled anyway. No need to point out just how non-charming he had been to me until we fought our way into bed. Maybe it had always been inevitable.
Storm excused us from the two women and moved me to other groups of people, introducing me to them. It started to feel as if he wanted everyone to be aware I was his. Although the possessive way he handled it, his pride to have me by his side made me feel special. I had never felt important or even included at something like this. I was the one the other women had whispered about. The one they’d all hated. This was so very different. I enjoyed it. Smiling came easy, and I found myself truly having a good time.
Like he’d promised, we ate at a table with his parents and Huck and Trinity. I had been enjoying myself so much that I didn’t want to leave. Although I knew he had something he was supposed to do once we were through.
Storm left the table when his father gave him a look, and I talked with Trinity about horseback riding. She was telling me about her quarter horse that Huck had bought her as a surprise before she even learned to ride.
When Storm returned, he leaned down to my ear and whispered, “I’ll take you to ride Noor tomorrow.”
I turned to look up at him. Did he think I was envious that Huck had bought his wife a horse? I didn’t think I’d appeared that way. I just liked hearing about it. Huck wasn’t the kind of man you imagined doing romantic gestures.
His eyes slowly drifted over the features of my face. “I’m afraid we need to say our goodbyes.”
With the way he was drinking me in, I decided I didn’t mind leaving after all.
• Six •
“If you need a real man to fuck, sugar, you know where to find me.”
Storm
It had taken longer than I had anticipated, but Marty had found a fingerprint on the tracker that I hadn’t put on Briar’s car. The fingerprint led me to some lowlife an hour from here, who talked real damn fast when I asked him who had hired him. Thatcher standing behind me, doing weird shit with his blade, had helped. He was the only one I trusted not to tell his father what I was doing.
