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Patting my mother’s hand, I smiled. “Yeah, I sort of got that when you guys nearly had an aneurysm at the mere idea of having him over for dinner.”
My mother blushed and ducked her head.
“Well, just don’t be put off by him. We’ve actually wanted you two to meet for a while now.”
That threw me. From her reaction, she didn’t seem like she had wanted me to meet him. And why on earth would they want me to? Unless he was my age…and not some old man…
Panic gripped my chest, and I felt a little faint.
“Mom…he isn’t—”
“Oh, he’s here.” My mother moved past me, looking outside. There was a silver truck that had pulled up against the curb. It looked tall, probably too tall for an older gentleman to drive. She wouldn’t try and set me up with someone, right?
Suddenly, I hated that I didn’t push to have Nora invited.
Breathing a little harder than necessary, I looked down at what I was wearing. A Star Wars T-shirt, with a few bleach spots, and leggings that had melted chocolate on them from when I fell asleep out on the patio. She wouldn’t…not without telling me to clean up, right?
I heard voices, and it all coalesced.
The one that should have been old instead sounded young and gravely.
My mother was totally trying to set me up with Thomas, and I was totally giving her shit for this later. Because at least warn a girl. I had no makeup on. My hair was at least smooth, and neatly tucked into a ponytail, but the rest…
The rest!
“Come on in, the table is set,” my mother said encouragingly.
Gripping the counter behind me, I tried to wait out the impending train wreck. My father came in first, followed by my mother, and then a head, hovering much higher than either of theirs, full of dark hair, popped into view. And then he looked up, a familiar pair of navy eyes landing on me, sending me back four years to a night that had changed my life. I waited for his expression to break, showing recognition, but his eyes quickly darted away.
This wasn’t Thomas. Unless…did I just hallucinate?
My father said something, but I couldn’t process it.
I realized too late that I hadn’t been breathing.
My mother touched my elbow, but all I could see were those navy eyes.
I don’t want to be here.
Everything in me screamed to run. My heart hammered in my chest so hard that I thought I might throw up.
“Rae?” my dad asked.
All at once his words hit me, and I sucked in a breath. “Sorry, it’s just hot in here.”
“Oh goodness, let me open a window,” Mom fussed, heading to the window while my dad stood close to the man I had hoped to avoid for the rest of my life.
Waiting for my mother to face me again, I whispered, “Sorry, maybe I should just go—”
My mom moved me toward the table. “Oh, you’re fine, just need a little food.”
After being physically forced into my seat, I was suddenly face to face with Davis, who looked as though he might be as uncomfortable as me.
“Now, let’s eat.” My mom sat down with a heavy sigh, my father trailing her, after grabbing the glass pitcher of juice that I’d made.
“Sorry, in the chaos, we missed introductions,” my mom said, smiling, forcing the conversation to circle back to the two twenty-somethings at the table.
“Thomas, right?” I asked with a bit of a bite, because for all I knew he’d catfished my parents into loving him.
