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Holly had been the one to suggest it. Even though Eric was more than willing to spend money on her, she didn’t like overspending on someone else’s dime.
“Sit down, you two. Let’s talk.”
“I’m sorry,” he muttered to Holly. “She’s not usually like this, but I’ve never brought a girl home before.”
That surprised Holly. “You haven’t?”
“What are you two talking about?” Rhonda asked, a plastered smile on her face. “Speak up.”
“I didn’t realize Eric’s never brought a girlfriend home before,” Holly said, her voice shaky.
Her statement seemed to surprise his mom. “Well, I mean, we’ve met girlfriends he’s had when we came out to visit, but I guess you’re right. None of them have ever come back with him.”
His mother had an unbelievable lack of tact. Diane’s parents had only ever been kind to her, and other than professors and her own unfit parents, Holly hadn’t had much interaction with parents.
“How did you two meet?” his mom asked, again moving on to another subject.
Holly sat back and listened to Eric speak, focusing on the smooth sound of his voice, smiling when he smiled, and laughing when he told stories about their adventures as apartment roommates.
“So, you two have known each other a while, then?”
“Yep, but we’ve only ever been friends until the mistletoe.” Eric hid a grin behind his hand.
Holly’s cheeks filled with heat as she thought about him telling his mom about the story of their first kiss. “Look,” he said. “Isn’t she adorably shy? Mom, you have to try some of her food. Babe, feel like cooking while you’re here? I bet my parents would love your omelets.”
It didn’t seem as if his mom wanted anything to do with Holly’s cooking skills. “Why don’t you show me your room,” Holly said. “I want to see what you looked like as a kid.”
“Oh, yes. Go on and have fun. Dinner will be in about an hour. I hope your stomach is feeling better by then.”
“Thank you,” Holly said. She followed Eric through the biggest house she’d ever walked through. She laughed when she found his bedroom had been the lighthouse one. She told him her thought about his need to be saved, and he laughed. “Clever. When we built the house, I liked rockets, so my mom and I compromised.”
She laughed. “Nice.”
Taking a turn around his room, she took in all of his trophies as a soccer player, awards he’d won at school, and pictures of friends pinned to boards on the walls.
As a younger kid, Eric had been lankier, and his boyish grins in the pictures, infectious. “You were so cute,” she said, pointing at him at soccer practice. His blond hair was long and nearly covered his eyes.
He covered the picture with one hand and winced. “I was a sweaty mess.”
She smiled and moved onto another picture. In that one, he stood with a group of people on a boat. “Is that your mom?”
“Yep.” He pointed out his dad and siblings. “My brothers have moved to Las Vegas to start their respiratory clinics. They hoped I would have a knack for medical studies, but it was too boring.”
“And checking the quality of food isn’t?”
“Hey,” he said, tickling her side. “I like the whole concept of a checklist to make sure things are done properly. One day, I want to be someone like Ron Dunford of Schreiber Foods—someone who calls all the shots.”
He stepped closer, then bent his forehead to touch hers. “How are you feeling? Are you still tired? We don’t have to go anywhere today if you don’t want to.”
She thought of her roommate with Cameron. “No, I’m up for anything. What is there to do around here?”
He laughed to himself. “Not much. But we could just hang around the house for the first night. Let you get your bearings.” He pulled her closer and rested his hands around her waist. “Or get extra cuddle time in. I’m sure I’ve got movies we can not watch.”
She smiled and leaned into him, brushing a kiss across his lips before jumping back. His mom stood at the door, a plate of fruit in her hands.
“Am I interrupting something?” the woman asked, her voice so sugary sweet that Holly had a toothache. Of course, she was interrupting something. “Honey, your dad is home early, and we were hoping to get a head start on dinner. Hope that you’re feeling up for it, Holly.”
It hadn’t even been thirty minutes since the last time she’d attempted, but Holly knew how to have manners. “Sure, I’m feeling fine.” Her stomach grumbled in protest. As long as she ate only tiny bits of food, she’d be fine.
