“Are you ready?”
“Is that a trick question?” More knots formed in my stomach as the nerves shone through. There was no need to hide my true feelings around Gael.
I had given Gael more details about how Harris’ parents had treated me. I had been accused of everything from trying to get pregnant to being in a conspiracy with some competitive company to get controlling interest of the company. Harris had stopped it all and threatened to not have any contact with them if it continued. From that point on, I only had to deal with looks of disgust, which were more manageable. That was all before Harris changed.
Gael got out of the car. I looked at my face one more time. My turquoise eyes were bright and I could see I was nervous. My hair was left down and I ran my fingers through it a few times. The car door opened and Gael held out his hand for me. Movement from the corner of my eye in the window probably meant that his mother, Erica, was watching.
There’s no escaping now.
Glancing down, I checked my outfit one more time. The light sweater dress and boots seemed laid back but not too casual. Of course, Gael had said I could go in a paper bag, but I wanted to make a good impression.
Giving my hand to Gael, I got out of the car and followed him to the front door.
He wore jeans and a pale-blue button up shirt. Desire had me wanting to rip it from his body.
Before we made it to the doorbell, the door swung open and who I presumed was his mother greeted us. “Hey, I’m so glad you made it.” She held her out her hand to me. “I’m Erica. It’s nice to meet you, Ashlin. Come on in. Dave is putting the finishing touches on his crème brulee.”
Erica had light-brown hair and hazel eyes. She was about my size and beautiful. Shaking her hand, I responded, “It’s nice to meet you, Erica.”
I wasn’t sure what else I should say.
Gael leaned in and gave his mother a hug. She wore a red cardigan and jeans that gave her a classically styled look. “Hey, Mom. It’s good to see you.”
“You too, Gael. We missed you.”
The door opened further and we followed Erica into the house. The house was done in a nautical theme, which answered a silent question I had asked when I saw Gael’s house for the first time. The guest bedroom had been done in the same theme, which didn’t seem to fit Gael.
To the right was the living room. Gael’s father, Dave, walked in with a tray. He was an exact replica of Gael.
Following Gael’s lead, we walked over to Dave as he put the crème brulee down. He wore jeans and a light-gray sweater. “Dad, are you trying to show off your culinary skills to my girlfriend? We all know you have a better crème brulee.”
The word girlfriend made my stomach do happy summersaults. Releasing a deep laugh, Dave gave his son a semi-hug. “I’d never dream of it.”
The attention turned to me. Before Gael had a chance to introduce me, Dave stuck out his hand. “I’m Dave. It’s nice to meet you, Ashlin.”
“Nice to meet you, too. The dessert smells delicious.”
Dave looked satisfied with the compliment as he winked back at me and mocked whispered, “It’s okay if you like mine better than Gael’s. I won’t tell. It can be our little secret.”
We laughed as Gael put a possessive arm around my waist and gave me a loving kiss on the top of my head. “She’ll vote for mine every time. I’m not worried.”
“Maybe verbally, but I know what she’ll really be thinking.” Dave gave me a wink.
Hearing Gael and his father play for my attention had me beaming from within.
Walking into the room, Gael’s mom spoke, “Boys, don’t give Ashlin a hard time. Let’s all sit down and eat while we hear about France and get to know Ashlin.” Erica was the epitome of what a hostess should be.
We took our seats and Gael sat next to me, our legs touching. Dave handed me a ramekin with a small spoon. Everyone took a bite.
“Wow, this is amazing. I think the Stowe family is forever ruining Lean Cuisine meals for me.”
Dave gasped with a look of horror as Gael spoke, which had me suppressing a chuckle. “I know, Dad. She’s had my restaurant at her disposal and she’s been living off those blasphemous meals. All Lean Cuisine meals are gone. It was the first thing I did when we stayed at her place last night.”
I giggled at the memory of Gael getting rid of the few meals I had left. Over the course of two weeks, I had eaten through most of my supply.
“Good.” Dave chuckled. “I can only imagine Gael’s reaction to that news.”
“I tried to get him to try some, but that was an emphatic no. I even microwaved one to tempt him with the delicious smells of lasagna.”