Nate was standing in front of her with his hand extended.
She handed him the less formal belt and he began slipping it through the loops. “I want you to take this brunch seriously. You must mind your manners, eat nothing with your hands and do not ask for a beer. Drink whatever they give you. If they offer you a cocktail, ask for something civilized, like a...a...gin and tonic. That’s good.”
He was standing close to her and rolling up the sleeves of his shirt. “Anything else, Mom?”
“Mom?” Terri’s eyes widened. “That’s a good idea. You should have taken the new Cale Anderson book with you as a gift. I’d give them my copy, but it has my name in it. It was really nice of your aunt to send it. She—”
Smiling, Nate put his hands on her shoulders and spoke calmly. “Everything will be fine. I’ve been to three state dinners at the White House. No one complained about my table manners.”
“I know. It’s just that you’ve been here for a while and lake people are a bad influence. Ask anyone in Summer Hill.” She stepped away from him.
When Nate’s smile left him, she thought that for all his bravado, he seemed genuinely worried about the meeting. But it was just brunch with his future in-laws. How bad could it be?
He glanced at the bedside clock. “I’m going to be late.”
They walked to the front door and when Nate turned to leave, he hesitated, then glanced up at the house as though memorizing it. “I don’t know why, but I feel like a kid leaving home for the first time. I wish I’d said no to this, but...” He took a breath. “I guess I should go.”
“Gift!” Terri said. “You should take a gift. Stay here.”
She ran to the kitchen, grabbed two bottles of wine left over from the party, then ran back to him. “I’m sure Stacy would have put them in pretty bags with ribbons on them.”
He grinned. “I would have taken a six-pack.”
“Or a pan full of chicken bits so hot Mayor Hartman would have had a heart attack.”
For a moment they laughed together, then Nate straightened his shoulders. “Okay, I have to go. I’ll see you later.”
To the astonishment of both of them, Nate gave her a quick kiss on the lips. It wasn’t a kiss of passion, but one like a married couple would exchange. Familiar, easy, practiced. Only it wasn’t.
They both stepped back, startled, eyes wide.
“I, uh...” Nate said.
Terri recovered first. “It’s okay. We’re both nervous. Go! I’m sure Mayor Hartman is a stickler for punctuality.”
“All right.” Nate was backing toward his car, looking at her as though puzzled by something.
“And quit kissing people!” Terri said. “Don’t greet Mayor Hartman with a kiss on the lips. Or Mrs. Hartman. Forget all the years you’ve spent in countries where they kiss everyone. No lip kissing!”
Her joke pulled Nate back to the present. “I hear they have a cook.” He opened the door of his car.
“Kissing her is fine. Just not the mayor.”
Smiling, Nate nodded as he started the engine and backed out.
Terri went inside, closed the door and leaned on it. Nate kissed her. It’s all that was in her mind. It wasn’t the kind of kiss she’d like to have had, one where they were both so overcome with passion that they couldn’t stop. Tongues and lips and clothes flying off. Nope, not that kind of kiss at all. It was more...
Friendship, she thought and pushed away from the door. “I get friendship and Stacy gets the passion. Stacy gets the man.” As she looked out the front glass at the lake, she imagined Nate at brunch. No doubt he’d use his White House manners and win the Hartmans over. How could they not like him? Everyone at the lake adored Nate. Last night at the party, he’d been the hit of the evening. It may have been Terri’s house, but everyone asked Nate about where things were and what they could do—and he’d answered them all.
Yes, the Hartmans would fall in love with Nate. And then what? she thought. When he got back would he tell her that he was moving out? He’d probably say, “I’d forgotten how much I deeply and truly love Stacy Hartman and I’m going to go stay with her parents. They make me feel closer to the woman I love with all my heart and soul.” Or something like that. Knowing Nate, she’d see him putting his bags in his car and he’d call out “See you around, kid” as he drove away.
She went into the kitchen. The cooks had cleaned up after themselves, and people had picked up rubbish, but the place could still use a good scrub. She started to get cleaning supplies out, but then she thought, Screw it! She was going to go to Club Circle and see what other people were doing. Right now she did not want to be alone.
* * *
As Nate drove away, he didn’t let himself think about what had just happened with Terri. It had been an accident. Caused by his ridiculous worry about spending time with Stacy’s parents.
He’d tried not to let the fact that they’d never liked him bother him, but it did. Maybe it was the novelty of it that got him. All his life he’d been liked by people.