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It was so damn frustrating. And if I could, I’d hang up on him then and there. But I needed him to play along. I couldn’t just keep putting my parents off forever. They’d have me committed to an institution or something eventually.
“Nash?” I asked finally. He had calmed down.
“Yeah, okay,” he said. “I’m in.”
I sighed. “You’re sure?”
“Positive. Parents like me.”
“Please don’t mess this up.”
“Babe, you’re my wife.” I could practically hear the huge grin on his face. “I’d do anything to make you happy.”
He hung up the phone, and I had a sinking feeling that something was going to go very, very wrong.
A couple hours later and I was in the back of the town car with Nash, butterflies tearing up my stomach.
“Don’t look so nervous,” he said. “It’s going to be fine.”
“I’m not so sure,” I said. He grinned at me, and I couldn’t help but stare at him. He was wearing his suit and tie again, and he looked absolutely incredible. I hadn’t even needed to force him to put it on; he had just done it on his own, which had surprised me.
“Need to make a good first impression,” he had said, grinning at me back in the hotel room.
I came back to the present and glanced at him. He smiled. “Relax,” he said.
“I just hate lying to my parents,” I admitted. “It’s stressful.”
“I get it,” he said. “Let me do most of the talking then. You won’t have to say too many lies.”
“Thanks, but that doesn’t make me feel too much better.”
“Sorry, babe. Best I can do.”
The car pulled up outside the restaurant. It was a small place, cute but expensive. I followed Nash inside. The hostess sat us right away, probably because she recognized Nash. He ordered a whisky and I ordered a glass of wine. Fortunately, my parents were running a little late.
“So, what are they like?” he asked.
“Nice people, I guess,” I said. “I like them, but they’re my parents.”
“Doesn’t always mean you’ll like them. I didn’t get along with my parents.”
“Really? What happened to them?”
“Dad ran off when I was a kid. Mom drank herself to death by the time I was eighteen.”
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“She was a bitch and he’s an asshole. I joined the military and never looked back.”
“So the military is like your family.”
“Yeah,” he grunted, “it is. They brought me up more than my drunk-ass mother ever did.”
I nodded, and just then I spotted them. Mom waved and Dad smiled as they walked toward us.
The butterflies in my stomach intensified, and Nash followed my gaze.
“Game time,” he mumbled.
I stood up. “Hi, Mom, Dad.” I hugged them both.
“Hi, honey,” Dad said.
“Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Wood,” Nash said. “I’m Nash Bell, your daughter’s husband.”
“You’re taller in real life,” Mom said.
“Thanks,” he said, smiling.
Dad shook his hand. “It’s good to meet you, Nash.”
“Likewise, sir.”
We all sat down, and immediately I felt incredibly strange.
“So,” Mom said. “Tell me. Why are you two married?”
I gaped at her and Nash laughed.
“We’re impulsive and impatient, I guess,” Nash said. “There was no disrespect meant, Mrs. Wood.”
“Call me Tracey,” she said. “We’re family now after all.”
“Honestly, I love your daughter. We married because we want to be together. We never meant to leave you two out of the process or to surprise anyone.”
“Which was why you told us after the wedding,” Dad said.
Nash nodded. “It’s my fault. Selena wanted you both there, but my life is so crazy right now. It was a spur-of-the-moment thing.”
Dad nodded, and I was so terrified that they could see through his bullshit.
“No more of that,” Dad said.
“No, of course not, Mr. Wood.”
“Chris,” he grunted. “Call me Chris.”
Mom smiled. “Well. Let’s get drinks and celebrate.”
Mom ordered a wine and Dad ordered water. He looked so thin, much thinner than I remembered, though he was smiling and laughing. I guessed he was probably hiding his suffering and sickness for the sake of the meal.
After some small talk and once their drinks had come, Nash proposed a toast. “To your daughter, Selena.” He looked at me, grinning. “The love of my life. To starting a new family.”
“Here, here,” Dad said. We clinked glasses and drank.
“So,” Mom said, “when are you two having kids?”
I nearly choked on my wine, but Nash laughed.
“Soon, I hope,” he said.
I wanted to kill him.
“Really? Does your schedule let you have kids?” Dad asked.
“No, not at all, Chris. But I’m hoping it’ll calm down soon.”
“Good,” Mom said. “I want grandchildren.”
“Oh, we’ll give you as many grandchildren as we can.”
“You want a large family?” Dad asked.
“Huge,” Nash said. He grinned at me. “I can’t help it. When I think about your daughter, I just want to have as many babies with her as possible.”
I was bright red. I couldn’t believe him, but Mom and Dad were laughing, eating it up.
