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“Oh, Luke!” My mom taps him playfully on the shoulder. “No need for the formalities. Call me Rose.”
“It’s good to see you, Rose,” he responds and unleashes his most irresistible smile on my mother.
It works, by the way.
All my mom can do in response is gawk. At him. At us. When Luke turns on the charm, he’s like a hypnotist of the highest order.
“I just can’t believe it,” she whispers, covering her mouth with her hand.
Oh my God, is she about to cry?
“The two of you together. Officially together. It just warms my heart. I’ve always hoped—”
“Rose! Who’s out there? Is that my Avie?” My dad’s jovial voice cuts her off, and it doesn’t take long before he peeks his knightly head over my mom’s shoulder. “Hey hey, it is my Avie girl!” he exclaims, shoving both my mom and Luke out of his way to get to me. My mom scoffs and Luke chuckles as my dad shakes me side to side in a big ole bear hug.
“Hi, Dad,” I whisper in his ear. “Missed ya.”
“I missed you too,” he answers and sets me back on my feet. “It’s not the same decorating the house without you here to help me.”
When I was a kid, I was the only one who would help him put up the Christmas decorations. Since I’ve been in New York, he’s been responsible for it all on his own.
“I can’t believe no one else helps you,” I comment, glancing pointedly at my mom. “It’s a travesty.”
My mom rolls her eyes. “Like he’d let me or your sisters touch any of his precious decorations.”
I grin. That’s also true. I’m the only one he trusts to help, but I think that’s more because I let him make all the decisions and just follow whatever instructions he tosses my way. My mom and sisters try to make suggestions, but when it comes to big Guy’s Christmas decorations, you never suggest. You acknowledge that he is the expert and just follow his lead.
“And I see you’ve brought Luke with you,” my dad comments and reaches out to shake Luke’s hand. “Good to see you, son. How have you been?”
“I’ve been good, Mr. Lucie.”
“Please, just call me Guy.” He waves him off the same way my mom did mere moments ago.
“Luke is Ava’s boyfriend now,” my mom whispers to my dad, but it’s not quiet at all.
“Is that right?” My dad feigns surprise. “You two crazy kids are an item now?”
Luke nods, and a handsome smile touches his lips. “Sir, I don’t know how it happened, but somehow, I convinced your beautiful daughter to be my girlfriend.”
My dad smiles proudly. “My Avie is the best.”
“You won’t find me denying that.” Luke winks at me and leans forward to whisper to my dad, “But how about we keep it between us that she’s too good for me, yeah?”
Guy chortles.
My mom sighs this dreamy, far-too-loud sigh and tsks her lips. “My goodness. I just…I don’t think I could be any more excited than I am right now. The only thing that would make me happier is if the two of you decided to tie the knot.”
“Mom,” I chastise. “Good Lord.”
“What?” she questions, looking between the three of us. “What did I say wrong?”
My dad just chuckles and wraps his arm around my mom’s shoulder, leading her through the door and down the hall toward the kitchen, and he gestures for us to follow them.
Luke just grins the whole damn way, but my mind is off to the races, mulling over the way my mother appeared so quick to sell me off like I’m a prized pig at the freaking county fair.
I mean, we’ve been here all of ten minutes, and my mom is already trying to plan our freaking wedding!
You think that’s bad? Just wait until she finds out it’s all a sham…
That thought sits like a rock in my stomach. A heavy, firm mass of guilt.
Man oh man, what have I gotten myself into?
A big fat web of lies.
“Avie, you want hot chocolate?” my dad asks, and all I can do is nod, my mind still reeling from things I’d prefer not to think about right now. “What about you, Luke? You like hot chocolate?”
“That’d be great, sir.”
While my dad makes us some fresh cocoa, we sit down at the kitchen table, and my mom doesn’t dillydally with the usual small talk. Oh no, she dives right into the relationship questions.
“So, I just have to know,” she begins, and internally I sigh, already knowing what’s about to come. “How did you two go from best friends for years to in a relationship?”
Boom. There it is. She drops the bomb right in the middle of the Christmas-décor-covered table.
“Well, Rose, I’ve always had a bit of a thing for your Ava,” Luke begins to answer and reaches out to casually wrap his arm around the back of my chair. “It just took about fifteen years for me to convince her to have a thing for me too.”
