“Usually, you text me first.”
Ayou home?Or amind if I stop by?
But not today.
Today, if he gave himself even a minute to think, he’d talk himself out of it again.
He wasn’t just showing up to talk about a woman. He was here to talk aboutthewoman.
The woman who’d somehow made him feel more grounded than he ever had before. More like himself than another woman in his past.
And those other women, that’s what they were. A thing of the past.
But to make Nora part of his future, he had to bring her into the present with his family.
Nora might not be happy he was doing this, but he’d always been one to go after what he wanted.
Even if he was smart enough to know not to say those words to her.
“I know,” he said, rubbing a hand over the back of his neck. “I wanted to talk to both of you.”
Her expression shifted instantly, brows pinching together. “Is everything all right? You don’t normally hesitate over anything. Nor do you ring the bell but just let yourself in.”
“Not when I’m coming unannounced. But, yeah,” he blurted. “Everything’s good. Great, actually.”
And that was part of the problem, because when something felt this good, he almost didn’t trust it.
She stepped aside, motioning him in. “Then come in before I imagine things. You look like you’re about to confess to a crime.”
He huffed out a laugh. “Not a crime. More like…a decision.”
“Oh boy. Are you going to need a drink to celebrate it?”
“I need a drink, that’s for sure.”
He followed her through the halls of the house to the back, right to the bar where he poured himself two fingers of his father’s favorite whiskey.
That his father hadn’t stood up and only lifted his eyes when Ethan came in said they both were cautious about his appearance.
He handed a glass to his father and then took a sip of his.
“Don’t leave us in suspense,” his mother said. “What did you need to see us about?”
“I’m dating someone.”
His mother’s grin grew. “You never tell us that. I normally have to hear a rumor about it or see a picture somewhere.”
Because there had never been a reason to bring a woman home to his mother if he hadn’t planned on it being more than something fun. Something casual. Something to kill the time.
The only criteria that fit with Nora was they had a lot of fun. But now it was more about emotions, connections, and commonalities mixed in with confusion, anxiety, and uncertainty.
Shit he’d never felt once in his life for a woman.
His career in being good enough to take over for his father? Yes. Always felt that, but never let it be shown.
But a woman had never messed with his head as much as Nora was playing with his.
He figured that had to mean just as much as the good stuff and it was what pushed his ass in gear.
