“You’re all making a mountain out of a molehill.” I stood. “I’m going to get another beer since they’re running late tonight, apparently.”
Voices called out as I made my way to the bar.
“Don’t be like that,” Larry said.
“Come on, Mac,” Bonnie urged.
“I’m sorry!” Becca chirped.
I ignored them. The sooner they got over this obsession with me and Brady Judd, the sooner things could get back to normal.
If Brady wanted to be a secret, I wasn’t going to be the one to out us.
Sure, I’d been off-balance last night. Mostly, because I knew my family would make a big deal about him being there, but I also knew they’d welcome him with open arms. I didn’t want Brady to feel pressured by them. If he wanted casual, then meeting the family wasn’t really the best way to go about that.
I thought back to the breakfast I’d shared at his parents’ house and tried to compare the two. I’d been there as Candace’s friend, for the most part. No one had assumed anything about Brady and me. There’d been way less expectation accompanying those biscuits and gravy.
My family, on the other hand, had zero chill. I was sure every single one of them suspected something was going on, but the girls were right. Brady had been laid-back and easygoing about it all. He hadn’t been bothered by the questions or the stares or my cousin’s insinuations.
That was just Brady. A charming charmer.
I didn’t want sudden notice from my branch of the family to complicate things between us. It was almost May, and we’d been happy with our arrangement for months now. Something told me that having the secret out—even to people I trusted—would screw everything up.
But there was an insistent little voice in my head wondering how long we could possibly keep this up. What happened if we were found out? Would Brady end things rather than admit the truth?
Maybe it made me weak or a coward, but I didn’t want this thing to end. I was happy. Happier than I’d been in a long time. Between our relationship and my new position at the farm, I felt good—or close to it.
As I passed by Brady’s table on my way to the bar, I caught his eye. He winked, and I made sure my face was nice and even when I held up two fingers discreetly in front of my chest.
We’d worked out a system and pre-arranged our trivia night fights to keep up appearances. Mostly because it was fun. However, tonight I was really not in the mood for the nosy women at my table, so getting out of here within the next twenty minutes greatly appealed to me.
But Brady must not have gotten the message because when the second round started, he didn’t take the bait of my shouted insult. He calmly sipped his beer and didn’t even make eye contact.
Instead, we played on to the end. Neither one of our teams won. The bird-watching group got every question right, and Becca cheered loudly for them when their team was announced as the first-place finisher.
Larry, Becca, and Bonnie were staying on to hang out, but I told them I’d see them later and made for the parking lot.
I hurried to the end of the asphalt where Brady’s truck sat and waited.
It didn’t take long. He approached a few minutes later, his tall shadow stretching across the pavement in the glow of the area lights.
“Hey, did you not see my signal earlier?” I said by way of greeting.
“Guess I missed it.” He turned to unlock the driver’s side. “You want to follow me to my place?”
Something was up. He’d been quiet all night, and now he would hardly look at me. Sudden worry about the disaster dinner last night intruded, and I wondered if it had been too much, after all. We’d texted today. He’d teased me about the damn letter from my keyboard. But maybe he was overwhelmed and wanted space. Though surely, he wouldn’t be inviting me over if that was the case.
I hated feeling so uncertain. This was not my default. I was a direct person who didn’t rely on other people to influence the way I felt.
When I’d remained quiet too long, Brady finally glanced my way. His eyes were wary and secretive—an expression I’d never once seen on his face. “Will you come over? I thought we could talk.”
It took all my effort to keep my face passive. “Sure,” I said finally, voice flat.
If he wanted to break things off, he could do it right now, as far as I was concerned. And if he couldn’t handle one little dinner with the most important people in my life, then he didn’t deserve my insane but well-meaning family.
Brady scanned the parking lot over my head before leaning in and pressing a kiss to my cheek. “I’ll see you over there.”
Worry and confusion and irritation swirled around inside me in a bitter combination. I didn’t even remember walking to my Jeep and climbing inside.
