“Yeah, baby. I know who your family is. I get what I’m signing up for. It’s you that is getting the rough end of the bargain where in-laws are concerned. I mean… my parents are both pretty intense.”
“They’refine.” Something in my chest loosens. I bite my lip and smile up at him. "Thank you for being so understanding."
"Of course, Freckles." He looks me up and down. “If you want a good distraction before they come over, I can probably cook something up.”
“You’re always so helpful,” I say, a little tartly. Gordie trots over and shoves his enormous head against my thigh, sensing that feelings are happening and wanting to make sure he's included. I scratch behind his ears and text my mom the address.
My parents arrive at noon. My dad is wearing his best polo and khakis, which tells me he spent actual time deciding what to wear to his daughter's boyfriend's house. My mom's eyes are already red, which tells me she cried in the car on the way over.
They look around the houseboat, wide-eyed. Perhaps they’ve never been inside a house that costs more than their entire block; I know I sure hadn’t thatfirst time I came here. My mom touches the kitchen counter like it might be a hologram. My dad peers out the back windows at the lake and whistles low.
"This is a nice setup, baby girl," Dad says, turning back to me. "Real nice."
“It’s all Alex’s doing. I can’t claim any credit.”
Alex comes down the stairs, fully dressed now in jeans and a dark gray T-shirt. He's shaved, and his hair is actually combed. His expression is pinched, and I realize with a pang that he's nervous. Alexander Thorne, the golden boy of the Seattle Havoc, is nervous about meeting my parents again… as my boyfriend.
"Mom, Dad. You know Alex." I take his hand and pull him forward. “We’ve… uh… moved in together. He’s my boyfriend.”
My dad stares at Alex for a solid three seconds. He knows who Alex is, obviously. Beck's co-captain. The face of the franchise. The guy whose posters my dad has hanging in his man cave back home. But the fact that this particular hockey player is dating his daughter, and she's living in his very expensive floating home, seems to short-circuit something in his brain.
"Well, I'll be damned." Dad extends his hand and Alex shakes it. "You know, I always told Kathy that our Mollie was going to end up with someone special. I just didn't think it would be someone whose jersey I already own."
"Dad." I close my eyes. “Please.”
"Does this mean I can call you son-in-law?"
My jaw drops and I gasp. "We're not engaged, Dad. Omigod, don't make this weird."
"Too late," Alex murmurs beside me, his lips twitching.
My dad leans in toward Alex with conspiratorial energy. "You know, if you ever want to ask for my blessing, you can just call me. Any time." He fishes his phone out of his pocket. "Here, let me give you my number. Just in case."
Alex takes the phone and types in his number without blinking. "Got it, Dan."
"See? We're already on a first-name basis." Dad beams at my mom. "Kathy, did you hear that? He called me Dan."
My mom is too busy hugging me to respond. She holds on for a long time, longer than usual, her hands gripping the back of my shirt. When she pulls back, her chin is wobbling.
"My baby," she says. "My sweet girl."
"I'm fine, Mom. Really."
She cups my face in her hands and studies me like she's looking for damage. Whatever she sees must satisfy her, because she nods once and lets go, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.
The front door opens again and Beck walks in with Rosie on his hip. She's wearing a tutu over her jeans and carrying a sticker book that's approximately the size of her torso.
"Mollie!" Rosie squirms until Beck sets her down, then barrels toward me at full speed. I catch her and scoop her up, kissing her cheeks until she giggles.
"Hey, monkey. I love the tutu."
"I’m so pretty!" She settles on my lap when I sit down on the couch, immediately cracking open her sticker book. "Look, I gots the sparkly ones."
"Those are very sparkly." I help her peel a glittery unicorn off the sheet while Beck shakes Alex's hand with a tight-jawed politeness. Yeesh, I wouldn’t want to be either of them.
My dad claps Beck on the shoulder and my mom hugs him. Gordie weaves through the legs of strangers with his tail wagging, accepting pets from anyone who will give them. Rosie calls to him and he happily flops over, showing his belly.
She's absorbed in showing Gordie her stickers and isn’t listening to the conversation, which is exactly what I need right now. Her small, warm weight grounds me in a way that nothing else could.
