“I didn’t bring anything.” I’m trying to make a good impression, and I didn’t even remember to bring a bottle of wine!
“Sweetheart, we just got home. It’s fine.” How can he say that with a straight face?
“Don’t we have something at home?” I turn and begin walking back toward the house, buthe grabs my arm.
“Again, no,” he says patiently.
Caine takes my hand and drags me to the front door. No, knock, no ringing the doorbell, we just walk right in like we own the place.
I’m awestruck by what I see. How I hadn’t noticed as we walked up, I’m not sure, but inside, it would be impossible not to. It’s a grand entryway with vaulted coffered ceilings. Coffered fucking ceilings!
Two separate grand staircases highlight the upstairs landing. This isn’t a house! It’s a fucking mansion! A mansion. I turn and look at Caine as he removes his boots.
Momentarily stunned into silence, I remove mine and place them by Caine’s.
It’s the giggles I hear first, then Caine drops my hand, running toward the kitchen where he hides behind a giant island.
I’m left standing here, everyone turning to look at me as I walk into the foyer.
“Hi!” I say with a goofy wave and stupid, pensive look on my face.
The eyes that look in my direction aren’t familiar. I don’t recognize anyone. My mouth goes dry, and my hands feel clammy.
A little boy walks up to the other side of the island and looks at me with a frown.
“Daddy, there’s a strange lady in Nana’s kitchen!” he yells in alarm.
Then I hear a loud roar, and the little boy drops to the ground in a flurry of giggles.
“Uncle Caine!” the little boy squeals as a man I don’t know walks in from the side of the kitchen from an entryway I can’t see. He’s tall, slim, with blonde hair, blue eyes.
I hear whispering.
“Who is she?”
“Do you know who that is?”
The man staring at me immediately reminds me of Cody, and my throat begins to close in on itself. He just stares at me with a scowl. Then, he crosses his arms over his chest. He doesn’t want me here. That’s what my brain is telling me.
I stand perfectly still. I’m petrified. My heart is pounding erratically, and my head starts to spin.
Slowly, I take a step back, then another, when a beautiful woman with dark hair walks in and stands beside the Cody lookalike. She tilts her head at me. It’s like it’s all happening in slow motion.
Giggles, chatter, people whispering about me. So many people. So many faces. Why are they all staring at me?
I thought this was a family dinner, but the faces I see, I don’t recognize a single one. Heat seeps up my chest and neck, and I know I must be bright red.
I take another step back and turn and hightail it to the door.
“Caine!” yells a female voice I don’t recognize.
A squeal of children’s laughter echoes against the walls as I grab my shoes. My hands are shaking as I bend to put them on. But then I’m lifted off the ground, one hand around my back, the other under my knees.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Caine asks. His smile drops, and his eyes roam my face. “Sweetheart?”
What is happening to me?
“I don’…” Then everything goes black.
