Yet somehow that was exactly where my day seemed to be heading.
I stared at Thane from across the kitchen while my brain attempted to catch up with the conversation we'd just had. The social media disaster, the phone calls, the photographs, and the dozens of texts from people I barely knew had already felt like more excitement than one morning should contain.
Now he wanted me to meet his parents… not after we'd been dating a while. But today.
A few minutes later, we were heading toward my apartment.
The drive seemed too short, which was unfortunate because I could have used another hour to mentally prepare for meeting the parents of a professional hockey player who had somehow become important to me in less than a week.
Instead, I found myself standing in my bedroom twenty minutes later, staring into my closet like it contained the answers to life's greatest mysteries.
"What exactly are you looking for?" Thane asked from the doorway.
I glanced over my shoulder.
He'd changed into jeans and a dark sweater. The casual clothes somehow made him look even more attractive than the expensive suits he wore during interviews.
"Something appropriate."
His expression suggested that the explanation was insufficient. "For what?"
I gestured vaguely. "For meeting your parents."
"Kieran." The warning note in his voice made me look up. "My parents live in a senior care facility. They aren't the royal family."
"That doesn't help either."
His laughter followed me as I turned back toward the closet. Over the next fifteen minutes, I changed clothes three separate times. The first outfit felt too formal. The second made me look like I was trying too hard. The third somehow convinced me I resembled a substitute teacher who had lost control of his classroom.
By the time I emerged from the bedroom again, I was beginning to suspect I had completely forgotten how clothing worked.
Thane glanced up from where he sat on the couch. His eyes moved over me once. Then twice. The look that followed sent warmth spreading through my chest.
"What?"
He smiled. "Nothing."
"Thane."
"I was just thinking you look good."
I rolled my eyes. "You're biased."
"Absolutely." The answer came without hesitation.
Something embarrassingly soft unfolded inside me, because he sounded so certain. Like there had never been another possible answer.
Unfortunately, being told I looked good did absolutely nothing to solve the problem that awaited us on the other side of the apartment door.
Meeting his parents.
The thought followed me all the way down to the parking garage. It followed me into the passenger seat of Thane's SUV. And it continued following me as Seattle drifted past the windows while we headed toward the senior care facility.
"What are you thinking about?"
Thane glanced over briefly before returning his attention to the road. One hand rested casually on the steering wheel. The other tapped lightly against the center console in time with the Christmas song playing softly through the speakers.
The man looked completely relaxed.
