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“I’ll be with you the whole time.” He kisses my temple and untangles our hands. “Let’s go.”

I nod, pulling the handle on the door so it swings open.

The front door opens before we reach it.

“Troy, you made it!” The woman wraps her arms around him, and he immediately does the same.

“Hi, Mom.” I can hear the smile in his voice as he pulls back. The woman standing in front of us looks like a mom from my imagination. She’s wearing light washed blue jeans, a navy-blue blouse with slightly ruffled short sleeves and matching navy flats. Her light brown hair curls toward her face right above her shoulders. She’s beautiful, and her joy in seeing Troy makes me smile.

He takes a step back, so I’m now between them. “This is Lexy. Lexy, Melissa.”

She wraps her arms around me and pulls me to her, like I mean as much to her as her own kid does. It’s weird. And wonderful. She smells like vanilla, and I linger in her hug even though this is such a strange moment for me. “It’s so nice to finally meet you,” she whispers in my ear before holding my shoulders at arms length to get a better look at me.

“Yeah, you too. I’ve heard so much about you.”

Dinner flies by with just the three of us. Cooper’s dad had to work late, but we’ll be back to spend a day with them. I’m excited to meet Cooper since Troy knows both of my best friends. It’s already fun seeing him in his element and with his people. Oregon isn’t his home anymore, but he feels different here than I’ve seen him in California–in a good way. It reminds me of the feeling I get when I close up the bar and the last customer leaves–like I can finally relax and not have to worry about anything else.

Melissa is sweet. I imagine she’s the kind of mom anyone would love to have, although I would have been happy having one around in general. Everything we talked about at dinner was pretty surface level. I’m not sure if Troy said anything to her, worried I’ll feel pressure to move here, but I appreciate it either way for now. I can’t help but picture having some sort of relationship with her, since she’s so important to Troy, especially if we did move here. It might be nice, but I don’t want to get my hopes up.

As we put our dishes in the sink after the most delicious mac and cheese I’ve ever eaten, the sound of the front door swinging open tells me the action was dramatic even though I can’t see it.

“I’m here!” The voice, belonging to who I’m assuming is Cooper, echoes through the hallway as it reaches us. It’s only another second before he appears in front of us, his light brown hair barely long enough to be mussed on top, and light facial hair that looks good on him even though it’s not my preference. His eyes are as bright blue as my own, and that’s about all the look I get of him before he wraps me in a bear hug, lifting me off my feet before placing me back on the ground. “Finally,” he exhales like he’s been waiting for this longer than the four months Troy and I have been together. Something tells me he’s not talking about us meeting. Troy hasn’t said much about Emily, but based on what I do know, it sounds like he wasn’t the most fun to be around for a while. I’m selfishly more than okay with being part of the reason he’s happier now.

“I guess you’re Cooper.” I laugh.

“The one and only.” He grins as he and Troy do a ridiculous secret handshake then makes his way to Melissa to kiss her on the cheek. “Sorry I’m late. My client would not stop talking.”

“Sure, blame them.” I sass. I don’t know what it is about this home that makes me feel free to be myself.

Cooper shoots me a playful look before turning to Troy. “What did you tell this girl about me?”

“Bro, everyone who knows anything about you knows you don’t shut up.”

Cooper shrugs before walking to the living room. “What game are we playing?”

Game? Are they one of those families that actually plays board games together? Is that a thing that happens in real life? I thought it was only on TV. My question is answered when Troy squats down in front of the coffee table chest. He opens it, giving me a perfect view of stacks and stacks of games. He rummages through them for a few seconds before pulling one out.

“Don’t worry, it’s easy, and we can be on the same team,” Troy tells me as he pulls me onto the couch next to him, sensing my hesitation. I don’t think I’ve ever played a board game.

“That’s not fair. I bet you two can practically read each other’s minds,” Cooper whines, taking his seat on the floor on the other side of the coffee table. I wonder what kind of game this is.

“I gave you life, kid. Don’t underestimate my ability to read your mind,” Melissa teases her son.

“Okay, so we agree to go with what we both think I’ll say?” She nods at his scheming.

Troy turns to me. “It’s called Think ‘N Sync.Super simple. Each of these cards has a topic. The opposing team reads a fill in the blank prompt and counts down from three. On one, the other team has to say their answer at the same time. If they say the same thing, they get a point. Make sense?”

“Yeah, so I say whatever I think you’re going to say?”

“Yup. Watch, they can go first.” Troy draws a card out of the box. “Okay, the topic is music. A classic rock band… 3. 2. 1.”

“U2.” Both Cooper and Melissa say simultaneously.

Everyone grins, and Troy turns to me. “‘Beautiful Day’ is Mom’s favorite song. It’s on her house cleaning mix between every other track.” He laughs, clearly recalling a memory before he turns back to Cooper on the floor and Melissa in the lounge chair next to him. “Okay, male country singers… 3. 2. 1.”

“Mitchell Tenpenny!” Cooper yells at the same time Melissa says, “Russell Dickerson!”

“Moooooom. You’re supposed to pick what I’m going to pick,” Cooper whines playfully like he’s in middle school and not a grown-ass adult.

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