“Family dinner it is.” Tessa grabbed for her pad again, writing something down quickly. “You’ll go tonight and on Friday we’ll discuss how it went and whether both of you were able to get in some more communication.”
She looked up to the clock as it struck seven.
“That will be our time today.” Tessa stood and held her hand out to Greg first and then to me after he shook it, like we were all making a deal that we would follow through with what Tessa told us to do. “I’ll see you both same time on Friday.”
I exited the room first, not looking back to see if Greg was following and made my way out of the building. I had taken an Uber here, but as I pulled out my phone to get one to head back to my apartment, Greg snatched the phone out of my hand and headed towards where his car was parked along the street.
“Hey!” I chased after him and was thankful I had changed into jeans, tee, and Converse shoes after I got off work. I caught up to him before the time he had reached his car, my phone nowhere in sight. “Give it back.”
I held out my hand to him and waited, but he didn’t look at me, just grabbed my hand and dragged me, literally, as I tried to fight my way out of his grasp. He forced me to the passenger side of the car and tried to push me into the seat, but I wouldn’t budge. I propped myself against the car door frame as leverage against him.
“Get. In.” Greg’s grip on me loosened but his demeanor changed to something I hadn’t seen before. He stood straight, his shoulders squared to where he was blocking my exit, and the fire in his eyes called to me. Like he was undressing me right there in the street. I leaned towards him without thought and he took the opportunity to shove me into the car, reach across me, and buckle my seatbelt. When he slammed the door to close me in, I didn’t fight it. I was still in a trance from the look in his eyes.
He got into the car only a few seconds later and took off down the road. I almost regretted now changing after work, as I realized that we were headed towards his parents’ house. When I said I hadn’t been there in a long time, I meant it. I hadn’t been there in over a year, since Alexa had moved back into town. It got to the point that, even after she moved in with Max and we weren’t hanging out every night, I knew if she found out that every Wednesday night I went to Greg’s parents for dinner, she would question me more than I was ready for. Even Erica didn’t know that I had gone to the Morans’ for dinner every week, and Jack never mentioned it when we all hung out. It was like a family secret, one that I used to love.
I stared out the window, bracing myself for this two-hour drive, and by the way it was starting, I knew it was going to be a quiet ride.
The drive to the town of Helen was one I typically loved. The mountains and greenery were a sight to see and once in Helen, the experience was breathtaking. The small German town was to die for. The people, the shops, the food— it was all something out of a fairy tale and probably the best kept secret in Georgia.
As we drove through town, the sour taste in my mouth from Greg kidnapping me to take me to family dinner started to diminish. I rolled down the window to take in the scent of fresh bread and baked goods. It really was a fairy tale, but today it felt like we were driving into a Brothers Grimm book rather than a Disney happily ever after.
“We can grab a bag of pickles on the way out tomorrow.” My heart sank at Greg’s words. This was another reason I hated family dinner. It forced us to stay the night. Since Helen was a two-hour drive from Atlanta and we wouldn’t finish dessert and games until almost midnight, unless we wanted to be tired driving back home it meant sleeping in his parents’ house. Typically in the same room since there are only three spare bedrooms and Greg’s brother and sister took the others. At one point, years ago, I questioned why I had always slept in the same room as Greg. But then I thought about the times Delilah brought a boyfriend or that Jack snores could be heard throughout the house, and it made sense to sleep in the same room as Greg.
Family dinners were never the excuse I gave to Erica when I started coming into work late on Thursdays. And since Greg was my boss, it didn’t seem to matter to me to explain it more. When I stopped going and started showing up on time to work on those days Erica had questioned me, but I just told her I got a new alarm clock and stopped staying up late on those nights. It seemed to have worked, but I knew from the outside it all looked fishy if you weren’t in on the relationship between Greg and me.
“Okay.” My answer was monotone. I couldn’t let him know that, even though I was upset about having to spend the night, the excitement of getting a bag of fresh pickles from town was exciting me to no end. Fresh pickles. My weakness.
We stayed quiet for the rest of the drive up one of the mountains, winding up and up until we reached our destination. It wasn’t so much a house as it was a giant log cabin. Greg’s parents had money, old money, but they used it conservatively and this was one of the only luxury items they bought. That way the kids would always be able to come back to see them and there would never be an argument of there not being enough room.
Once the car stopped at the top of the hill, I made my way out and over to where Jack was waiting by the front door. I hadn’t noticed if Greg had been messaging anyone that we were on our way, but considering the time, I thought everyone would still be eating. But no. There was Jack holding two glasses of amber liquid. I reached him and grabbed for a glass, shooting back whatever was inside that sent a fever of fire down my throat, then shoved the glass back into his hand and grabbed for the other.
“Not even a hello? Just shooting back my best Bourbon?” Jack was a package deal when it came to Greg. They were twins, but not identical in looks or personality. Jack was broad with lots of muscles, tattoos, and a growing beard. Greg, on the other hand, was lean but toned, only a hint of scruff, but both had a buzz cut that would have any girl’s panties drop.
“It’s okay.” I took a swig from the second glass. It was more than okay, this baby was doing me in and I had barely had any.
“Just okay? Come on, sis, I know you can do better than that.” Jack shot me a wink just as I was about to go in for a second sip. The glass laid against my lips as my eyes shot up to him. The devilish grin on his face assured me I was correct in what I thought I heard him say.
“You fucking told him?!” I turned around and shouted at Greg, not realizing he was standing directly behind me. He grabbed for the glass in my hand and took the last sip, then handed it to Jack.
“You told the girls.” Greg said it matter of factly, and walked around me and into the house.Who else knew? Shit. Shit. Shit.
I was not prepared for this. It felt like Greg had something up his sleeve, and I just wanted to run away, but now I was stranded on a mountain at my in-laws’ house.
“Come on, sis, let’s see if we can find Delilah.” Jack grabbed for my hand as we followed Greg into the house. I could smell the barbecue coming from the direction of the kitchen. My mouth watered instantly. I had forgotten how much I loved the inside of this house, too. There were family photos everywhere, trinkets the kids had made throughout the years, and it felt like a home.
This place really was a home, though. More home than my own house was growing up. The love that radiated through these walls made me jealous. Greg and his siblings grew up with the kind of love I had always wished for from my own family. We had never taken family photos and my parents saw no meaning behind anything that I made in school. I had no idea if this was how it was with my siblings, but that shouldn’t have mattered.
“Lilly!” I heard and felt Delilah before I saw her. Her arms were wrapped around me as her body hugged to my back. Delilah was only a year younger than the guys, and two years older than me. Greg and Jack always took care of her and I had adopted her as a sister, too.
“Hey, Delilah,” I turned around to bring her into a proper hug. Out of everything I missed about this house, I missed her the most. If she lived closer to Atlanta, I’m pretty sure she would be a part of the little tribe Alexa, Erica and I had going on, but she didn’t and that wasn’t something I could change. Delilah loved it here, the small-town vibes. She owned her own jewelry shop in town that was always booming with business. “I’ve missed you.”
“I missed you, too.” She hugged me tighter, but let go when I heard a resounding cough come from behind me. I turned around to see Margaret and David Moran standing there waiting for their greeting.
“You look lovely, darling.” Margaret reached me first after taking the time to compliment me, her southern charm always showing through. I gave her a brief hug and then moved over to David, who stood there stoically, like my being in this house again didn’t affect him, which I knew it did. David and I had built a father-daughter relationship that technically shouldn’t have happened, but he was definitely more of a father to me than my biological father.
“David.” I said his name as a greeting as I stood there, not sure if I should go in for a hug or just stay where I was.
“Don’t call me that.” He grabbed for me and pulled me into a bear hug. He was taller than both Jack and Greg and the muscles that adorned this middle-aged man astounded me and were almost crushing me at this moment.
