I manage to get my dad out the door and on his way home after forty more minutes of coercion and the instant the door is locked from the inside, I fall into Rafe's arms.
"You were incredible," he says as he holds me, and I let my eyes drift to the Christmas tree and become unfocused.
"I am exhausted… We have a long drive tomorrow."
"Then," he says, backing me toward the bedroom, "let me get you tucked in, Ms. Maddox, because you and I have a long, beautiful future ahead of us and we need to be well rested for it."
The smolder in his tone makes my heart flutter.
"A future?" I ask, and I like the sound of it too.
"A very long, very beautiful future, Riley."
Rafe's lips capture mine in a searing kiss and I can think of no other better way to finish our evening than to fall into each other tonight.
Tomorrow will worry about itself.
28
RAFE
Riley's been nervous all morning. She hardly slept last night, and the entire drive from the Adirondacks to Buffalo, she's done nothing but chew her nails and nod off while I drive. I wish there were something I could do to help her relax a little, but she appears to be wound tighter than a piano string. I can barely get her to speak.
And now, as we pull up in her parents’ snow-covered driveway, she has both hands covering her face and she's shaking. I put the car in park and reach over gently to pull her hands down one at a time, and her bottom lip is pushed out into a pout.
"I'm nervous, Rafe. I don’t want my parents to be angry."
My mind goes to the expensive bottle of wine we brought along with us as a gift—or maybe a peace offering. I'm not sure what sort of people her parents are, but I gotta make amends to them for all of this. Riley is the one feeling all the guilt, but that blame should be squarely on me. There just isn't a good way to let her off the hook with her parents without telling them the whole story, and then I'd end up in jail.
"It'll be fine, baby. You'll see." Even calling her my "baby" feels awkward at times because it's so far out of my wheelhouse to be gentle and loving with people. But the word seems to brighten her expression a little.
I climb out of the car and around it, opening Riley’s door, then we walk to the front door together, carrying the wine in my arm. Her mother opens after we ring the bell once, and she steals Riley from my arms in what looks like a terrifyingly crushing hug. Riley cries softly into her mother's chest while I glance over top of them into the house.
As suspected, it's decked out for Christmas with a massive tree dominating the room, lights sparkling on almost every surface, and a pile of gifts under the tree that rival the toys in Santa's workshop. I see Riley's father come into view in a doorway and he still looks like he hates me.
"Thank you for taking care of my daughter," Mrs. Maddox says, and I hear the tremor in her voice. "We were so worried."
"She didn't need much taking care of," I say. "You raised an incredible woman."
Riley's sister steps forward as we're ushered into the room and Mrs. Maddox closes the door behind us. I see the skepticism written all over her face. She's shorter than Riley, curvier, with the same light brown hair and green-hazel eyes. But where Riley's gaze is steady and assessing, Lila's is guarded.
She nudges into the hug between mother and daughter and wraps her arms around them both. It's difficult watching these women cry so much and all over something I started, but it's good to see them back together. I know the way humans work,and while Mr. Maddox may never forgive me, healing is already happening in this family.
When they break up, the youngest Riley woman turns toward me. "I'm Lila," she says. "Riley's sister."
"Nice to meet you." I offer my hand in a hand shake and she barely grips it.
"You too." She doesn't sound convinced yet, but I'm sure I'll win her over.
Riley's father hasn't moved from his position near the doorway, and I can feel his eyes on me. Like any man assessing a potential partner brought home by a daughter, Mr. Maddox's eyes bore into me. He's a proud man. I can tell it by how his chest is puffed out and his arms are crossed in anger. And he doesn't like not being in control. It makes it easy for me to know how to handle him.
"Rafe is a businessman," Riley says, filling up the hollow silence. "He owns a pharmaceutical distribution company. We met a few weeks ago, and he just swept me off my feet. I know it sounds crazy, but I've never felt this way about anyone before."
Her mother smiles, and I see tears glistening in her eyes. "Love doesn't always make sense. Sometimes it just happens." She's holding Riley's hand now, guiding us toward the chunky furniture. Lila is strangely quiet, still clinging to Riley's side as we go, and I still hold the wine in my arm like a tiny infant.
"Exactly," Riley says, and she looks up at me with an expression so full of affection that I almost forget we're lying to everyone.
Her mother claps her hands together. "Well, you must both be exhausted. Why don't you sit down, and I'll make some tea? Or coffee? Rafe, what do you prefer?"
