“Betty, what the hell is going on?” Beckett ignores me, just as his sister steps from behind me, her hand blindly grabbing hold of mine.
My eyes never leave her brother. I don’t think he’d do anything stupid and attack, but there’s too much emotion in his eyes to predict what his next reaction will be.
A chill shoots up my arm as Betty releases my hand, slowly stepping toward her brother. “Listen to me, Beckett. Nash and I…”
“Nash and you what? Why ismyfriend basically screwingmylittle sister in our parents’ kitchen?” Beckett’s tone shifts. The words began as a snarl until the anger fades and they become a broken mutter. It’s heartbreaking to witness. We never intended to hurt anyone, but that’s what this is. Hurt. Betrayal.
He and Betty have always been close. The two of them might as well have been twins with how much time they spent together growing up and how they’ve always confided in one another. They still have weekly lunches that they never miss.
Betty slowly wraps her arms around her brother’s middle, resting her cheek against his chest before she speaks again. She, too, keeps her tone soft. “Nash told you, it’s not like that. We’re… together.” That pause makes my heart sink. She wasn’t ready to tell them about us, and now, because I couldn’t avoid kissing her, she’s been forced to.
Will I ever stop hurting this woman?
“You two are dating?” Beckett’s brow scrunches low, his eyes darting between me and his sister. Betty only nods, stepping out of her brother’s hold. “And you weren’t going to tell us?” The pain of our secret causes Beckett’s words to crack. When I didn’t think I could feel any worse about the situation, I suddenly do.
“We, um, were going to tell you all tonight,” Betty mumbles.
My buddy’s eyes narrow on me. Surely my face is an obvious display of my surprise at her words.
Trembling fingers once again take hold of mine before she leads us out of the kitchen and onto the back patio. I want so badly to hold her. To take away the fear and anxiety that must be coursing through her right now. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.
“Mom, Dad,” Betty swallows hard. “Uh, we have something to tell you.”
Three sets of eyes focus on my face, Beckett keeping to the doorway with his arms crossed and one ankle resting over the other. Their two dogs stand before sitting down at his feet, as if they, too, are ready for our announcement.
Inhaling deeply, my mouth opens, shuts, then stretches open again. “Mr. and Mrs. Hughes, Betty and I are dating. It’s fairly new, and we weren’t planning to announce it yet, but it feels right to be honest with you. Y’all have been so good to me since we met, and I want you to know how much it means to me to call Betty mine. I also want you to know I never thought about her like that until a year ago.”
“And what changed then?” Mr. Hughes cocks his chin my way, his thick brows dipping low. Placing his beer bottle on the table, he leans back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. Beckett has never looked as much like him as he does now. Their hard expressions once again making me sweat as they wait for my answer.
I debate baring it all, explaining where we started and how I fucked up multiple times before we made it here. But I don’t. Betty already wasn’t prepared for this, so I’m not embarrassing her too.
My gaze meets Betty’s, a hint of a smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. “Someone opened my eyes to what was right in front of me.”
A tear streaks down Mrs. Hughes’s cheek, a tissue dabbed there as if she’d been prepared. “Well, I, for one, am glad you both found comfort in one another. We’ve worried about you over the years, Nash, and our Betty has always wanted a family of her own. I think you two are well matched.”
Beckett and Mr. Hughes both snap their focus on Mrs. Hughes, and every bit of tension seems to float out of our bodies.
“You’re okay with us?” Betty whimpers.
“Is there a reason we shouldn’t be?” Mr. Hughes interjects.
“I—” Betty begins, squeezing my hand. Releasing her, I pull her into my side, kissing the top of her head before lowering into the seat behind me. She sinks into my lap without a fight, her arms wrapping tightly around my middle.
“No. There’s not, but I’m also not naïve enough to think there might not be some hesitation because of my age or…” My words drift into the space between us. Maybe I’ve said too much.
Mrs. Hughes waves her crumpled tissue through the air. “Oh, nonsense. This man here has almost fifteen years on me. We care how you treat our daughter, not that you have a head start on gray hairs.”
I nearly choke on my laughter. Betty’s eyes flash wide at her mother’s comment. Beckett doubles over, coughing loudly to hide his own laughter, and just like that, all is right in the world.
“Thank you,” she whispers in my ear, kissing my cheek.
Brushing my lips against her temple, I hold her a little closer. “I told you I’d prove how much I want you, Andromeda.”
“Okay, enough of that canoodlin’,” Mr. Hughes huffs. “Nash, you ran scared last dinner, and I didn’t get to beat you in trivia. You’re not escaping this time.”
We all groan, knowing this is going to be a long night. It’s the game we’ve always played. Facts bound us together over the years. Mr. Hughes acts as if I’ve ever beaten him in trivia. I haven’t, not once. They’re a family of brainiacs.
But there’s one fact I know without a shadow of a doubt. I am in love with his daughter, and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for her.
