“Emily.”
I forced myself to turn, bracing myself for questions I didn’t want to answer.
But he just reached over and took my hand, bringing it to his lips, pressing a kiss to my palm before threading his fingers through mine. Simple. Steady. No demands, no expectations. Just connection.
“We’re good,” he said quietly. “Whatever pace you need, we go at that pace. Okay?”
I had to swallow around the lump in my throat before I could answer. “Okay.”
He squeezed my hand once, then released it to put the truck in gear. “Actually, before we go, I should probably warn you about something.”
The shift in topic was so welcome I could have kissed him again. Well, maybe not right this second, but later. Definitely later.
“What’s that?”
“I got a text from my dad this morning.” He pulled out of the driveway, his jaw working slightly. “My mom’s feeling up to going to the game today.”
“That’s great! I’m glad she’s recovering well.”
“Yeah.” He hesitated before continuing. “Thing is, when my parents go somewhere, it tends to become a family event.”
I blinked. “What do you mean?”
“I mean my brother Travis and his family are coming. And my sister Erica with her husband and kid. So it’s not just going to be us and the girls today. It’s going to be the whole Rockford circus.”
Oh.
Oh.
My stomach, which had been doing pleasant flips, now twisted into something resembling a pretzel.
“Your whole family.” I tried to keep my voice even. “As in, everyone.”
“Pretty much. I’m sorry. I should have warned you earlier, but I only found out about an hour ago. If you want to bail, I completely understand.”
Did I want to bail? My brain was screaming various conflicting messages. Meeting his entire family felt like a very big deal. A “we’re actually doing something here” kind of deal. But also, I’d already said yes to the game, and backing out now would be weird, right? “It’s fine. I want to go.”
“You sure?” He was watching the road now, a slight frown between his brows. “Because if it’s too much, I get it. We just kissed and now I’m dragging you to a family event. That’s a lot.”
“It is a lot,” I admitted, because there was no point pretending otherwise. “But only a hurricane could stop me from watching today’s game, so we’re going.”
His shoulders relaxed and that almost-smile returned. “It could be worse than a hurricane.”
“I’ll handle it,” I replied, with way more confidence than I felt.
CAM
“That’s my dad’s truck,” I pulled into a parking space reasonably close to the stadium entrance. “Last chance to back out.”
Emily laughed softly, the sound sliding over my skin. She had the sweetest laugh. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
“Come on then.”
It was all I could do not to take her hand as we walked across the lot.
Dad, standing by his truck holding the door open for Mom, spotted us. His face lit up. “Cam!” Then his gaze shifted to Emily and his eyebrows rose. “And who’s this?”
“Dad, this is Emily. Emily, my dad, Dale.”
