“It’s complicated,” I grumbled, my grip on the phone tightening.
“How complicated can it be?” She let out a dramatic sigh.
“A reporter saw us together, and we had to move quickly to save both our careers.” I licked my dry lips. The thought of being engaged to Vane was daunting, yet more exciting than I expected.Fuck. I’d barely been in a relationship, and now I was fucking engaged. “The mayor wanted to move quickly to save our reputations, so I became Vane’s fiancé. I… fuck. I like him, Elsie. How stupid is that?”
She laughed low. “That’s not stupid. I suspected, at least.”
“How?” I sat up straighter and my gaze slid to the front door, which Dad had opened to check outside. I raised my hand at him to gesture I’d be in soon, and he waved back before he went inside again. He’d only just been released from the hospital a few days ago, and I hated that he was up and walking around, but Mom had insisted she’d tried to make him sit still, without avail.
“Well….” She giggled and I imagined the smile she was wearing. “You never talked about sex with him. You told me all about the other guys you slept with to get what you want. Their kinks. The size of their dicks. Everything. This one? You didn’t tell me a thing. I begged for gossip, but from the first time you slept with him, you didn’t give me one detail. What does that tell you?”
I snorted. I’d never thought about it like that.
“You liked him from the start. I’m just mad at you.” She huffed.
“Why?” I opened the car door and stepped out before closing and locking it with the keys Vane had given me before he went inside. Stretching, I stared around the front lawn dotted with snow from a light flurry we’d had earlier tonight.
“Because you never told me how much you like him.”
“I didn’t know,” I grumbled, running a hand over my head.
“Well, now you do, and you’re engaged. I want to be your maid of honor. No negotiations. My dress will be black and backless.”
I shook my head and held back a laugh. “If we really are engaged, it’ll be a few years yet. He hasn’t even taken me on a real date.”
“Well then, he better get to it, or I’ll whip his ass into shape.” There was a pause, then a gasp. “I forgot about the casserole I have in the oven. I have to go.”
I rolled my eyes and laughed. “Bye, Elsie.”
“Bye, sweetums.” The line went dead and I shook my head, shoving my phone into a pocket of my jacket. Sometimes I wondered how I’d become friends with her in the first place, but then I remembered how fun she truly was. She understood me when others couldn’t, so if she said I’d felt something for Vane from the start, maybe I had.
Trudging to the front door, I turned the knob and stepped into the warmth of the small house. Laughter met my ears, and I couldn’t help but smile because it wasn’t just Mom and Dad laughing, but Vane too. The sound gave me goose bumps. He didn’t laugh much, and when he did, I reveled in the genuineness.
I followed the laughter into the living room and rolled my eyes at the sight I found. Mom and Vane were sitting on the couch together, the family photo album open to a particularly embarrassing snapshot of me as a baby, ice-cream cone in my hand and a blob of ice cream splattered on the ground between my legs. I’d looked devastated, big eyes staring down at the ice cream like it was the end of the world.
Dad sat in his armchair, feet kicked up on the footrest and eyes half closed. I didn’t blame him, though. That chair was comfortable enough that even I’d nearly fallen asleep a few times while nestled in its coziness.
Mom threw a grin at me over her shoulder. “Well, look who decided to grace us with his presence.”
I shrugged. “I was on the phone with Elsie.”
Dad, eyes still closed, snorted. “That explains it all.”
Vane raised his eyebrows and glanced from me to Dad. “I’ve yet to meet Elsie.”
“You’re lucky,” Dad said with a deep chuckle.
“Gary!” Mom gasped, and I laughed harder. Dad loved Elsie, but she was definitely one of a kind.
Shaking my head, I moved around the couch and took the seat beside Vane. He curled his arm around me, and I leaned into him, the woodsy scent of his cologne making me shudder in pleasure. I’d grown so used to his smell now that it sent a calming wave through me.
I didn’t miss the way Mom and Dad smiled at us, and I resisted the urge to bury my face in Vane’s shoulder. I refused to be embarrassed by this, no matter that I’d never brought home a boyfriend because I’d never really had one.
“So….” Dad grinned and I waited for the inevitable. “Engaged, huh? Did you get my son pregnant, Vane?”
It was a joke, but I winced all the same.Fuck. Dad had no idea what kind of topic he’d hit with his attempt at humor. I sent Vane an apologetic glance, but he had his attention on my dad, a smirk curving at the corner of his mouth.
“It’s true. We’re expecting a baby in eight months.”
