“Mamma and Daddy, this is Lucas Creed. And this is his mom, Dr. Tabitha Creed, and his brother, Lincoln.”
Lucas smiled and extended his good arm to Bill. Bella held her breath and prayed silently that her dad would accept his hand. Bella sighed with relief when her dad smiled and grasped Lucas' hand.
“Daddy, Lucas is Bella’s boyfriend,” Donatella added.
Bella cut her eyes at her shit-starting twin sister. If she were healthy, she’d be tempted to smack the silly grin off of her face.
“It’s nice to meet you, young man,” Bill greeted enthusiastically.
“It’s my pleasure, sir.”
“Bill. Call me Bill,” her dad insisted.
Lucas nodded his compliance and turned to Bella’s mom. “Mrs. Devereaux, it’s so nice to meet you.”
Bella’s eyes grew wide when her mom rushed up to Lucas and grasped his good shoulder. She smiled up at him, and Bella instantly felt sorry for him. She could tell that he had no idea how to respond.
“You and my Bella could makebeautifulbabies,” her mom predicted.
Bella’s mouth flew open. She was absolutely mortified. Lucas squinted and graced her mother with his adorably sexy, lopsided grin.
“You really think so?” he asked her.
“Lucas!” Bella scolded.
“What?” he argued with a shrug. “My mom said the same thing. They both can’t be wrong,”
“Excuse me, everyone,” Bella’s dad asserted, drawing everyone’s attention to him. With a true fan’s excitement, he smiled wide and pointed to the hallway. “The governor is out there!” he announced, enthused. “And a senator too!”
Bella laughed with everyone else at her dad’s fanatic enthusiasm. For some reason, it hurt a little less than it did before. “Daddy, the governor and the senator are out there becauseheis in here,” Bella explained, gesturing toward Lucas.
Winona shook her head at her husband’s silly behavior and walked over to Tabitha. Maybe since they shared the same motherly concern and relief that their children were alive and well, the women greeted with a hug.
“So, this is where you moved the party,” Victor said from the doorway.
He held the door open so that Taylor and his father, Victor Senior, could enter. No more than thirty seconds later, Lucas’ other brothers, Alexander and Jaysen, walked in. The small hospital room was bursting at the seams with family. And just when she thought that no one else could fit in the room, Dean rushed in. He hurried over to Bella, clutched her face in his hands, and kissed her forehead.
“Whoa! Back up, big guy. That’s my brother’s lady,” Lincoln warned, grabbing Dean’s arm.
Dean stiffened and looked down at Lincoln’s hand on his arm and then right into Lincoln’s eyes. The look in Dean’s eyes was nothing short of menacing. And, If Bella wasn’t sure, she would swear that Dean growled.
“Dean…” Bella whispered sternly.
She was maybe the only one in the tiny room that had seen Dean lose control. Gay or not, he was very protective…very alpha.
“Hold on,” Lucas intervened, grabbing Lincoln’s arm. He pulled his brother back and walked over to Dean. “Stop kissing my woman,” Lucas scolded.
Dean turned to Lucas with narrowed eyes. “Your woman?”
“My woman,” Lucas verified, confidently.
Dean may not have noticed, but Bella sensed that the Creed brothers were super alert and ready to pounce. Dean was big and he was strong, but so were the Creeds—all of them. Bella attempted to sit up. She was worried for her ex-husband and friend.
Dean looked at Bella for verification. “You his woman?” he asked.
The entire room went silent, waiting for Bella to respond. “I…we…well…we’re…yes. Yes, I am.”
Dean’s expression turned soft. Bella could see the approval in his eyes as he smiled. “That’swonderful, Bells,” he said with a sincere expression. He grabbed her hand and squeezed gently. He looked back at Lucas. “No kissing your woman,” he promised.
Lucas laughed and patted Dean on the back. “Good shit,” he responded with a smirk. “Come here. Let me introduce you to my family.”
Bella relaxed as she watched how everyone in the room was interacting. Introducing Lucas and his family to her family had turned out much better than Bella had expected.
