A movement behind Mom draws my attention, and I spot the man who must be Rick. He meets my eyes and smiles, wearing a self-deprecating expression that puts me on edge. He extends a suit-clad arm in my direction, perhaps sensing that I’ll be the hardest to win over.
“I’ve heard a lot about you.” His attention darts to Mom, then back to me. “Thank you for coming.”
My lips purse. Listen to this guy, welcoming me to the house as if I wasn’t the one who bought it. Mom’s name is on the deed, but I provided it to her, and this asshat can’t pretend to be a gracious host.
Ashlin
I bury my face in my palms. We’re not even here two minutes and Seth is already looking at Mae’s boyfriend like he wants to go three rounds with him in the cage. I lay a hand on his arm and will my calmness to seep through the fabric of his shirt and into his bloodstream. Soothing him has always been my superpower, although it’s been a while since I exercised it. I shift closer to him and sense a fragment of his tension ease as he loops an arm around my waist.
“Hi,” I say in greeting. The man beside Mae is a silver fox, although his silver is broken up by remnants of dark brown. The crinkles around his eyes deepen as he smiles, suggesting he does it often. “I’m Ashlin. It’s lovely to meet you.”
Rick shifts the hand that Seth left hanging and offers it to me. “You, too. I’m looking forward to getting to know you better.”
At this, Seth blows air out of his nose like a temperamental bull. I reach behind him and pinch his butt. He startles, but it effectively knocks him out of the mood he was working himself into. I’m not sure why meeting his mother’s boyfriend is so hard for him, but he has a lot of issues when it comes to his birth father, so maybe that plays into it. Or perhaps he’s just protective of the woman who raised him.
“Hey.” Harley pushes in beside us, and diverts Rick’s attention. “I’m Harley, and this is Devon.”
He shakes each of their hands in turn. “Rick. Has Mae explained—”
“We know who you are,” Seth cuts in, and I sigh from exasperation. I spent many years of my life loving this man, but he can be difficult at times, especially when he thinks someone he cares about is being taken advantage of. He’s intensely loyal.
“Well, good.” To Rick’s credit, he chuckles. “That saves me from using the term ‘boyfriend.’ It really isn’t appropriate for anyone over thirty.”
Harley nods and raises her bag. “Where should we put our stuff?”
“This way.” Mae leads us into the house, across a tiled foyer, and down a long hall. She gestures at doors on each side of the hall. “Devon and Harley are in that one, and Seth and Ashlin are in the other.” She stops, then flushes bright pink and stammers, “If you’re, you know, together. We can put you in separate rooms if you’d prefer?”
“One is fine,” I assure her, wanting to put her at ease because Seth sure isn’t going to do it.
“Phew.” She visibly relaxes. “Get yourselves set up, and I’ll serve dinner in the dining room in five minutes.”
“Perfect, Mrs. Isles.” Devon kisses her cheek. “We’ll be there soon.”
I take Seth’s hand and yank him into the bedroom, then close the door and spin to face him. “Behave yourself.”
His jaw works and he presses his lips together in a man-pout. “That guy is too smooth. I don’t like it.”
“You’ve known him for two minutes,” I point out. “Your mom cares about him, and it’s the first time she’s bothered trying to get you here to meet a man in person, so how about you respect her enough to reserve judgment?”
A furrow indents the space between his brows. He clearly didn’t expect this. But then, he’s been so wrapped up in his own angst over coming here that perhaps everything else has faded into the background.
I soften my tone. “I know it’s hard for you to be here, and I’ll do whatever I can to help, but please try not to take your stress out on others.”
He sighs, and drops a kiss on my forehead. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I just hate this fucking place.” He opens his arms and hauls me close. I wriggle back a little so he doesn’t squish my breasts, which are oddly tender today. “I’ll try to rein it in. Feel free to pinch my ass anytime you need.”
I roll my eyes. “There he is.” I hug him. “Come on, slugger. Let’s wash our hands for dinner.”
We clean up, and head to the table. Devon and Harley are already there, and Harley’s hair is disheveled in a way that makes me think Devon’s had his hands all through it. I catch her gaze and wink. She blushes, yanks out her hair tie, and fixes it before Mae returns.
“Did Ash talk to you about playing nice?” Harley asks Seth.
“Yeah.” He rubs his jaw. “I’ll try to do better.”
We all glance up as Mae and Rick enter, each carrying a platter. They set them down in the center of the table.
“Tacos?” Devon asks with a grin.
Mae smiles at him. “Assemble your own.”
