Yeah. I had handled it. The bet was dead, and Harper would never have to know it existed in the first place.
Crisis fucking averted.
What fucking idiots.
TWENTY-SEVEN
The next day, I was not at all surprised when my parents showed up with groceries, more toys than I knew what to do with, and Ava in tow.
“I figured you could use a nice home-cooked meal after that big win yesterday,” Mom said as she walked past me.
“Couldn’t stop her if I’d tried. Now where’s my sweet grand baby?” Dad asked as he glanced past me to where Rory was sitting in the swing they’d bought for her. She loved that thing, and it worked miracles when it came to settling her—unlike my tragic attempts at singing.
Ava smiled as she closed the door behind them. “Mom texted me when they were five minutes away and insisted on it being a surprise.”
“Oh yeah, it’s a real surprise when she does this every weekend she can. Gordy and Liam have gotten used to getting Mom’s home-cooked meals now.”
Ava laughed but she got it.
And truthfully, we were lucky. We had two loving and supportive parents who were always there for us. It wasmore than a lot of people had and I wasn’t going to take it for granted.
By early evening, my mother had staged a complete kitchen takeover, producing a lasagna that made the entire house smell like a high-end Italian restaurant. She’d been dropping hints about “settling down” all afternoon, as if dating was anywhere on my priority list when I had school to juggle and a daughter to raise. When the doorbell rang, I sent up a silent thank you for the distraction.
“I’ll get it,” Ava said, giving me a wink like she knew she was stealing my chance to escape.
A moment later, I heard Harper’s voice, and my heart did a pathetic little tap dance. “Sorry to bother you,” she said, “but the Amazon delivery guy left this package for Liam at our house by mistake.”
Before I could intercept this disaster in progress, Ava was leading Harper into the living room. Her hair was pulled back in a messy bun with curls escaping like they were making a break for freedom.
“Harper,” I said, trying to sound casual instead of as if I was having a minor coronary. “Hey.”
“Hey,” she replied, holding a box in her hand. “Delivery mix-up. I figured it might be?—”
Her words died as she spotted my parents. The temperature in the room seemed to drop ten degrees in an instant. Dad’s spine went ramrod straight, and Mom’s smile froze on her face like she’d just seen a ghost.
“HarperTinsley,” Dad said, his voice carefully neutral but with an undercurrent of tension I recognized from every business negotiation I’d ever seen him conduct.
Harper raised her chin slightly. “Hello, Mr. Dumontier.”
The silence that followed was excruciating. Of course,Rory chose that moment to squeal and give her gummy, toothless smile to one of her favorite people.
The tension in Harper’s face melted away as she smiled at my daughter, and my chest ached at how easily she loved on her. “Hey, little one.”
When she looked back up, the stiffness around her eyes returned. “I should go,” Harper said, placing Liam’s package on the side table. “I didn’t mean to interrupt your family time.”
“Nonsense,” Mom said, her voice strained but making a visible effort. She exchanged a quick glance with Dad before continuing. “You’re already here. Why don’t you join us for dinner?”
I nearly choked on my own spit. Mom inviting a Tinsley to dinner was like the Pope inviting a vampire to Easter Sunday mass.
“Oh, I couldn’t—” Harper started.
“I insist,” Mom said with a smile that looked painfully forced. “Any…friend…of Drew’s is welcome at our table.”
The way she hesitated before the word “friend” spoke volumes. This wasn’t about hospitality—this was reconnaissance. My mother wanted to figure out exactly what was going on between me and a Tinsley. Dad’s expression suggested he’d rather eat glass, but he gave a short nod of agreement.
“There’s plenty of food,” I said, suddenly desperate for Harper to stay, if only to prove that the universe wouldn’t implode if a Dumontier and a Tinsley broke bread together. “But no pressure.”
Harper hesitated, her eyes meeting mine with a question in them that I couldn’t quite decipher. “Uh, if you insist.”
