Once Lina had her in the kitchen, she began asking other cooking questions, playing up her supposed ignorance and Brenda’s superior knowledge. Lina looked behind her to see Dillon standing in the doorway, watching them. He shook his head, silently laughing. From their question game in the apartment gym, he was quite aware of her experience with cooking and baking. Lina hadn’t bragged, but she hadn’t been overly modest either.
Whatever. Asking for an impromptu instruction on how to make deviled eggs was a great way to keep Brenda occupied so Heather could slowly acclimate herself to the rest of the family. Lina hoped this girl was worth it. Kip really did seem to care about her a lot. His eyes rarely left Heather’s face.
Dillon still owed Lina big time, but she had to admit, stepping into an acting role like this was sort of fun.
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Chapter 5
Rick showed up just in time to carve the turkey, and Trent fifteen minutes after that, his top button undone and his tie loose around his neck. It was getting hard to remember what Trent looked like in anything other than work clothes.
Dillon hoped Lina was up for all this. His stepfather, Rick, had an ongoing love affair with hearing himself talk, and Trent was as blunt as Josie, but less eager to please. Trent had a knack for catching people off guard and getting them to say things they wouldn’t otherwise. The law firm he worked for often used that particular skill for cross examinations in court, even though Trent was only a junior associate.
“Who are you?” Trent asked Lina, like she might have wandered in by mistake. He glanced around the table and spied Heather next to Kip. “And you I don’t know either. Kip’s girl, right?”
“Sit down, Trent,” Mom coaxed. “This is Heather Cahill, Kip’s girlfriend, and over there is Lina James, Dillon’s girlfriend.”
Trent sat down in the empty seat next to Lina and leaned over her to talk to Dillon. “How come I haven’t met this one? Is she here because of Kip’s…” he lowered his voice “…request?”
Dillon made a cutting motion and looked across the table to see Alec listening with interest. Why didn’t it occur to him that his brothers would be suspicious of anyone he brought?
Lina put out a hand for Trent to shake. “You have a very nice Troll doll collection, but you’re never home. Happy to finally meet you.”
Lina’s ability to fib while still telling the truth was downright scary. Dillon was equal parts impressed and intimidated by it. She’d saved him from spilling his guts and outing them both right then and there.
Trent shook her hand, already losing interest now that he assumed Lina was just a new girlfriend he hadn’t met. He went back to methodically rubbing his fork and spoon with his napkin.
Under the table, Lina rubbed Dillon’s knee, a reminder that everything would be fine. He put his hand over hers, ignoring how good it felt to lace their fingers together. It was a friendly gesture, nothing more. After a few seconds he pulled away.
Rick tinged his water glass to get everyone’s attention. “Time for toasts.”
Mom clapped her hands. Alec and Trent groaned.
“Toasts are for when you have alcohol at the table,” Alec pointed out.
That earned him a reproving look from Mom. “I would think, being a recovering alcoholic, you wouldn’t make jokes like that.”
“Actually, that makes me the only person qualified to crack those kinds of jokes.” Alec lifted his water glass. “Okay, if we’re doing this, I’m going first. Because otherwise I’ll forget my speech while Rick talks all night.”
“Here, here,” Josie said, lifting her glass.
Mom would have lectured them both, but Rick laughed and waved at Alec to go ahead.
Lina didn’t seem fazed by any of it. She watched Alec, her eyes alert in anticipation of his speech. Dillon’s arm brushed against hers when he set down his water glass, reminding him he was supposed to be acting like a boyfriend, or at least an attentive date. As it was, Lina was carrying their whole ruse with little help from him.
He put his arm around the back of her chair and ran a finger down a silky strand of her hair. She leaned into him and smiled, as if their affection were the most natural thing in the world. He missed having this kind of connection with someone, where you were pulled into their orbit, constantly aware of their physical presence and worried about their well-being. He wished all his relationships were as easy as this fake one.
Alec cracked a few inside family jokes that made Heather squirm and Lina belly laugh. He raised his glass once more to end his toast. “Wish Dad were here.”
Rick graciously raised his glass to that. “To your dad.”
“Who’s next?” Mom asked. “Trent, would you like to say something?”
Trent, his mouth full of salad, shook his head and pointed at Kip.
“Sure, why not.” Kip lifted his glass, glancing over at Heather with obvious affection. “It’s good to be here, and even better with the woman I love. Heather is strong, smart, caring, and the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Thanks for coming with me, Heather.”
Heather cracked a rare smile. “I love you too. More than I can say.” She reached over and kissed him tenderly.
