Page 169 of Fifty First Times (Sharing You 0.40)
I stepped into those and turned around to strap my bra on—totally necessary for a chesty girl like me—and then pulled another one of his old lacrosse T-shirts over my head. “This is the best it’s going to get for today—I don’t have time to hunt for my shirt in here.”
“You look hot,” he said.
I smacked a kiss on his cheek and walked into the living room to gather my things. Tal followed me to the door. When I grabbed the handle, he grabbed my hand and spun me around, pinning me to the wall with a wicked look in his eye.
“You still haven’t told me what you’re going to do to make up this leaving-early thing to me.”
I laughed, my heart doing a flip. “What do you have in mind?”
“Come home with me next weekend? It’s Easter, and Easter is a thing for my family. Roast lamb, deviled eggs, horrible Jell-O, too much chocolate, pastel clothing, stuffed bunnies—the works. I want you to see where I grew up.”
“Home with you . . . to Napa?” He nodded. The look in his eyes told me the real meaning behind his words—I want you to hang out with my family. I want this to be serious.
My breaths threatened to become short again, but I quickly got them back under control. This was fine. This was just me going home with a guy I’d been dating for eight months and really, really, really liked. The flight was no big financial deal for him like it would have been for me—his family had money coming out of their ears. This didn’t mean I had to move in with him, or say I loved him—this was no big deal.
I cocked my head to the side, trying to look playful. “I’d love to,” I said, craning my neck up to give him slow, deep kiss.
“It’s a date, then,” he said, grinning from ear to ear, cupping my face in his hands for one more kiss. “Now go crush that midterm. I’ll see you later.”
FOUR DAYS, SEVERAL athletic romps between the sheets, and zero definitive feelings or declarations of love later, I was sitting next to Tal on a plane to Napa, trying to ignore the churning in my stomach as we hit a patch of turbulence.
“You don’t look so well,” he said, eyeing me watchfully. “Are you nervous?”
“No . . .” My voice trailed off. I actually wasn’t. I’d met his parents at Thanksgiving, and they were surprisingly normal for people who had money practically exploding from their pockets. They’d come down to LA because Tal was too buried in finals to travel up.
“Good. They’ve been wanting to see you again. They’ve never liked any of my girlfriends as much as they like you.”
“That’s weird.” I laughed nervously, suddenly stressed about making eye contact with him.
“It’s not weird at all,” he said, threading his fingers through mine and kissing my temple. “I agree with them.”
A warm, nagging feeling tugged in my chest. At twenty-two years old, I didn’t think I’d ever been in love. I’d had crushes on guys, but, I admitted to myself right then, I wasn’t sure I would know love if it hit me in the face. But I did know one thing for sure, and so I turned my face up to his and told him. “You are the best boyfriend I’ve ever had. Hands down.” He bent his face down to mine. “But don’t kiss me now. I feel like I’m gonna throw up.”
He gave me a gentle look of pity and pulled me to him, and I was really, really happy.
I’D GROWN UP in LA my whole life and never been to Napa. The switch from sand, stucco, and palm trees to rolling green mountains took my breath away. “This is incredible,” I breathed. “I can’t believe you grew up here.”
“Well, I sort of did,” Tal laughed. “Before Mom hit it big, we lived in a little white house just outside Simi Valley. I was eight when we moved up here.”
The driver wound through a road shaded by greenery for a few minutes before he turned onto a small pathway. “Geez, you guys really live in the Napa backwoods.”
“Oh no,” Tal said, squeezing my knee. “This is the driveway.”
Not twenty seconds later, we rolled up to a giant glass box with metal beams as a skeleton. I could see the entire sprawling living room and kitchen as the driver pulled into a spot right in front of the door. It was all luxurious couches and carpets, a humongous flat-screen TV, granite countertops, and hardwood floors. Like a very modern, elegant, non-gross hunting lodge.
My jaw dropped. “Lord, Tal. You told me we were coming to your house, not your mansion.”
He shrugged, looking like he had no concept of what was so shocking to me. “It’s just home to me.”
“Where are the bedrooms?” I asked.
“Oh,” he said, “the walls of those are opaque. Bedrooms and bathrooms are all on the top floor.”
Sure enough, there was a whole top floor to the house that blended in so well with the darkening woods that I barely noticed it.
Tal’s mom came strolling out of the house, wearing a simple sundress and sandals, arms stretched out for a hug. Tal gave her a quick one, and then she wrapped me in her arms, kissing each of my cheeks. She hadn’t done this at Thanksgiving, and my mom was certainly not known for her affection, so I tried my best to return the hug with enough affection.
“I’m so glad you two are here,” she said, smiling. “Talcott, take Anna’s bags to the guest house, and then come meet us. I hate to do this, but I’m going to have to leave you two to fend for yourselves in the kitchen tonight. We’re meeting Dad and some friends in town for dinner. It’s a standing Friday night thing,” she explained to me.
