Page 56 of Kick the Candle (Knight Games 2)
"I don't have cancer."
I breathed a sigh of relief. "Then what is all of this?"
Hands on hips, he pressed his lips together. "You're going to find out sooner or later. I might as well just tell you now."
I bobbed my head emphatically.
He opened his mouth but, like a cartoon, the sound of the doorbell replaced his voice. Holding up one finger, he backed into the foyer and reached for the doorknob. Who the hell was visiting my dad on Thanksgiving? If it was a client, we'd have to have a serious talk about boundaries.
The bell ringer was a ballerina. Tall, lanky, graceful, and holding a casserole dish. Since when did ballerinas deliver Thanksgiving casseroles?
"Seraphina, you look lovely as always." Dad extended his hand, and she nestled her long fingers in his palm. He helped her over the threshold. Yeah, like that quarter inch strip of wood was a hazard. Don't let her go, she might trip on the rug. Now his hand was on the small of her back, pressing into the graceful drape of her tailored black wool coat. I pressed my lips together to keep my mouth from falling open.
"Thank you, again, for inviting me, Robert." Her too full lips planted on his cheek in slow motion, leaving a smear of red lipstick in her wake. Then she turned her sights on me. Her eyes were green with flecks of amber and gold around the pupil that brought out the highlights in her golden brown hair. And she was young. Really young.
"Dad, aren't you going to introduce us?" I muttered.
He cleared his throat. "Of course. Grateful, this is my girlfriend, Seraphina. Seraphina, my daughter, Grateful."
Girlfriend? "How old are you?" I sputtered. "Oh, hell, that was rude. I'm sorry." I pressed my thumb and forefinger into my temple.
My father held up his hands. "I should have told you..." His voice trailed off and his eyes rolled toward the ceiling.
Seraphina gave my father a harsh look and handed him the casserole.
"Sorry about that. Let's start again," I offered. "I'm Grateful."
"Seraphina." She extended her perfectly manicured hand.
I waited for a "nice to meet you" or some sort of greeting that would indicate she accepted my apology but all I got was a retraction of her hand and a regal movement of her fingers, like she was waving our greeting out of the air before the smell could hit her. We all stood staring at each other. Dad made a sound like a cough. Seraphina rubbed the palms of her hands together. My lips parted. I was staring, definitely staring. She had no pores. Was she my age? She couldn't be much older.
"Can I take your coat?" Dad finally said. Seraphina nodded and shrugged it off into his hands, exposing a red wrap dress that showed off her ridiculously svelte figure.
I forced my lips to form words. "Can I get you a drink?"
"Don't you want to take off your coat, too?" Dad asked.
Crap. I unbuttoned and handed the heavy wool to my dad, flashing him a confused and accusatory look.
"Dad, can I talk to you in the kitchen for a moment?"
"Of course, honey. Seraphina, wine?"
"Please."
Dad led the way through the dining room and the swinging white door into the kitchen. I waited until there was a polite amount of space between us and the complete stranger he'd invited to our family gathering before I raised eyebrows and pointed at the closed door.
He answered without me having to ask. "She was a client. We hit it off. We've been dating a couple of months."
"And it's already serious enough to bring her home to meet the family?"
From a cabinet behind me, he retrieved a wine glass. "Wine?"
"Ooooh yeah."
He pulled down two more and retrieved a bottle of red wine from a rack on the counter. "I've been lonely, Grateful. Your mom's been gone a long time. She's a beautiful, intelligent woman. Give her a chance."
All of my annoyance drained out of me, replaced by guilt for not putting my father's happiness above my own. He had never introduced me to a woman before. Did I expect him to play the monk forever? It was one afternoon and it was his house. Was it too much for him to ask for me to put on my happy face and deal for one afternoon? No. And I was a complete bitch to even suggest it. "Oh...ah...I want you to be happy, Dad. Of course she's welcome. I just wish you had warned me. I'm shocked, that's all. I've never seen you with a woman before."
