Page 45 of Some Sort of Happy (Happy Crazy Love 1)
“Tomorrow at work,” I promised.
“Sebastian, why don’t you sit here next to Skylar?” my mother suggested, pulling her usual chair for him. I sent her a grateful look.
Natalie sat on Sebastian’s other side, and Dan next to her. I wondered if she’d confronted him about the text messages yet. We’d have to talk about that tomorrow, too.
“Sebastian, did you have an older brother?” asked Jillian, who was seated across from him. “I went to school with a Malcolm Pryce.”
He nodded. “Yes, that’s my brother. He’s three years older than I am.”
“Does he still live around here?”
“Traverse City. He’s an attorney in my father’s practice, also.”
OK, so far so good. He wasn’t exactly relaxing in his chair, but his tone of voice sounded normal.
Jillian picked up a salad bowl. “Oh, are you a lawyer?”
“Yes.” He swallowed, maybe bracing himself for more questions about his past, and I put my hand on his leg to remind him he had a friend at the table. I wasn’t going to let the conversation go anywhere that would embarrass him. I might not have a college degree but I was a master at manipulating a crowd. He patted my hand, and I smiled at him.
Suddenly I could feel my mother’s eyes on me, and I could just imagine how pleased she was—not only had I brought a handsome new friend to dinner, but he was a lawyer too. Imagine that, Skylar did something right! Frowning, I picked up my wine glass and took a big sip.
The rest of the meal went smoothly, and even if Sebastian remained a little tense, he fielded questions politely and complimented my mother on her cooking. I winced once when Dan asked him why he’d moved back here from New York, but he simply said he missed the area and wanted to be closer to his family. My shoulders wilted with relief, and I put my hand back on his leg under the table. He covered it with his again, and this time, he left it there.
Our eyes met in the mirror above the sideboard on the opposite wall, and something about the look we exchanged made my panties get a little wet. Maybe it was just the candlelight playing tricks on me, but I liked the fire I saw in his eyes, which looked darker in the dim room.
After coffee and dessert, my sisters and I helped my mother bus the table, and then they shooed me back into the living room, where Sebastian sat with Dan and my father discussing the lack of skill in the Tiger bullpen.
He stood when I entered. “I should get going.”
“I’ll walk you out,” I said, hoping our evening wasn’t over but unsure how to keep it going.
Sebastian thanked my parents for dinner and shook everyone’s hands—I wondered if handshakes still bothered him—and we walked outside. The sun was setting, bathing the farm in beautiful amber light. Row after row of cherry trees in bloomed on the hills, and I inhaled the lush air, which was much cooler than it had been all day.
“So was it torture?” I asked as we strolled toward his truck, wrapping my arms around myself to fight the chill.
“Yes.”
I elbowed him, and he elbowed me back.
“Your family is very nice.”
“They are, thanks. Sorry for all the questions. They can be so overbearing sometimes.”
He smiled slightly. “That’s OK. Nothing I couldn’t handle tonight.”
“I’m glad.”
We reached his truck and he took his keys from his pocket. Part of me wanted to invite him in to my guest house for a beer, but another part said that wouldn’t be wise. Maybe it was enough today that we’d spent time alone, that we’d kissed, that he’d had dinner with my family.
“Well, goodnight. Thanks for coming.” Rising up on tiptoe, I put my hands on his chest and kissed his cheek. He kissed mine too, and then pulled me in close for a hug. I held him tight, my arms around his neck, our chests pressed together. I could smell the clean, masculine scent of his skin, feel his breaths start to come faster, igniting the hum inside my body. My thoughts strayed to my vibrator.
“It’s the c
raziest thing,” he said in my ear, his voice low and raw.
“What is?”
“I don’t want to leave you.”
