Cristiana Chapter 11 #2
The interior was just as impressive as the exterior, in my opinion.
It had five bedrooms, four full bathrooms, two half-bathrooms, spanning over four thousand square feet, and a three-car garage.
There were coffered ceilings in the central family room and main bedroom.
The family room had a fireplace, just like the one in the main bedroom.
A spacious, high-end kitchen with plenty of counter and cabinet space was nearby.
Due to the fine day, we would be eating out on the enclosed rear porch, we were told.
Double walk-in closets, along with a stunning oversized walk-through shower, pedestal tub, and double sinks with a built-in makeup vanity, made their room a dream.
Downstairs was rounded off by a laundry, mud room, office, dining room, and a private owner’s area that could be used for almost anything: a study, gym, man cave, or, in the case of Mikhail and Tajah, a playroom for adults.
Upstairs, along with other bedrooms and bathrooms, was a common loft area.
Currently, they have Matea staying in a crib in their room. When she was older, they’d move her to one of the bedrooms. I didn’t blame them. As young as she was, I would never want my baby that far away. And it wasn’t like the main bedroom didn’t have room for her to be in it.
When we finished the tour and I had my fill of gushing, we rejoined the rest of the guests. The hours flowed by. I was relaxed and thoroughly enjoyed talking to everyone. I really found myself liking Cady, Victoria, and Alexandra even more and getting to know Sharlena.
At the moment, we were out in the backyard, and I happened to be alone with Sharlena. Reuben was off talking to Mikhail and Matvey. I found her very easy to talk to. We were on the topic of family. She’d asked if I had any brothers and sisters. I’d told her what I had.
“What about you? I know there’s Sawyer, but do the two of you have any other siblings?” I asked.
“No, it’s just us. Both our parents are gone. It’s us against the world, but we’ve always been close, even though he’s seven years older than me,” Sharlena admitted.
“You’re lucky to have each other. I don’t know what I would do without mine. And I have no doubt he’s protective like all brothers are.”
“Oh, he is, sometimes so much so, I want to brain him. I hope that if he settles down, he’ll have less time to be up in my business.
That reminds me. I have to tell you that he was excited when he met you.
He came home and told me about you. He was quick to tell me that others were vying for your attention.
“The only one he spoke badly about was that creep Rhys. He respects Iker and Reuben. And he likes Odin and Atlas. Sawyer asked me if I’d ever had any trouble with Rhys.
When I said no, I had to promise that if I did, I would tell my brother immediately.
Then, two weeks ago, he came home and told me he had lost any chance with you.
He likes to joke he’ll remain a single guy forever, but I know deep down he wants a wife and kids. ”
I felt awful. “Sharlena, I’m sorry if I upset your brother.
That was never my intention. I was flattered that more than one Dom was paying attention to me.
I assure you, I wasn’t stringing anyone along that night.
I had no idea Reuben was interested in me in a serious way until after that.
I thought he joined our group to keep an eye on Rhys,” I told her, mortified.
Sharlena gasped and clutched my hand. “Oh God, please don’t think I was calling you out. I wasn’t. Crap, Sawyer tells me all the time that I need to think before I speak. He’ll be pissed that I upset you.”
She appeared flustered and on the verge of tears.
I smiled. “Sharlena, take a deep breath. There’s no need to tell Sawyer anything about this conversation.
You did nothing wrong, and as long as you’re not angry with me, I’m fine.
We girls can keep this between us. I hope the fact that I disappointed him doesn’t mean we can’t be friends.
I’m pretty new to Nashville, and I haven’t made but a few friends, all of whom are here. ”
“Really? You want to be friends?” The way she asked it reminded me of a child, though she wasn’t one.
“I do. So, since we’re new friends, we should exchange numbers and get to know each other better. Let’s refill our drinks and find a place to sit.”
Sharlena happily followed me to where the drinks were to get new ones.
When I caught Reuben’s eyes, he mouthed, Are you okay?
I nodded and blew him a kiss. He winked, then went back to the conversation he was in.
It wasn’t long before Alex and Cady came over to join us, followed by Victoria, Tamara, and Tajah.
“Okay, spill. Tell us what you two were chatting about. It looked serious,” Cady said.
“Don’t mind her. She was born a nibshit.” Tajah laughed. She was without her baby. Her proud, clearly infatuated husband was carrying their daughter.
“Hush up, you know you’re curious, too. I’m just brave enough to ask,” Cady told her, sticking out her tongue.
“Of course I am, but I’m not like a blunt hammer asking. You need to learn to be subtle,” Tajah teased.
Her reply had all of us laughing, even Cady. She knew she was brash, but seemed to accept it about herself. When our laughter died down, Cady hiked up her eyebrow. “So, spill.”
Sharlena was the one to tell. “I told Cristiana how bummed my brother was to find out Reuben claimed her. He came home talking about her the night he met her at Lustz. I haven’t seen him that interested in a woman in ages.
Then I apologized for making Cristiana feel bad about telling her he was disappointed.
She was nice enough to overlook me speaking without thinking, something Sawyer tells me to do all the time. ”
“Hell, girl, saying things without thinking is my specialty. Are you sure we’re not related?” Cady asked, smiling. The tension in Sharlena eased away, and she smiled back at her.
“That’s for sure,” Tamara said.
“Since we’re sharing so much, then I’ll pull a Cady and ask. How did you win Reuben? He’s always been a great guy, but somewhat elusive, if you know what I mean,” Tamara stated.
“Honestly, I have no clue how that happened. We met at Lustz, and from there, he watched over me when another Dom got a little creepy. So did Sawyer, Iker, and a few others,” I explained.
“Yeah, Mikhail and I had shown her around her first time there, and I could tell the first night he met her, Reuben was intrigued. We couldn’t be happier. He deserves someone special,” Tajah added.
I was pleased with what she said. There were a few more minor remarks about Reuben and me before they moved to other topics. It was lovely to spend time chatting and relaxing with such a wonderful group of women. I let myself soak it up.
???
I had my fingers twisted together so tightly that my knuckles were white.
The relaxed me from yesterday was gone. In her place was an anxiety-ridden woman about to hyperventilate and beg Reuben to take me home.
Getting ready this morning to meet Reuben’s family had been stressful, despite his assurance that there was nothing to worry about.
I’d changed my mind about my outfit at least twenty times, it seemed.
He wasn’t dressed in anything fancy—his regular casual wear when not at work, of jeans and a T-shirt.
Reuben told me to wear the same, but I couldn’t.
I tore through all my clothes, which most seemed to have found their way to his place.
Finally, I settled on a dress that I felt wasn’t too fancy, but was better than a casual one I’d wear at home.
I’d gone out in public several times wearing it and felt great.
His hand came over to cover mine. “Tiana, take a deep breath. Do it. You know it’ll make me happy and you feel better,” Reuben said in that low, intoxicating voice of his.
It was his Dom voice. It had the desired effect of making me automatically do what he said. As I did, I blew my breath out, and the tension eased a bit. I did it a few more times. When I was finished, his hand was holding one of mine. They were no longer clenched together.
“Nina, I swear on my life, you have nothing to worry about. My familia, family will love you. All you have to do is be yourself. They’ll see why I fell in love with you,” he uttered softly. Then, he raised my hand to his mouth and tenderly kissed the back of it.
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to upset you, Reuben. I’ll calm down soon. I’ve always hated meeting someone’s parents. A few times, it didn’t go so well,” I confessed.
He frowned. “What do you mean it didn’t go so well? What happened?”
“There were a couple of times when a guy I dated, and it started with the serious one I had in high school, where the parents disliked me. It happened afterward, too, when I was an adult. At least with your family, I won’t have to worry they dislike me because I’m Hispanic.”
“What the fuck!? They disliked you merely because you’re Hispanic? What were the guys?” he snarled.
“They were both Caucasian. Their families were prejudiced, on top of thinking I was beneath their sons because they had more money than my family did. I was a gold digger in their eyes.”
“Tell me at least the guys stood up to their families and defended you.”
I shook my head. “No, they sat there mute. Suffice it to say, that was the beginning of the end for us. If they couldn’t at least tell their families they were wrong about me, then they weren’t the guys for me.”
The growl that rumbled out of him was scary. So was the scowl my confession put on his face. “I swear to God, I want to find those assholes and beat sense into them, but then again, I’m grateful they did. Not for hurting you, but for making you end it with them so I found you.”
“Ah, you say the sweetest things,” I whispered as my heart melted.