24. Faye
Mark assures me I have nothing to be nervous about, but that’s like telling me not to breathe. Sure, I’ve met his parents before—and for the record, his mother loved me— but I’ve never met a man’s kids.
Hell, Mark doesn’t just have four girls I need to impress. No, he has an entire gaggle of grandkids and sons-in-law, some of whom are world famous, who will all be wondering what the hell I’m doing, intruding on their family gathering.
As I look in the mirror a final time, I force myself to stare into my own eyes.
“Stop worrying. You’ve got this,” I tell myself.
Even as my stomach flips with nerves, I straighten my shoulders, grab my favorite hoodie, and walk out the door to meet Mark at his place.
After coming home from the diner, he and I spent most of the day in his bed.
Then, about two hours ago, he forced himself to go to the store and pick up the necessary items for tonight’s adventure.
I heard his truck pull in next door a few minutes ago, and now that I no longer look as if I’ve been ravaged by him all day, I force myself to leave the comforts of my home and join him.
By the time I get outside, he’s already walking my way. “You ready?” he asks with a handsome, carefree smile on his face.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I admit with a nervous laugh.
Leaning in, he reaches for my hand and kisses my cheek. “Don’t worry, Faye. They’ll love you.”
“How can you be so sure?” I hedge.
“Because I love you…” He squeezes my hand and leads me toward his garage.
As much as I want to protest, I know this self-doubt is just my nerves talking. I may not win them all over at once, but at least two of his grandkids and I got along well. If the rest are anything like Jason and Josh, I’m sure I’m worrying for nothing.
Twenty minutes later, we’re pulling up to Lanie and Ryan’s house—though to me, it will always be Jane Lancaster’s home.
An odd sense of déjà vu comes over me. I feel like he’s bringing me home to meet his mom for the first time, rather than meet his four daughters and their entire family.
Suddenly, I miss Jane like crazy. I always cherished the time we spent together and wish we’d been able to visit more often over the years.
As Mark takes his hand in mine, he leads me up the front steps, and my stomach feels like a swarm of hornets taking flight. When we walk through the door, flashbacks of Jane’s warm scent overwhelm me.
“How does it still smell the same?” I ask in disbelief as he leads me into the front hall.
Mark squeezes my hand and chuckles. “You’ll have to ask Ryan about his little mishap when ordering Mom’s favorite air freshener.
I’m fairly certain they’ve got a lifetime supply.
Ha. Since this is now his home, he gets to live with it.
I guess that’s the price he’s paying for trying to impress Lanie. ”
“Hmmm, that sounds like quite a story,” I muse with laughter.
“Oh, it is… Trust me. Just ask Lanie about it one day when Ryan’s not around. You’ll get the full scoop.”
Inhaling deeply, Jane’s familiar scent somehow calms my nerves, and I’m suddenly ready to face her enormous family.
She’d always hoped she’d have an even bigger one than her two children and four granddaughters.
I always loved her stories about the girls, and now that I’m finally meeting them, it feels like I’ve come full circle.
The sound of little feet slapping down the hall draws me out of my trip down memory lane. “Papa… Faye… You’re here!” Two familiar boys come charging at us.
One clings to Mark, as the other collides into me and hugs me so tight, he almost knocks me over. It takes a second to recover, but instinctually, I squeeze my surprise hugger back just as hard. When he pulls back, I see it’s Jason. “Hey, Jay. It’s good to see you.”
Turning to his brother, he grins. “See… I told ya she’d know.”
Hands to his hip, Josh asks, “How’d ya know, Faye? We usually trick everyone new.”
Instantly, I relax even further as I chuckle at the twins’ antics. “Well, for starters, your voice is a little different. The second”—I look from Jason to Josh playfully—“is my little secret. If I let you know my superpowers, you’ll get away with everything.”
Thank God, Josh has a tiny freckle above his left eye, or I’d never have been able to tell them apart.
“No, we won’t.” Josh sighs heavily, “Because you’re like Momma and won’t let us get away with nothin’.”
“What won’t I let you get away with?” a woman, I assume is Sloane, says, rounding the corner.
Jason rolls his eyes at his brother and points a thumb at me. “Faye has superpowers like you and can tell us apart.”
As I reach out my hand in greeting, Sloane bypasses it and pulls me in for a hug. “It’s so nice to finally meet you. My boys haven’t stopped talking about their new friend Faye since they’ve been home.” When she pulls back, she gasps. “Wait… You’re the one in the picture.”
“What?” Mark and I say in unison.
“Nana has a picture right here in the hall of you and another girl out on the beach when you were kids. I thought it was one of Aunt Mable’s friends, but now that I’ve seen you in person, I know it’s you, Faye.”
Another girl, who is the spitting image of Sloane, steps into the hall and joins us. If I were a betting woman, I’d put my money on it being Raven. Even as adults, they’re identical. However, Raven now has a tattoo on her inner wrist and an edgier look to her than she did as a teen.
“Raven, you know that picture of Dad, Mable, and that girl we never knew the name of on the beach, that’s right over there…?” She points to a framed photo on the wall.
“Yes…” Raven’s brows pull tight. “What about it?”
“It’s Faye. Nana said it was Dad’s first crush, but never gave us her name.”
“I always thought he was crushing on one of Aunt Mable’s friends.” Then she looks between her dad and me and smirks, just like I’ve seen Mark do a million times. “But obviously, the two of you were more than friends back in the day.”
Sloane quirks a brow. “At least that’s the word on the street.”
“You say that like we’re not even here,” Mark grumbles.
“What are y’all doing in the hall?” another of Mark’s daughters asks as she comes into view. If I had to guess, it’s Melanie, or Lanie, as everyone calls her. Jane used to show me pictures and tell me so many stories about these girls, I feel as if I already know them.
“Hi, I’m Faye.” I reach out to shake her hand in greeting. “You must be Lanie?” I guess, hoping I didn’t make the wrong assumption.
“Wow… she’s good,” Josh pipes in. “Papa, did you give her a cheat sheet, like our video games?”
Mark’s deep chuckle fills the room. “No, buddy, I didn’t.” Then he turns to me and asks, “How are you doing this?”
“Let’s go into the living room so we all can hear her explanation,” Lanie suggests, ushering this suddenly large gathering out of the hall.
Once we’re settled, Raven asks, “So, how is it you’re able to tell us apart?”
Looking at Mark, I shrug. “First, your dad and I were the best of friends growing up. Which means I was also close to your nana, as she liked to be called.”
“Really?” Ryan asks in disbelief. “Talk about a small world.”
“Yeah, I suppose it is,” I muse, then continue.
“After your dad joined the Air Force, Jane and I remained close friends. I visited her as often as I visited my own parents over the years. My parents are Herb and Virgie Ames. I’m sure you’ve met them at some point.
Your grandmother loved playing cards with them after Mark moved away. ”
“But how the heck can you tell everyone apart?” Mark prompts. “I know we’ve certainly never talked about it.”
“Jane.” I grin widely as I look around the room.
“She used to bring out her infamous photo albums and tell me stories about your girls every time I visited. Thankfully, you haven’t changed that much since you were teenagers, so once the boys pointed out Sloane as their mom, the rest kinda fell in line like dominoes. ”
When the sliding door glides open, and Jax Cartwright comes in, I feel my breath catch in my chest. It’s surreal to see someone I’ve seen perform countless times on social media waltz right into Jane’s home.
“The fire’s made. Who’s gonna go out and enjoy it with me?”
Pandemonium ensues as everyone jumps up from their seat around the living room and makes their way out to the bonfire on the beach. Throughout all the chaos, Lizzy, her husband, and three children arrive to join us.
Mark had already dropped off the juice, soda, hot dogs, and marshmallows before coming to pick me up, so apparently, there’s nothing to do but go out and enjoy ourselves at the beach.
As we head outside, Mark pulls me to a stop between two sand dunes where no one can see us and asks, “You doing all right?”
“Yeah. Your family is wonderful,” I admit. “I’m not sure what I was so nervous about.”
“I told you it would all work out.” His sexy smirk makes me want to kiss that smug look right off his face, but alas, we’re not alone.
“I completely forgot that your picture has been hanging on Mom’s wall for years. I’m surprised they made the connection, though.”
“Well… Apparently, your mom thought enough to tell them you had a crush on me,” I tease playfully. “Who knew I left such an impression?”
“You know damn well I’ve had more than a crush on you for years, Faye,” Mark says, leaning in to kiss me.
Ah, this is just what I need to calm my nerves.
Before I can get consumed by him, I hear my name. “Faye, you coming? I wanna sit by you at the fire.”
“Was that Jason or Josh?” I whisper so they won’t hear.
Mark’s amused expression melts my heart. “How the hell would I know?”
“I can only tell them apart if I see their foreheads…” I admit with a laugh. “If Josh didn’t have that freckle, I’d never know.”
“What freckle?” Mark laughs. “I always watch the way they walk or smile.”