Chapter 10
10
HUDSON
The tick of the signal came on, and Claire guided us off the expressway. Next to me, I could see her blinking rapidly, chewing on her pink lower lip. I’d noticed she chewed on that spot when she was particularly nervous, and I could envision running my thumb over the area. I shouldn’t find enjoyment in getting Claire riled up, but I did. I privately liked any indication, no matter how small, that she was interested in me. It was a dangerous game, though. Even if she might be sexually attracted to me, I couldn’t forget Claire wasn’t interested in anything more. She’d been very clear about that.
And yet, mysteriously, I’d spent the car ride thinking about what would happen if the week did lead to something more. “Did we decide how long we’ve been together?” I asked.
She frowned thoughtfully. “Six weeks?” She looked over for approval. “Do you think that’s enough time to bring you home for my sister’s wedding?”
I shrugged. “Sure. Who cares what anyone thinks? Besides, I’m really there to save you from Grant, right?” She hadn’t talked about Grant today, just like she hadn’t said much about Ethan. Instead, she’d explained a lot about her family and a little more about her job. I’d tried to do the same, but it was hard to delve into my family situation without talking about Lawrence, and I didn’t want to talk about Lawrence.
Claire grimaced in reply, but didn’t look my way as she turned onto a smaller side street. The houses here were nice homes, probably built in the nineties. She turned into a driveway and shifted to look at me seriously as she put the car into park. “Thank you for doing this, Hudson. You barely even know me.”
Funny how that was entirely true, but it didn’t feel true at all. Was it all the time we’d already spent trapped together, or was there something special about Claire that made me feel like I’d known her forever? I wasn’t sure. “Maybe not, but I like you so far,” I answered honestly, shooting her a wink. Claire looked nauseous in reply. I was going to have to impress the hell out of her family so she didn’t regret this instantly.
Claire slipped out of the car and I followed her to the trunk, lifting the two suitcases out for her. She frowned down at the empty trunk, her eyes darting nervously. “This was a terrible idea, Hudson,” she whispered frantically. Panic had settled in her green eyes, dimming their usual glow. “Not you,” she backpedaled, “Just this.”
For a moment, I stood frozen, blinking, not sure how to reassure her, then instinct kicked in, and I set down the suitcases. Inhaling deeply, I cupped her chin between my palms and settled my thumb over her lips, delicately running it over the spot I’d just watched her bite. “I’m not having a panic attack,” she murmured from behind my thumb. “I’m just nervous.”
“I know,” I said, centering the appendage and pressing down lightly, hoping it would stop her protestations. “You trust me?”
She nodded, evidently understanding the thumb was meant to quiet her rather than regulate her breathing this time.
“I’m here with you—one hundred percent. If you need me to do this for real like I did in the elevator—” I nodded down to where my thumb rested on her lips, “then I’ll calm you down. But Claire, I’ve got you.” In this position, the sudden desire to kiss her was intense. Our first—and last—kiss had been interrupted, and I wished I had the time to remedy that. Unfortunately, right now I had neither time nor permission to do as I wished.
Sliding my thumb over her lips once more, I widened my eyes, the question—W e good?— clear on my face, and she nodded. “I’m ready,” she replied. She seemed much calmer, so I took her at her word, tucking a wave of brown hair behind her ear as my hands released her face and I picked up the suitcases once more.
With significantly more confidence, Claire strode ahead, leading the way into her parents’ home. “Claire Bear!” a woman exclaimed as we walked through the door, and I couldn’t help but grin. I hadn’t thought to ask Claire what her childhood nickname was, but this discovery was delightful. I could already picture ribbing her when we were alone in our room tonight. “And you must be Hudson,” she said. The woman, an older, plumper version of Claire with caramel eyes, was unmistakably Claire’s mother, and I smiled widely in greeting.
“I am. I take it you’re Claire’s mom?”
“Call me Juliet,” she replied pleasantly. “Leave the suitcases right there. Charles will get them. You two come on in. Tess is in the kitchen.”
“No, Tess is right here.” The woman that entered the foyer bore a strong resemblance to Claire, even with no makeup and her mahogany waves tied in a messy knot atop her head, but while Claire was slender, Tess was curvaceous. She wiped her hands on a towel, as if ready to shake hands, but stopped behind her mother, making no further move to introduce herself.
Undeterred, Claire swung around to her sister, stretching her arms to capture her in a hug. “Tessa,” she squealed. They rocked back and forth while their mother and I looked on.
“Mom had me doing the dishes in there, like I wasn’t going to come out here to see you both,” Tessa said, and her eyes shifted, taking me in critically, top to bottom. It seemed like I’d met muster, but I didn’t know Tess very well yet.
“Come on, come on,” Juliet said, interrupting before any further introductions could occur, “Let’s all go to the kitchen. Nora and your dad will be home soon.” She bustled us into the kitchen, speaking as she pulled out a chair at the kitchen table and gestured for me to sit. “Hudson, tell us about yourself.”
The demand—and it was certainly a demand—felt very much like my first day at Glen Valley Middle School. My family moved to Cranberry Falls halfway through sixth grade, and on my first day, teacher after teacher asked me to come up with some interesting fact worthy of sharing with a classful of overly critical eleven-year-olds.
“Mom,” Claire protested.
“I grew up not far from here—” I offered, knowing that impressing Juliet Davis was important to Claire’s plan. The last thing I wanted to do was embarrass Claire.
“Hudson, you don’t have to do this.” I realized Claire’s cheeks were a little pink, as if her mother were embarrassing her in front of her real boyfriend, and I squeezed her thigh under the table, just above her knee. She wore leggings today, but I could still remember the feel of her soft skin.
I shot her a smile and continued. “In Cranberry Falls, but I live in the city now. I’m a paramedic.” Next to me, I was aware of Claire shooting her mother a look, but I couldn’t say for sure what it meant. I assumed it was a silent demand that she ask no more questions.
“A paramedic? Interesting,” Juliet said, although her tone suggested she didn’t approve, which irked me just a little. “What made you choose that line of work?”
“Mom,” Claire protested once more.
“What?” the older woman asked. “I’m always curious when someone chooses a job like paramedic instead of some other medical field…like doctor,” she added.
“Mom!” This time both Claire and Tessa spoke simultaneously, their voices combining into one shrill, horrified tone. “I’m sorry, Hudson,” Tessa said, although she was looking at her mother instead of him, “my mother is clearly over-stressed by this wedding.” Tessa shot daggers at her mother, who looked only mildly contrite. “Right, Mom?”
Juliet waved her hand through the air. “Of course. I didn’t mean to offend anyone. Did I offend you, Hudson?”
I wasn’t offended, but she hadn't endeared herself to me either. Claire had, thus far, been nothing but sweet and charming, so I had assumed her mother would be similar. Now I couldn’t help but worry I was ill-prepared for this woman.
Still, based on both Claire and Tessa’s wide-eyed mortification, and the fact that Claire hadn’t warned me to be wary of her mother, I guessed there was some unknown reason for her current behavior. “You haven’t offended me. I’m a trained firefighter paramedic, but a couple years ago I made the move away from firefighting.” There was so much more I could say, except I knew I’d never be able to say it. Even saying this much had caused a lump to form, and if I tried to think back to that time—to think about my brother—I didn’t stand a chance at holding it together. It didn’t matter, though, because I didn’t owe Juliet Davis that story. I hadn’t even been able to tell her daughter.
“When is the fitting?” Claire asked, not bothering to feign subtly with her topic change. “Nora said I had to be here today.”
Juliet nodded, adequately sidetracked from her interrogation. “They should be back any minute, and then you three will head to the boutique.” She pinned her sights on me once more. “Will you stay here with us, Hudson?”
Claire grabbed my thigh before I could reply, but unlike the gentle squeeze I’d given her a moment earlier, Claire grabbed frantically, managing to land on my inner thigh so near my dick it jumped against my zipper in anticipation. I pressed my lips together, and she turned pink, but said, “You’ll come with me, right?” The words—“You’ll come with me” — were almost breathless, and between that and the fingers still a hairsbreadth from my junk, I had to take a measured breath to remain focused. “There’s a nice downtown area,” she explained more slowly. “Bookstores and coffee and the sort. Will you?”
The impulsive invitation had likely been offered to save me from her mother, but with each word, Claire’s tone grew more vulnerable, as if she’d only just realized I may turn her down. “That sounds lovely,” I replied, removing her hand from where it was currently tormenting my dick and lifting it to kiss her knuckles.
“We’re going to go upstairs and get settled before we head out,” Claire said, still holding my hand as we stood, and for a single beat I had a vision of her dragging me upstairs and stripping me down, but that wasn’t what was happening.
Back in the foyer, I let her grip slip so I could lift both suitcases and follow her upstairs.
Claire didn’t look back, but I did, noticing Juliet had followed, stopping to watch us climb the stairs, concern etched in every one of her features.