Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Merritt
I was nervous. My belly felt like it was full of so many butterflies, it was a wonder I hadn’t floated away.
As Tristan guided the Suburban up the gravel path, he and Levi chattered along like it was any other day, oblivious to the fact that I was sitting in the passenger seat, freaking the hell out.
Blythe’s house came into view a second later, but I was so in my head I barely had it in me to appreciate how beautiful her home was and how tranquil the wooded area surrounding it felt. It was like being in a world all your own while still being close enough to civilization for anything else you could possibly need.
Tristan’s hand covered mine and his thumb gently worked my fingers apart. “You have nothing to be nervous about.”
Apparently he wasn’t as oblivious as I thought. Not that I should have been surprised.
“That’s easy for you to say,” I grumped as he pulled between Blythe’s car and a big truck I didn’t recognize and shifted into park. “You know everyone here already.”
He twisted in his seat to face me. “You know Blythe. Hell, you two are practically besties.”
That was true. But it wasn’t Blythe I was concerned about. Tonight was the night I met Tristan’s parents, and after discussing at length—more than once, since I kept changing my mind—I’d let him convince me to do it as his girlfriend. Making it official and everything. If kids these days had anything to say about it, I was sure they’d tell me we’d jumped past a million levels.
“What if they don’t like me?” I asked quietly, giving voice to my biggest fears.
He reached out and pinched my chin between his fingers, gently tipped my face to his. Tristan’s expression softened, his eyes tracing tenderly over my features. “They’re going to love you,” he assured me.
My face pulled into a pout. “You’re just saying that.”
He smiled, the sight of it melting my insides. “I’m not. It’s the truth, Dandelion. Think about it. They raised me and Blythe, they had a hand in molding us into the people we are. So it wouldn’t really be a stretch to think they might like a person their son and daughter both liked, don’t you think?”
“I think you’re the coolest, Aunt Merri,” Levi announced from the back.
I twisted around and smiled at him. “Thanks for that, little dude. It makes me feel a lot better.”
“No problem. Hey, Tristan. Do you know if there are gonna be vegetables tonight? ’Cause I’m really tired of vegetables.”
Tristan laughed, and I shot him a threatening look. Needless to say, the battle over vegetables was still raging strong in our house, neither of us willing to back down. I was determined to make sure Levi had a healthy, well-rounded diet, and Levi was determined to turn my hair gray by bitching relentlessly.
Before we could get into it for the millionth time, the front door of Blythe’s house was thrown open, and a striking older woman with the most beautiful red hair stepped across the threshold onto the front porch. She waved excitedly and bounced in place.
Tristan let out a huff of annoyance. “I told my mom to play it cool. Should’ve known she wouldn’t be able to help herself.”
“That’s your mom?”
“Yep. And if you can’t tell by looking at her, she’s a little excited to meet you and Levi.”
“Of course she is,” Levi said like it was just common sense. “We’re the awesome-est. I have, like, a bazillion friends who’ll say so.”
My nephew’s confidence was certainly something to strive for, that was for sure.
“We should get in there. If we leave her standin’ there much longer, her head might explode.”
I let out a breath and steeled my spine. Pushing the door open, I climbed out of the car and cast the woman on the porch a wobbly smile as I returned her wave. Tristan rounded the hood and took my hand, and I did my best not to look like I was walking to the gallows as we closed the distance and climbed the steps.
“Hi. I’m—” That was all I got out before she lunged, wrapping me in a bone-crushing hug and swaying side to side.
“I know who you are. I’m Nona, and it’s so wonderful to finally meet you.” She released me and cupped my cheeks in her hands, smiling at me with huge, happy, teal blue eyes that matched Blythe’s. “My son’s told me so much. You’re even more beautiful than he described.”
Tristan groaned from behind me. “Mom, we talked about this. You promised you’d be cool, remember?”
She shot her son a glare. “I’m being very cool. You’ve never appreciated how cool I am.”
A small giggle escaped my lips as mother and son scowled at each other.
It was Levi who broke the standoff, saying, “My aunt’s cool too. That’s what I was just tellin’ her in the car, ’cause she was super nervous to see you.”
My cheeks caught fire, and I would have given anything to have a piece of tape to slap over his adorable, unfiltered little mouth.
Nona’s scowl fell away, and her smile was full of warmth and acceptance. “Well, I’m glad she has you to set her straight when she starts thinking silly thoughts,” she told Levi. “It’s a very important job, reminding people how awesome they are whenever they’re feeling a little down or something, and I bet you’re really good at it.”
My nephew’s chest swelled up. “I do it all the time with my friends. When Tommy struck out in kickball the other day and started sayin’ he was no good, I reminded him last week he kicked the ball so hard it went over the fence and into the road. That made him feel better, and on his next turn, he got a homerun.”
Every time I thought it wasn’t possible to be any prouder of my nephew, he did something that melted my heart into a puddle. His kindness had no limits or expectations. He gave it freely, without expecting anything in return.
“You’ve got a very kind heart, Levi.”
He nodded earnestly. “Aunt Merri says it don’t cost nothin’ to be kind, so we should do it every day.”
Nona’s gaze returned to me, and I swear her eyes took on a sheen in the porch light. “Your aunt is a very wise woman, Levi. You’re lucky to have her.”
“For sure. We’re lucky to have each other.”
If he didn’t stop being so damn perfect, I was going to start crying. Fortunately, Nona brought the conversation to a close by reaching out her hand to Levi and saying, “My grandkids are really excited to meet you. What do you say we head inside and see what kind of trouble we can get into, huh?”
Levi followed, and I took a moment to sniffle and wave at my eyes to dry the tears that had begun to form.
Tristan used his grip on my hand to tug me into his side, then wrapped his arm around my waist. “Still worried she isn’t going to like you?”
I stuck my tongue out at him as we made our way inside. I should have known I had the world’s best nephew at my back to hype me up whenever I needed it.
I couldn’t remember the last time I’d had so much fun. By the time we’d finished the amazing dinner Blythe prepared—where there were vegetables, much to Levi’s chagrin—and were sitting around the dining table with coffee as we let our dessert settle, I was bordering on uncomfortably full—the chocolate cake Nona brought was the best I’d ever eaten— yet still feeling light as air.
The muscles in my abs had gotten a workout from how much and how hard I’d laughed all evening. It hadn’t taken long at all for me to grow comfortable with Trick and Nona. I should have realized that a man as wonderful as Tristan could only have been raised by parents just as amazing.
The ease in which they had accepted Levi and me into their fold, like it was as natural as breathing, slotted a few more of those jagged pieces into place until I was nearly whole. After the years with Warren, I didn’t know if it was possible for me to ever feel that way, but there I was.
I’d watched Trick and Nona throughout the evening, and discovered exactly where Tristan’s affectionate nature had come from. The love his parents had for each other radiated from them. Even after being married as long as they had, they still looked at each other with stars in their eyes.
Whenever Nona talked, Trick watched her with this small grin on his face that said he still couldn’t believe how lucky he was to have her. And whenever he touched Nona, she’d inadvertently lean into it like she couldn’t get enough.
Growing up, that was the kind of love I wanted, however after Warren, I’d given up any hope I might have it one day.
But now I was starting to think it might be possible.
“Merritt, honey,” Nona said, pulling me from the happy daze of my thoughts and back to the present where the adults were still at the table, enjoying each other’s company, and the kids had taken off to go play with Rhodes’s dog, Koda. Their constant giggles and intermittent shrieks of delight told us they were having the time of their lives. “Blythe showed me pictures of that sideboard you’re restoring for her. It’s absolutely breathtaking.”
Heat infused my cheeks as a smile overtook my face. I’d been working on that piece whenever I had time—which wasn’t as often as I would have liked—and it was coming along better than I could have hoped. I thought for sure I would have been rusty after so many years, but the moment I picked up the sanding block, it all came back to me, and I swear I felt my mother standing right beside me every time I worked on it. I’d been taking pictures of the progress and it felt amazing to have someone admire the work I’d put in so far.
“Thanks. It’s been nice to get back to it. I forgot how cathartic it felt to lose myself in the work of bringing something back to life.”
Blythe lifted her wine glass to her lips and took a drink. “I’d say you’re doing more than that. I looked up pictures online of other pieces from that time period, and what you’ve done has leveled it up. It still has the original charm, but you’ve also somehow made it fit perfectly with everything we already have here.”
“You could make a very nice living doing what you do,” Nona said. “You have a real talent and an obvious passion for it. People would pay an arm and a leg.”
I sputtered under her praise. “Oh, no. I don’t do it for that. I’m not looking to make money. I like doing it. It’s not like I’m charging or anything.”
“You should,” Tristan added, turning to look at me. Like his father, he’d spent most of the evening finding little ways to touch or caress me, to let me know he was there and to show he cared. Just then, his arm was draped over the back of my chair, alternating between twirling strands of my hair around his fingers and gently brushing the pads across the nape of my neck. “This is something you love doing, and you’re great at it. You should go for it.” He gave me a crooked grin. “I’ll even be your first customer.”
“Uh, not gonna happen, little bro,” Blythe cut in, then raised her eyebrows at me. “She’s already working on something for me, and I fully intend on paying her for what she’s done. Whether she likes it or not.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“Yes, I do. Know your worth, babe. And know the worth of your work.”
God, she really was the best friend a woman could ask for. I wondered, not for the first time, how I’d gotten so lucky.
We left not long after, when it became clear that Levi was fading fast. We said our goodbyes, and I found I was actually looking forward to the next family dinner. Tristan’s entire family was amazing. We’d barely turned off the gravel lane that led up to Rhodes and Blythe’s house before Levi was out cold in his booster seat.
“You have fun tonight, Dandelion?” Tristan asked, taking my hand in his and lifting it to his lips to kiss my knuckles as he steered with the other one.
“I had the best time. Your family is incredible.”
He shot me a happy smile before looking back at the dark road ahead. “I’m glad. And they loved you. So maybe next time, you won’t have to be so nervous.”
We lapsed into a calm, comfortable silence as we headed for home that lasted until I had a thought.
“Tristan?”
“Yeah, baby?”
“You were right.”
He quirked a brow my way. “About what?”
“Doc is a far superior dog.”
He barked out a laugh and squeezed my hand tighter. “Damn right he is. And the fact that you see it means you’re perfect for me.”