25. That Hard Conversation
25
THAT HARD CONVERSATION
A month later, Hyde was pulling into the restaurant where they were meeting his parents and sister.
It’d been a while since Tori had met anyone’s family she was dating. And never anything formal. More like they were all out at a party or something.
She supposed meeting for dinner was better than going to their house where she’d felt there could be no time limit on anything.
“Why are you nervous?” he asked.
“What?” she asked.
“Your leg is shaking in the car. You’re nervous. Why is that?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I’m meeting my boyfriend’s parents and sister. The sister who is going to give me crap, I know it.”
He’d told her that his parents knew the history of their relationship.
The insults that started it. Then the snapping that followed. The fights and the dates, then the misunderstandings afterward.
She’d have to admit after the first time they’d had sex and had that hard conversation, things had been pretty much smooth sailing.
She was more comfortable where they were, which was faster than a chicken pecking for food, but slower than a deer crossing the road with headlights coming.
It was right for them... all things considered.
This was the next logical step since Hyde was close to his family and they’d technically known each other for four months. If you count their first meeting.
She hadn’t decided if she was or not.
But they’d been dating for close to three...somewhat.
Not really a way to put a timeline on anything and she refused to say their relationship was off and on.
Complicated in the beginning was the better term in her mind.
Hyde laughed in the car. “She most likely will give you a hard time. Not sure it’s going to be crap, but there will be some comments thrown in. She’s as protective of me as I am of her.”
“Which I find very sweet,” she said.
Not that she had that from anyone as a child.
Even now, Raina was the closest thing she had to a sibling that was protective of her.
“You won’t when we are done,” he said, smirking.
“Not funny, Hyde. You’re making it worse.”
He laughed. “Sorry. My parents will be great. My mother has wanted to meet you for a long time. You’ll like her. She loved the fact that you’ve given me crap about my phone and even my manners.”
“You actually have great manners,” she said. “At least from what I can see. It’s only when you’re drinking or not acting yourself, that you put your foot in your mouth.”
“You don’t even need alcohol to do it,” he said, poking her in the side.
“Yeah,” she said. “Pretty sad. But that isn’t like me.”
“Sorry,” he said. “I shouldn’t have said that. I don’t want us to get in a bad headspace and I might have just done it.”
She grabbed his hand and threaded their fingers together. “It’s fine,” she said. “We have to be able to joke like this without upsetting each other. We are good.”
He let out a breath. “Thank God. For a second I thought I could do it too without alcohol.”
They’d been sitting in the parking lot talking and he shut his car off for them to get out.
“Do you think your parents are here already?”
“That’s their car,” he said, pointing to the black SUV a few over. “They probably picked up CeeCee since it’s on the way.”
They walked to the door and Hyde pulled it open for her and held it.
“See,” she said. “Manners.”
He smiled and put his hand on her lower back to walk them in.
“Person,” he said. “We are meeting people.”
The hostess looked down at the screen in front of her. “Right this way.”
They walked to the back and saw Hyde’s parents right away. His sister was very similar in appearance, even down to the bright blue eyes. Which they got from their father. His mother had darker blue eyes by the looks of it.
She’d gotten her light brown eyes from her father too. Her mother had dark blue eyes.
He pulled a chair out for her next to his. His mother and sister were across from them and his father at the end.
“Mom, Dad, this is Tori Miller. Tori, my mother, Brenda, father, Rodney, and sister, CeeCee.”
She leaned over and shook hands with everyone. “It’s nice to meet you all. How are you doing, CeeCee?”
“Great,” CeeCee said. “I’m back to work and going about my life mostly. I won’t be doing any more back bends or half my yoga poses for a long time or maybe never, but there are worse things in life.”
“That’s right,” Brenda said. “It’s going to be a long road, but you’ve got the right attitude.”
The server came over to get their drink orders, everyone getting something alcoholic but CeeCee.
“I want a glass of wine,” CeeCee said, “but I took a pain pill so that is a no-no.”
Hyde frowned. “You’re still taking them? Shouldn’t you be done now?”
CeeCee squinted one eye at him. “Don’t worry about me. I don’t take them daily. I haven’t had one in almost two weeks. I only took one this afternoon because I pushed myself in PT.”
Tori watched Hyde staring his sister down, then looking at his mother. “Is that true?”
“I don’t know,” Brenda said. “I have to take your sister’s word for it and I trust her.”
“Yeah,” CeeCee said. “It’s not like I’m getting drunk every night or going to work hungover.”
Tori was surprised this was being brought up. “Yep and it messed up my life,” he said. “Not anymore. I’ve got someone keeping me in line.”
“Speaking of that,” CeeCee said. “We know Hyde messed up, but he shouldn’t have to work to the bone to make up for it either. How do you feel about that?”
“CeeCee,” Rodney said. “You’re pushing it.”
“It needs to be said,” CeeCee said. “What’s the big deal? I’m just asking. It’s not like Hyde didn’t put his foot in his mouth multiple times.”
Tori looked at him and then answered. “He did. So did I. I think we are both putting the same amount of effort into things now. Did he do more than me in the beginning? Sure,” she said. “He did. He wanted to give this a try and I needed some convincing. I’d think a lot of women would have felt the same way at my age.”
“I agree with Tori,” Brenda said. “My daughter is being loyal and I understand that. But she’s also one-sided. At your age, if you are looking to maybe settle down in the future, you don’t want to waste your time on someone you are already butting heads with and move on. There is nothing wrong with that. Hyde should feel lucky he was given another chance.”
“I’m the lucky one that he wanted it,” she said. “I’m just as much to blame as him at times and can accept that.”
She hadn’t thought the conversation would go this way.
“Have we gotten all of this out of the way?” Hyde asked. “Can we just sit back and have a nice dinner now?”
“Your sister is going to stop now,” Brenda said. “Right, CeeCee?”
“Right,” CeeCee said, grinning. “I just wanted to get it in there. Hyde had a rough year. It’s hard to deal with what he had, and though he might have been a jerk, he should have a little wiggle room.”
Which she tried to remember.
“I agree,” Tori said. “Now that we know the rocky start to our relationship and that everything seems to be much smoother, what do you all think of the weather?”
There was some laughter at that statement. “I like you,” Brenda said. “Hyde told us about your job and background. I’m sure you’re used to calming situations or redirecting them.”
“I am,” she said. “But I also know that everyone needs to have an opportunity to speak their mind to help clear the air.”
“Which the two of us do,” Hyde said.
“We do,” she said. “I find Hyde very refreshing on a lot of levels. He has manners that a lot of people seem to lack.”
“Except with his phone,” Rodney said.
“Which I don’t do anymore,” he said. “Or not much.”
“We thank you for that,” CeeCee said. “It was annoying.”
“Glad to know I wasn’t the only one to see it, but I only saw it that once.”
“Trust me,” Brenda said. “Before you said that to him, we’d be sitting here at dinner and his face would be in his device more than he was talking to us.”
Tori pursed her lips. “That’s not right,” she said, nudging his arm.
“Nope,” he said. “But I’m a reformed man, thanks to you.”
She smiled softly. “I think you did it all on your own.”