16. Chapter Sixteen ~ Emma
Chapter Sixteen ~ Emma
“We’ve been invited to dinner with my parents,” Chris says, walking into the room.
I glance up from my book, startled. “Oh … um … when?”
“Thursday. They know that’s not as busy of a day for me at the club. And you’re off on Thursdays.” I am, which is unfortunate because if I wasn’t I would have an excuse not to go. Though, being the boss, Chris would probably just tell me I have the day off.
Still, I probably should go see his parents. That way they can find out about me and the baby. “Is there anything I should know?”
“You don’t need to answer anything you don’t want to,” he replies firmly and I’m grateful for that. Though I’m not sure exactly how he plans to get me out of answering any questions that I don’t want to answer.
“Are they going to ask a lot of questions?”
“They’ll probably want to know things about you. But they won’t want to scare you off.”
“Why not?”
“Because you’re going to be the first girl I’ve ever brought home for dinner.”
He says that in a nonchalant way but it’s vibrating through my brain and making me feel protected. Cared for. Special. Like … well … I don’t really know what. But it’s a big deal.
Of course, part of me says that I’m the mother of his child (or soon to be) and he’s going to have to take me home to his parents sometime. But I shove aside those thoughts and try to focus on the positive. Everything that feels so good about this moment.
“What should I wear?”
“Casual clothes,” he replies, but I’m not entirely sure that his idea of casual and mine are the same thing. So when Thursday rolls around I slip on a cute dress that still fits well and doesn’t show any of the extra bloating that I seem to have nowadays.
I look in the mirror with a sigh and once again wonder if that’s the reason Chris has been so distant. Not completely distant. Not really. We’ve been having some great conversations and spending time together but he hasn’t been interested in sex … still. And it’s been ages.
“Here, I got you this.” As I walk out with my flats and a shawl to wear over the dress (just in case it’s a little chilly in the house), he hands me a box with yet another piece of jewelry.
I open the beautiful box to take a closer look. The thin chain has just a single charm on it. A heart. And once again I try to convince myself that it means absolutely nothing. It’s just a charm. It doesn’t mean he actually cares about me.
Of course, the fact that he’s wearing dress pants and a shirt that’s not quite a polo but definitely not a t-shirt says that his family is likely not the jeans and t-shirt type. Which is what he and I would wear on a normal day …
By the time we actually arrive at his parents’ house I’m more worked up. Because until now I haven’t given myself a chance to think about it. Instead, I’ve just been focusing on the day-to-day. But now … now I have to think about the fact that I’m going to visit the very wealthy parents of my baby daddy? I don’t even know what to call him and it suddenly occurs to me that I know nothing about the front we’re going to try to put on.
“What am I to you?” I ask and he turns to me, confusion etched on his face. And perhaps a little concern.
“What do you mean?”
“Well … I mean … we can hardly say I’m your employee. And … I don’t know … your baby mama sounds a little … sketchy.”
He grins at that and shakes his head. “I don’t think introducing you as either of those will go over well with my family. We’ll introduce you as my girlfriend and then tell them about the baby as well.”
Girlfriend.
The word sends a shiver down my spine and a whole lot of warmth flooding straight through me.
But it’s not real, I tell myself. It’s just pretend. Just a game we’re playing for his parents’ benefit. And ours, I guess, because we’re going to have to play nice with them from now on.
I suck in a deep breath and Chris reaches across the console to take my hand, a move which certainly does nothing to help me feel less anxious. In fact, I’m certain that my heart is pounding even more now. And I can only hope that he doesn’t hear it.
When we actually pull into the driveway he releases my hand long enough to walk around the car and open the door for me (a gentleman, who would have guessed?) and then his arm snakes around my waist.
Now I really feel like I’m going to faint because my heart is pounding and I’m struggling not to feel lightheaded at the amazing feeling of him holding me in such a familiar way. Such a sweet gesture that really seems to sell the fact of my being his girlfriend.
Which is exactly what he’s trying to do, I tell myself. Don’t read too much into it.
“Ah, Chris, you made it. And you brought … you brought a friend.” The woman in front of me is gorgeous. Older, sure, but still stunning for her age and dressed impeccably. I suddenly feel very underdressed, but she doesn’t let on. Instead, she gives me a bright smile and steps forward to take my hand.
“This is Emma. My girlfriend.” He says the words so casually. Like they’re the most natural thing in the world. Like they’re not sending my heart skittering like crazy and making it hard to think of even the basic requirements now. Like offering my hand, smiling politely, and saying ‘nice to meet you.’ “Emma, this is my mother.”
“Martha, Dear. You can call me Martha.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Martha,” I reply, wondering if she can see just how out of place I am here. But the bright smile stays and she quickly leads us both down the hall to the living room where I see an older gentleman, the woman I recognize as Wendy, and two others who can only be her husband and daughter.
“Uncle Chris!” The little girl jumps up and runs over to him as soon as she sees him and before I even know what’s happening he’s being pulled back to the middle of the floor so he can see her new doll and then her loose tooth and the picture she drew last week at kindergarten.
If having him hold my hand and wrap his arm around my waist and introduce me as his girlfriend didn’t melt my heart, watching him with that little girl certainly does. And suddenly I’m thinking very differently about what things are going to be like when the baby comes.
Is Chris actually going to be a present father? Is he going to be around to play with the baby? To be … a real dad? And not just a financial supporter? I don’t know that I ever really thought of it that way. I just thought that I would be there taking care of the baby and he would continue with his life as normal. But now, watching him with a child, I start to wonder again.
“And you are?” Wendy sidles up to me now, looking me over with a critical air and I wonder if she recognizes me from the club. Or if she even cares. The look she’s giving me is suspicious to say the least and Chris looks up sharply from where he’s currently sitting.
“Emma, my sister, Wendy. Wendy, my girlfriend, Emma.”
Wendy’s eyes widen in surprise but his mother is still beaming from where she’s now perched on the couch with their father. “Girlfriend. And when did this happen?” she asks, eyes narrowing as she looks at me.
“It’s been a few months,” he replies, flippantly. He’s doing his best to make everything seem casual. Like none of this is a big deal.
But the reactions of his family are certainly telling a different story. His father looks just as shocked as everyone else. Though he seems pleased, just like their mother.
On the other hand, there’s Wendy, who seems unsure about the whole thing.
“Are you going to be my aunt?” I look down, startled, to see the little girl standing in front of me now. Chris is still sitting on the floor where she left him, though he has a bemused expression on his face.
“Let’s just stick with her being my girlfriend for now, you think?” he replies and I blush, though my heart is skipping beats all over the place at the very thought of those words ‘for now.’
“All right,” she agrees with a shrug and before anyone can say anything else we’re all called in for dinner.
“Don’t mind her. She’s just excitable. And Wendy will warm up to you.”
“You think she will? She didn’t seem to approve.” I frown slightly and he rubs a hand over my arm.
“She’s suspicious of anyone that I spend time with. It’s not a big deal. Don’t let her get to you. Come on. The food is good here. It’s one of the best reasons to come.” He gives me a grin and directs me to a seat next to his own.
“So, Emma, what do you do?”
“Emma’s in the entertainment field. It’s how we met.”
“Oh? So you and Chris are in the same line of work?”
“That’s right,” I agree, trying to cover my nervousness at this line of questioning. He obviously doesn’t want them to know I’m a waitress at his club. So how am I supposed to answer the questions that will inevitably come up about my nonexistent job?
“Do you enjoy that field?”
“Oh … it’s exciting. I meet new people every day,” I reply, glad that at least this is a question I can answer honestly.
“We weren’t so sure about it for Chris. It seems a little-”
“Can we not talk about this?” he interrupts and she seems to think better of it. Maybe because she really does want to get to know me better.
“Do you have family in the area?”
“My mother and my sister live around here,” I reply, purposely keeping it vague. If his family lives here, they’d definitely know the neighborhood that my family grew up in and it would tell them far more than I want them to know about me. Far more than I want Chris to know about me.
“Do you see them a lot?” she asks as we all continue eating and I nod.
“A couple times a week usually.”
“That’s great. I’m glad you’re close to your family.” She shoots a pointed look at Chris who is studiously looking down at his food, taking another bite. But she doesn’t say anything, just continues talking. “You two have been together for a few months now? Why haven’t we heard anything? You were here a few times in that span, and you didn’t say anything at all.”
“It was still somewhat new. I didn’t need you and everyone else in the family making a big fuss over it.” Now it’s his turn to give her that pointed look and she actually looks somewhat abashed.
“Well, I’m glad you finally brought her around.”
The rest of the evening actually passes pleasantly. And the fact that Chris stays near me almost the entire time, except when he’s playing with his niece, is definitely a perk. We’ve been spending a lot of time together but this feels a whole lot different.
Especially when he’s setting his hand on my thigh, or rubbing my arm, or putting an arm around my shoulders. Or any other number of sweet things that are designed to make his family actually think we’re dating instead of … well, whatever we’re actually doing.
“Before we go. We had one other thing we wanted to tell you,” Chris says, standing up.
This is it.
Sure they’ve been nice and friendly so far,even Wendy has started to thaw a bit, but there’s a difference between accepting your son’s girlfriend and accepting the mother of his child. And I have no idea how this is going to go.
“What is it?” his mother asks, glancing between the two of us like she’s going to figure it out for herself.
“Emma and I are going to have a baby.”
There’s silence for a long moment and my heart sinks as I think that it’s all over. They don’t like me after all. But then there are screams and his mother is rushing toward me to wrap me in a hug. His father is shaking my hand. Even Wendy is excited.
By the time they all sit back down, I’m beaming and can’t seem to stop. And even Chris looks pleased.
“Why did you wait until the end of the evening to tell us?” his mother scolds and Chris shrugs his shoulders.