Page 10 of Under Pressure

In the driveway, Sean headed for his Jeep as Grandpa opened Nonna’s door. “You’re not riding with us?” Gramps asked.

“Nope.” Sean hopped in. “I have to pick up my date. I’ll meet you there.” He’d thought it over and decided, all things considered—as in basically going on a double date with his grandparents to his brother’s concert—that it’d probably be better not to carpool. He didn’t want to scare Blue away after all.

Blue

For the first time since she’d gone into witness protection, Blue felt something other than numb or sad. For the rest of her life, she’d never forget the way Sean’s eyes had lit up—like he had firecrackers in them—the moment he’d seen her at her front door.

“Now I know wishes come true,” he’d said.

She blinked, misunderstanding his meaning. “What are you talking about?” she asked, pulling the door closed and locking it behind her.

He smirked. “I was wishing you’d wear this masterpiece,” he said, tugging at one of the flowy folds of her light pink skirt. “And you did.”

Heat rushed to her cheeks, and she quickly adjusted her leather belt as her stomach filled with butterflies. “You say that like you’ve seen this before.”

“I have. It was one of the designs you used for the presentation in class.” He extended his hand for her to take.

She stared at it and the butterflies began to take flight. He’d recognized his favorite of her drawings in real life, and he loved it. While his words had implied that he found her beautiful, that’s not what he’d said. He’d mentioned her work, and that had to be one of the best compliments of her life.

That pesky tingle in her stomach didn’t fade when he opened the car door for her, carefully making sure that her skirt was inside before shutting it. It didn’t go away when he took her hand again during the drive, and now that they were weaving their way to their seats at the concert, still hand in hand, her happy excited emotions began to take flight. Maybe she could get used to this.

The venue was massive, the crowd bigger, and the stage in the middle of the stadium’s bowl was a beacon of colorful lights drawing the eye. “I can’t believe I’m doing this,” she said under her breath.

Somehow Sean heard it despite the hum of the throng talking all around them. He smiled back at her, then side-stepped a laughing couple that was already a few drinks in, going by the bitter yeast smell and squeezed her hand. “Honestly, I can’t believe you are either, but I’m glad you decided to throw caution to the wind and give me a chance.”

Right. Going out with Sean was never going to be a cautionary tale. Even if she never saw him again, she just knew she’d always think fondly of this night.

They kept on moving down the steps, threading through the crowd, closer, and closer to the stage. These tickets had to have cost an arm and a leg. “Where exactly are we sitting?” The tickets she’d wanted to get had been all the way in the back.

Sean’s gate slowed just a little. “About that.” He rubbed the back of his head with his free hand as they kept on descending. “Did I mention this was a double date?”

For just a moment, Blue’s stomach clenched with nerves. “A double date?” Like with people from school?

Finally, at the front row, he stopped and faced her. “Well, sort of. You see, my entire family has tickets to the show. My parents, my brother Johnny, and his latest girlfriend slash supermodel,” he said with an eye roll, “went to the show last night. But my tickets, and my grandparents—”

A loud whistle—that had everyone in the closest vicinity quietening up to look—had Sean turning toward the front row. “Sean,” a woman called.

Blue leaned to the side to peer around him. A cute older couple, maybe in their 60s or 70s, sat in the first-row, dead center of the stage, waving at them. The woman was stunning, chicly dressed, with salt and pepper hair, and a smile that warmed Blue’s insides. The older man wore dark khakis, a hunter green Henley—which showcased his broad chest and massive arm muscles—had thick, pure white hair combed back to perfection, and a chiseled jaw. He had to be the hottest grandpa she’d ever seen.

“Nonna,” Sean said. The word meant grandma in Italian. That’s what she’d called her own grandmas. Using Italian was pretty commonplace in The Outfit. “Gramps!” Sean waved over his head.

She glanced at Sean, taking in the resemblance. Aside from the fact that Sean had hazel eyes instead of dark brown, dimples on his cheeks, and dark hair, he was practically the spitting image of the older man. She pointed at the couple. “We’re double dating with your grandparents?” Unable to help it, she grinned as all her nerves about being on a double date dissipated.

Sean tugged on her hand, pulling her a little closer, then leaned in and whispered, “So you think this is a date, too, huh?”

Her smile fell at the same time that her stomach went into a nosedive. “Uh—”

He reached up and pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear, the tips of his fingers, caressing over her cheek as he pulled it back. If she’d had any coherent thoughts after his comment, they were all gone now. “Let’s put a pin in that until later, shall we?” he asked.

Thoughtlessly, she nodded, and then suddenly he was pulling her after him again. “Let’s meet my grandparents.”

They weaved their way around large groups of people standing and chatting, and finally came to a stop. Sean held his arms wide, indicating the stadium. “What do you think, Nonna? This concert big enough for you?”

Nonna shrugged a slim shoulder, her eyes sparkling with the same mirth Sean’s eyes always seemed to have. “I’ve seen bigger.”

Sean snorted.

“Don’t tell Axel that,” Grandpa said with a smirk.

---