Page 61 of Under My Skin

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LIZZIE

I workedall day in my studio, and now I’m headed over to my parents’ house for dinner to let them know that Cameron and I are seeing each other.

Simple, right? It’ll be that easy.

So why am I so nervous to see their reaction?

I know my parents think highly of Cameron and all that he’s accomplished in life. He’s only ever been a perfect gentleman in front of them, and he does such a great job with his girls that my mom can’t stop gushing about how great of a dad he is.

But will they think he’s a good match for me?

My secret crush wasn’t ever that much of a secret, but a lot has changed since I was a teenager who swooned over her neighbor. He was married and is now divorced and has two kids. He’s also ten years older than me. I know the way my mom behaved when Cameron and the girls were over for dinner, so I know she’s likely to be on board.

Theoretically, at least. When faced with a sure thing, that might change. But while I’m only twenty-four and have never been in a relationship, I hope they can see that this is what I want more than anything and trust me enough to know what I’m getting into, though. They’ve never been judgmental or critical of me in any way and have always supported everything I’ve done, so I’m not sure why I’m worried about this now.

Because Cameron matters to me.

I take a deep breath. We’ve faced the worst part—getting what we want out in the open and admitting we want to be together. Whatever else comes, I’m sure we can take that too.

I walk through the front door, which is always unlocked for me at dinnertime, and I’m immediately hit with the aroma of beef stroganoff. It’s like my mom knew I needed comfort food tonight.

“Hey, Lizzie girl,” my dad yells from the living room, where I can hear the sounds of a baseball game on the TV.

“Hey, Dad.” I keep walking through to the kitchen where my mom is pulling fresh-baked bread out of the oven. “Hey, Mom.”

“Lizzie,” my mom says cheerfully. “I was hoping you’d come over tonight. I was going to drop off leftovers later if you didn’t show.”

I love my mom so much. She’s the absolute best, and I hope to be standing in my kitchen saying these same things to my own grown kids one day. “It smells amazing. You know I could never miss stroganoff night.”

“That reminds me that I need to invite Cam and the girls over for another dinner. With his kitchen being out of commission, I can only imagine all the takeout they’re probably eating.”

The mention of his name alone sets butterflies aflutter in my stomach. I feel like I just need to blurt everything out and rip the Band-Aid off. Get it off my chest and hope for the best reaction from them.

“Speaking of Cam, I wanted to tell you and Dad something.”

“Did that boy finally come to his senses?” my dad asks, walking in from the living room.

“Dad, he’s hardly a boy! Wait, what do you mean,come to his senses?” I’m suddenly suspicious that maybe Cameron and I haven’t been hiding our feelings for each other as well as I thought we had. Or maybe they saw us outside his house this morning. I didn’t even think about my parents seeing, I was too caught up in the moment.

“Oh, Lizzie,” my mom says and rolls her eyes while slicing the bread into big, hearty slices. “It was only a matter of time until the two of you stopped sneaking around and just started being honest with yourselves and everyone else. It’s been quite obvious, sweetheart, that you two are smitten with each other.”

I’m completely dumbfounded. Here I was nervous that I was going to surprise them, but instead they surprised me.

“So, are you guys okay with Cameron and me beingsmittenwith each other?” I use the same word as my mom because it feels like the most innocent. It seems strange to call myself his girlfriend, and I’m obviously not going to tell them we’re sleeping together.

“He’s a good man, and you’re the best there is, Lizzie. If you’re happy, then your father and I are happy for you.” My mom wraps me in a hug, and I squeeze her back tightly.

Why was I worried about telling them?

My parents have only ever wanted the best for me and for me to be happy. Why did I think this would be any different?

“Thanks, Mom. Love you.” I move to my dad and do the same, and then we all sit down to eat dinner. To my surprise, my parents don’t bombard me with questions about how Cameron and I got close. They act as if they knew this was coming.

Maybe they did.

After stuffing myself, I start walking back to my place and see that I have a text message waiting from Cameron.

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