Page 51 of Love at a 7-Eleven

"I don't know. I have no idea what'll come after tomorrow, but yes. I'd… I'd really like to go with you… if you don't mind."

"Don't mind? I'm the one who's been begging. I'm trying not to be obsessed. Your mom was right about you," I said. "You're irresistible."

"Please excuse my mom," he said.

"No, she was right about a lot of it. She knows what a catch you are. And she said I had my talons in you, which is also right."

He shook his head with a little grin. "I'm so sorry."

"No, I want her to be right. It's not offensive because if a bird's talons are in that means she's keeping whatever she's holding. My actual talons won't do any harm," I said, smiling and staring at my own fingernails which were short and rounded, painted with a coat of clear polish. "But figuratively, I don't mind what she said. I want my talons in."

He gave me a roguish grin. "Then I want 'em in, too."

Chapter 19

Caleb

What a week it had been. The impossible had happened. Love happened. Caleb had traveled to Chicago where he met a woman and fell in love with her. Meeting Lila had sent him reeling. It had changed his life. He knew things were going to be different moving forward.

Caleb traveled back home to California, he had been sick, and he had encountered the whole thing with Bailey. Now he was going back to Chicago on a moment's notice. He had barely recovered physically, and there he was, on another plane.

His life felt a bit like a dream lately. But his heart was speaking to him loud and clear and it was saying that he should be near Lila Decker.

Caleb called Marcus before he left L.A. and told him he was coming back to Chicago. He said he would stay somewhere else since they weren't expecting company again so soon, but Sasha was there and she insisted, saying that Kevin loved having him around. She and Marcus both said nice things about loving his influence on the whole family. He knew they had the room to put him up without being a bother, so he agreed and thanked them. He told them he'd be there sometime late that night and that he would sneak into his room and see everyone in the morning.

Caleb got a seat on the same flight as Lila, but it happened at the last minute, and the flight was packed, so they couldn't sit next to each other.

It was 6:30pm in Chicago when they arrived there. Lila got off the plane first and waited for him at the gate. Her SUV was parked at the airport, and they decided to ride together. Caleb knew that Marcus could have a rental dropped off at his house the following day, so he agreed to ride with Lila for the evening.

She threw him the keys and told him where to go. He didn't hesitate to get in the driver's seat of her SUV. Caleb knew that she would lead him to her parents' house. She had told him that they would go there so that he could meet her parents and eat dinner. It took them over a half-hour to get there, and they talked the whole time, recounting individual experiences from the flight.

They pulled into her parents' driveway, and Lila changed the subject abruptly. "Oh, good, they made it! I'm sorry. I forgot to even check my phone. I also forgot to tell you…"

"Tell me what?" Caleb asked.

"My brothers. I talked to Mom earlier and told her to call a family meeting, but I didn't know how seriously they'd take me. Dom had to drive from Milwaukee, so I wasn't sure if he… I wonder if Marley came with him. I should've told you I did this," she said, holding his hand. "I honestly forgot I mentioned it to Mom until just now when I saw their trucks."

"Your brothers are here?" he asked.

"Yes. It looks like everyone's here. I wanted them to all meet you. I asked Mom right when you said you were coming. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Are you okay with it?"

"Meeting them? Yes, I want to meet them. This is great."

"Really? I'm sorry if you're tired."

"No, I want to meet your family," he said.

It was true. He was happy that she wanted him to be a part of things enough to call them. He was also happy that they had shown up. He wondered what she would say to them and how they would react. Caleb had to assume she was going to say something to define their relationship, but he didn't ask.

He parked on the side of her brother's truck, and they got out, leaving their things in the vehicle. He followed her inside and within a minute, they had entered Eddie Decker's living room. Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to look at them. It was all five of them… EJ, Dominic, Marley, Caroline, and Eddie. They were all in the living room, sitting around with music playing in the background. It was something old—something with soul. It wasn't loud enough to interfere with the conversation, but Caleb noticed it because it got otherwise silent when he and Lila came inside.

"Hello, everyone!" Lila said since her family all looked that way. "Thank you for coming over. I forgot I called a family meeting, but I'm so glad you're all here because I wanted you to meet Caleb. I don't know how long he's going to be able to stay this time, so I wanted you to come over so I could introduce you all. This is Caleb Caldwell. EJ met him. And Dad has before. He's good friends with Marcus Reyes."

Caleb held his breath, wondering how they would respond to the introduction, but her family wasn't awkward about it at all. They all came forward and greeted Caleb and Lila the instant she finished talking. Caleb got sincere handshakes from her brothers and Eddie, and then Caroline and Marley both hugged him. It was a warm welcome with no further explanation needed.

They didn't act surprised or stiff or have any pretenses. They just went to joking around and talking—including Caleb in the conversation and asking him lighthearted questions. They ate together and then they played a round of a game where you had to get your team to guess the clue by using either charades or drawing. Caleb found himself in a few situations where he could make a good joke, and it was well received by her family. They were kind and easy to be around.

The twins, Dom and EJ, left at the same time, and by 8:30 it was just Caleb, Lila, and her parents. There had been no hand-holding or any other type of PDA in front of her family, but Caleb thought they knew he was interested in having a relationship with her. It all seemed too easy for that, though. They had been quick to accept him and Caleb couldn't help but think that it might be too good to be true—it might be too easy.

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