Page 23 of Falling for the Bad Boy
“I’m a walking shit show. You’re all going to just love me.”
CHAPTER 10
Trinity
I grinned as I took another warm-from-the-oven roll from the breadbasket before passing it to Oliver. He’d been regaling my family with stories of his childhood in New Zealand for the past ten minutes. My niece, Harper, wouldn’t let the conversation stray from talk of seals. When Oliver admitted he used to surf on a beach where the giant mammals gathered, my niece and nephew began to pepper him with questions about the ocean.
He handled their attention in stride, the same way he seemed to handle everything my family threw at him, the way I wished I could react. Having him with me took the pressure off a bit. Although, his presence introduced an entirely new set of questions that no one had ventured to ask yet. Like how did we meet? How long had we been seeing each other? What were our plans? Anxiety swam through my stomach as I wondered which one of my siblings would be the first to put me on the spot.
It helped that Oliver’s hand had found the top of my thigh after we sat down at the table. The weight of his palm pressed down, grounding me a bit. Every once in a while, he’d give my leg a little comforting squeeze. I wondered if he’d be able to make it through the entire meal without moving it. So far, he’d succeeded but had yet to take a bite of his lamb.
“You said your family is into wine?” Dad asked, a bite of potatoes poised on his fork.
Oliver turned his attention to my father. “Yes, sir. The South Island is well known for optimal growing conditions. Sauvignon Blanc mainly, although we manage a nice Pinot Gris or Chardonnay as well.”
“We’ve toured Napa and Sonoma on multiple trips but haven’t made it to New Zealand yet. What’s the name of your family’s vineyard? I’d love to add a bottle or two to my cellar.”
“Oh, I’m afraid we don’t export yet.” Oliver removed his hand from my leg and cut a bite of his lamb. I immediately missed his touch.
“That’s too bad. Mrs. Ryan has an affinity for a dry white, don’t you dear?” Dad nodded toward Mom.
“So is that your goal?” Leah spoke up. “If you’re in need of financing, I can make some recommendations.”
I leaned toward him. “Leah’s the president of a bank.”
“The youngest bank president in the history of the bank,” Dad reminded me.
“Thanks, but I don’t think we’re quite ready for that yet.” Oliver shifted in his chair as he took another bite into his mouth.
“Here’s my card.” Leah handed her card to her husband, who passed it to me.
Wanting to get Oliver out of the hot seat, I spoke up. “Hey, Harper, are you ready for summer?”
All eyes turned toward the end of the table where my niece sat between Randall and Victoria. “I suppose so. Although I’m not looking forward to language immersion camp.”
Victoria put her hand on her daughter’s. “She and Preston are spending the summer in Beijing to work on their Mandarin. It’s going to be fabulous.”
“That’s some summer camp,” Oliver said.
Dad nodded. “By the time they hit middle school they’ll both be fluent. Talk about a marketable skill.”
I knew the comment wasn’t directly targeted at me, but it still stung. Sure, I could have taken Mandarin or gotten my doctorate in International Economics if that was even a thing. But I wasn’t cut out for that kind of life. Reminded me of that song I used to hear on my older siblings’ Sesame Street DVDs… something about one thing not being like the others. How did it go again? One of these things just doesn’t belong. That’s how I felt when I sat at the table with my family. Like I didn’t belong. Like I never had and never would.
“Don’t worry, darling.” Victoria brushed Harper’s hair back. “You’ll have so much fun in China, and you’ll be home in plenty of time to spend a week or two at the beach house, too.”
I caught the slight shake of Oliver’s head as he set his fork down.
“How about you, Trinity?” James asked. “Tell us what brought you back to town.”
I knew this moment would come, had mentally prepared for it and even practiced talking in front of a mirror to perfect a nonchalant response. “I’ve decided to settle down. Maybe I missed you all.”
“Maybe you couldn’t wait to get your hands on your trust fund is more like it,” James muttered.
His wife elbowed him in the ribs.
“What? It’s not like that’s not what we’re all thinking.” James looked around the table. “You can’t tell me all of a sudden she’s feeling a little nostalgic.”
“We’re glad you’re back, sweetheart.” Leave it to Mom to try to smooth things over. She’d never let things get out of hand, not with a guest at the table. I’d been counting on her well-bred manners to keep me out of the line of fire.
