Page 57 of Resisting You
Wide-eyed, I stood up, turning to look over Noah’s shoulder in the doorway where my mother and father stood, sizing Noah up.
“Mama, Apa, what are you doing here?”
Noah whipped around to look at me, mouthing “Your parents?”
Mama flung her arms around Noah, pulling him into a hug. “Welcome to the family!”
Chapter 20
Noah
I should be panicking. I was meeting my wife’s parents for the first time… a wife that wasn’t really my wife. If anything, we basically just started dating.
And we only consummated said marriage last night. In the very rumpled bed just through the ajar french doors a mere few feet from where they stood.
But I wasn’t panicking. If anything, I felt oddly, inexplicably calm.
“Noah, these are my parents,” Rosa said carefully. “Victor Alvarez and Francesca Reyes. Mama, Apa… this is Noah.” Then she added under her breath, “Please be nice.”
Francesca had already hugged me once, but as she launched forward for another, this time I was ready for her.
“It’s so nice to meet you,” I said, returning her hug. From over her shoulder, Victor’s dark brown eyes latched onto mine.
He didn’t look mad, but he didn’t look particularly happy either. This man could play the World Series of Poker… andwin.
Francesca released me from the hug and shifted over to hug her daughter as Victor stepped forward and extended his hand to me.
“Sir,” I said with a nod of my head as I took his hand.
“I always imagined the man who married my daughter would ask for my blessing.”
I’m not a small man. I don’t tend to shrink under anyone’s towering stare. But Victor Alvarez was an imposing man. And I was the one person standing between him and his daughter.
Another knock came from our door. “Nowwho’s here?” Rosa muttered, crossing to answer it.
“I know it’s a little late, but I would still like your blessing,” I said to Victor, standing taller.
His eyes narrowed onto me.
As Rosa opened the door, Kristen came barging in, arms in the air. “Adopting a puppy! You two are geniuses…” she trailed off, realizing we weren’t alone. “Oh. I’m sorry I’m interrupting…”
“Well, sir?” I pressed. “Can we have your blessing?”
Still, he didn’t answer. When his narrowed eyes turned even stonier, Rosa huffed an exasperated sigh. “Apa!”
Sliding a glance at her to the left, his features softened, if only a little. He opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, the small sound of running water caught my attention. Looking down, Victor shouted, “What the hell?”
Birdie stood at his feet, leg lifted, peeing on Senator Alvarez’s leg.
In this pissing match between men, Birdie wanted to let us know who was boss.
We managedto clean everything up pretty quickly and it wasn’t anything a few paper towels, a tide pen, and eventually a dry cleaning bill couldn’t handle.
Now, Francesca sat next to Rosa on the couch as I offered Victor a bottle of water and Kristen sat her ass right down in the middle of this family feud.
“You handle their PR?” Victor asked Kristen.
“I was working with Noah originally, but yes, now I work for them both as a unit.”
