Page 28 of Freedom's Kiss
Trent followed behind their mom, shoving a chip with salsa into his mouth. “Dude, you’re late. You know how Mom gets when—” His feet and mouth stopped working as soon as he raised his head and spotted Olivia.
The grandfather clock in the dining room recorded each second with itstick,tock,tick,tockas they all just looked at each other. Heels clipped across the tile floor before Summer peeked her head around the corner, red hair falling across her shoulder. “What’s the holdup, guys? I thought we were going to play—” Her eyes widened. “Oh.”
Okay. Now they were acting ridiculous. He put pressure against Olivia’s back, not surprised when she leaned into his hand instead of following the nonverbal cue to step forward. His family was acting cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. “Everyone, this is Olivia. Olivia, that’s my mom. My brother Trent, and his wife, Summer.” He swept a look over them all, hoping hisbehaveexpectations had gotten through clearly.
Olivia lifted her hand in a tiny wave. “Umm…nice to meet you?”
Adam rolled his eyes as his family continued to stand there and stare with open mouths. This time when he pressed on her back, he took a step as well, glad when she moved by his side. “Come on and I’ll introduce you to my dad. Maybe the body snatchers haven’t gotten to him yet.”
They walked past the study, and Olivia looked over her shoulder. She leaned close and lowered her voice. “They’re acting like you’ve never brought a girl home before. I mean, not that you brought me here forthat,obviously, but still.”
Wait a minute. Why was that obvious? He looked down at her, and a wave of appreciation and attraction heated his blood. She was beautiful with her silky straight hair and high cheekbones. With her quick mind and tenacity. Why would she think it was soobvioushe hadn’t brought her to meet his family because they were together as a couple? They weren’t, of course, but he didn’t find anythingobviousabout it. Unless she meant sheobviouslywouldn’t be with someone like him. And if that were true, what about him did she soobviouslydisdain?
Ugh. Now he was acting as crazy as his family.
They entered the dining room, where his dad leaned over a tower of board games. Adam let his hand drop from Olivia’s back and lengthened his stride, whispering as he passed, “It’s because I’ve never brought a girl home.” He smiled and gave his dad a hug, turning back to Olivia with his arm resting over his dad’s shoulders. “Olivia, I’d like for you to meet my father, George.”
Olivia shook his hand and smiled. “Pleased to meet you, Mr. Carrington.”
George used her hand in his to tug her forward and give her a hug. “None of that Mr. Carrington nonsense, you hear? Now…” He let her go and held up two boxes. “What’s your pleasure? Apples to Apples or Taboo?”
“You need teams to play Taboo, and we’re an uneven number tonight, Dad.” Amber walked in with a pitcher of lemonade. She set the pitcher down and gave Olivia a mischievous look. “So you’re the reason Trent and Summer are having such an engrossing conversation in the corner.”
“Ummm…” Olivia cast a wide-eyed glance Adam’s way.
Adam huffed out a breath that sounded suspiciously like a growl. “Seriously. Does no one know how to be polite anymore?”
His mom walked in and patted his shoulder, while Amber grinned at him. “Should have called ahead to warn everyone, bro.”
He pulled out a chair for Olivia and fell into the one beside it. “Let’s just get this thing started.”
Trent and Summer walked in, one looking way too pleased for himself and the other a bit resigned. Summer lowered into the chair on Olivia’s other side as she flashed one more hard look at her husband. Shaking her head, she turned to Olivia. “I apologize in advance for anything that man”—she thrust her finger at Trent—“is going to say. He’s a small child in a grown man’s body.”
“Hey!” Trent objected.
“Okay, that’s enough!” Adam jumped to his feet, sending a glare around the room before softening his expression to look down at Olivia. “I’m sorry. This was a bad idea, and my family has entered some kind of Twilight Zone. I don’t know what’s gotten into them, but—”
“I do.” She folded her arms and looked at him like the fault lay at his feet.
“Oh, this is going to be good.”
Adam flicked his gaze to Trent as his brother settled into his chair with a smirk on his face.
“Shh.” Summer shushed him while Amber slapped his shoulder.
Adam returned his gaze to Olivia, his outrage being toppled by uncertainty as she continued to scowl at him. “Umm…you…do?”
“Yes!” She flung her hands in the air. “You really thought you’d show up tofamily game nightwith a girlfor the first time everand expect the people who love you the most to have absolutely no reaction whatsoever?”
“Well…I…”
“Oh, I like her.” Trent’s grin could be heard through his words.
“Let’s keep her,” Amber added.
Olivia stopped glowering at him long enough to smile sweetly at his father. “Apples to Apples sounds wonderful, Mr. Carrington. Thank you.” She let her gaze encompass the rest of the group. “And in case you’re wondering, Adam and I met yesterday when I practically forced him into hiring me to help with his truck. We were together trying out some recipes when I received some news that I didn’t really want to deal with right now, so he invited me to tag along to keep my mind off it.” She gave him the stink eye. “Seriously, you should have called to make sure it was okay or warn them or something.”
His father’s mustache twitched, but he hid his laugh behind a cough.
Adam slowly lowered back to his seat, his face heating. “Umm…I don’t…”
“My brother, so articulate he can sway juries to his way of thinking, speechless.” Trent’s grin grew as he leaned forward in his chair and swung his gaze to Olivia. “Game night. Same time each week. Consider this your standing invitation.” His head swung side to side. “Man, game night hasn’t been this interesting since Amber guessedabstinencein that epic game of Pictionary.”
“Trent!” Three female voices—Summer, Amber, and Anita—exclaimed at the same time.
Anita slid a plate of cookies onto the table and took a seat next to her husband. “Olivia, forgive my children. They seem to have forgotten all the manners I spent so much time trying to hammer into their thick skulls.”
Olivia laughed. “No apology necessary, Mrs. Carrington. I’m sure my mom has said the same thing about me more than once as well.”
Adam settled into his chair, the nervousness of bringing Olivia slipping away at their acceptance of her. The glint in Trent’s eye promised that, as far as his brother was concerned, the conversation about her and any perceived relationship between them wasn’t over. Trent would corner him later. In private. Where he could hound Adam and Mom or Summer wouldn’t step in to intervene. It was a waste of time though, and Trent would be barking up the wrong tree. Game night with Olivia wasobviouslynothing but a way to distract her for the evening until she could come up with the words to confront her parents.
