by M. S. Parker
I smoothed down my hair. Maybe it'd make a difference that my hair wasn't blue anymore or that I'd taken out my eyebrow ring. And maybe I was just fooling myself. I sighed. It was too late to back out now. Besides, Rylan and I were going to live together, which meant there'd be no avoiding the family. I'd be going to family functions, holidays and such. Better to meet them now when there wasn't any extra pressure involved.
And speaking of pressure...
I frowned at my reflection. I'd gotten a new dress just for the occasion. Simple, sleek and black. Modestly cut but still stylish, with the kind of material that clung to my curves and flattered my figure. The heels I'd picked were three inches, allowing the dress to fall to the floor without dragging. Both sides had slits that went to a couple inches above my knee, showing off my legs. I knew Rylan would like that.
This would be the last time I'd be dressing here, I realized. After tomorrow, he and I would share a room. He would be there when I decided what to wear to birthday parties, Thanksgiving, Christmas. Maybe by then it would be routine. I'd know what was expected of me, wouldn't feel the need to impress anyone.
I looked down at the box on my dresser. The only thing Rylan had asked of me was to wear his Christmas present. I wasn't sure if it was only because he wanted to see me wearing them again, or if it was to show his family that this wasn't some sort of fling, that he cared about me enough to spend this much money on me. I didn't doubt what he'd told me before, that the gift hadn't been about the money but rather about him knowing what I would like, but if his parents were even a fraction like the people I thought they were, they'd equate how much he spent with how much he cared. Or they'd be like Zeke and Suzette and think I only wanted Rylan for his money.
That wasn't my problem, I reminded myself firmly. I wanted Rylan's family to like me, but for him, not for me. He asked me to wear the necklace and earrings, so I'd do it. If it made his family think less of me, that was their problem, not mine.
I opened the box, still amazed at how beautiful the jewelry was. I'd worn them only once since Christmas and that memory fueled heat low in my belly. I smiled as I put on the earrings. Maybe that was why Rylan wanted me to wear them, I thought. A reminder of how we'd spent our New Year's. I fastened the necklace on and took another look in the mirror. I'd left my hair down and it fell in a straight sheet almost to my shoulders. I hadn't had it trimmed since I'd met Rylan. I hadn't decided yet if I wanted to grow it out or not.
I glanced at my phone. Now wasn't the time to be figuring any of that out. Rylan was coming to pick me up in just a couple minutes. I looked around my bedroom. Everything was packed, ready for tomorrow. I had a bag with clothes in it that I'd take with me tonight so I'd have stuff to wear over the weekend while we unpacked, but everything else was in boxes. Nothing was on the walls. The cabinets in the kitchen emptied. I hadn't found anyone to take the furniture I wasn't taking with me, but my landlord had agreed that it could stay in the apartment through the end of the month since I'd already paid. Other than that, everything was ready to go. Including me.
As nervous as the idea of living with someone made me, I was more excited that I'd get to be with Rylan all the time and not feel like I was pressuring him into something. And with him would come safety. While Rylan wasn't crazy about security stuff, I knew that the security system in his house was top-of-the-line.
There was a knock at the door and I pushed my thoughts of tomorrow aside. One nerve-wracking thing at a time. First it was dinner with Rylan's family. Then I could start processing the move itself and the ramifications that had been buzzing around in my head.
“Gorgeous,” Rylan said as soon as I opened the door. He reached out and brushed his finger over the necklace. “These look just as beautiful on you now as they did a couple weeks ago.” He smiled. “Though I do know which look I prefer.”
I blushed and rolled my eyes. He was the only one whose compliments meant anything to me because I knew they were sincere. He never said ones he didn't mean.
“Before I get too distracted by good memories, shall we?” He held out his arm. “Being late because I wanted to ravish you probably isn't the best idea.”
I laughed and some of the tension eased out of my body, which I was sure had been his intent all along. “True,” I agreed. “I wouldn't want your family getting such a negative impression of me.”
It was his turn to laugh. “I was thinking more along the lines of it not being a good idea to leave my mother and father in the same room for a long period of time without me as a buffer.”
My eyebrows went up. “Are things that bad between the two of them?”
He shrugged. “They don't get along, and with my step-mother and Suzette there, my mom will feel like they're ganging up on her, even if they don't say a word.”
“You know,” I said as we walked towards Rylan's car. “Spending time in the system tends to make people romanticize having a family, but that's at least one good thing about having a past like mine.”
“What's that?” he asked as he opened the passenger's side door for me.
“Even families that are a million times better than mine still have issues.”
He chuckled as he went around the car to get into the driver's seat. “Yes, they do.”
Since we were meeting with both parents, Rylan had thought it wouldn't be a good idea to pick one home over the other and Rylan definitely didn't want them at his place – our place, I corrected myself. When I'd asked why, he'd told me that his house was refuge to get away from his parents. If we were somewhere else, we could leave whenever we wanted. If everyone was here, short of being rude, we'd have to wait for them to go on their own. That and the fact that he'd already started moving things around in anticipation of the move meant having his family to the house would be awkward. He planned to tell them that I was moving in with him, but he wanted to give us at least until the appetizers to ease into it.
It had taken a lot of persuading to get his parents to agree to a dinner at a Fort Collins restaurant rather than something in Denver, but in the end, they'd agreed, as long as the family had a private back room. I would've laughed at the request, but Rylan seemed to think it was a good idea, so I let it go. I felt conspicuously overdressed as Rylan and I followed the hostess through the restaurant towards the back, but as soon as we went into the room, I was glad I'd followed Rylan's advice.
Suzette was wearing an elegant dark green dress, looking more like she belonged at some sort of gallery opening or charity event. Next to her was a woman who could only be her mother. I'd seen a picture of Lindsay Golden-Archer before, and even though that had been from years ago, the woman at Suzette's side didn't look much different. Chestnut brown hair and the same hazel eyes as her daughter, Lindsay could've passed for her mid-thirties instead of the early forties I knew her to be.
On Suzette's other side was Rylan's father. Both kids had inherited Adam Archer's dark hair, though his was mostly gray now. Still, for a man in his mid-sixties, he'd aged well. His eyes were blue, though not the same shade as Rylan's. He, too, didn't look much different from the pictures I'd seen.
The other woman in the room I wouldn't have been able to place if I hadn't known Rylan's mother was coming. In her early thirties, Theresa Ricin-Archer had obviously had a lot of work done, and not all of it had been good. Her hair was golden blond now – an obvious dye job – but her eyes had stayed the same. Rylan had inherited those from her, that unique blue-violet color that had probably gone a long way to helping her modeling career.
“Mom, Dad, Lindsay,” Rylan looked at each one in turn. “I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Jenna Lang.”
I went to them in the order he'd said their names, remembering what Suzette and Zeke had both said about Rylan's parents taking little things personally. I kept my smile the same for all three and shook their hands the exact same way.
“It's nice to meet all of you,” I said as I stepped back to Rylan's side. He put his hand on the small of my back and I
resisted the urge to lean into him.
“We've heard a lot about you,” Lindsay said with a stiff smile.
I didn't doubt that.
We moved to sit at the table, Rylan quickly positioning himself between his mother and me. Suzette ended up across from me which I didn't particularly like, but there wasn't really a better choice.
“Your appearance is a bit of a surprise,” Adam said.
“Dad,” Rylan snapped.
“It's okay,” I said softly, putting my hand on his arm. I turned to Adam. “I'm assuming it's the hair.” I gave him my most charming fake smile. “I've always gotten bored of my hair color easily and I don't always choose the most normal colors.” I let my eyes flick over to Lindsay and then to Theresa. “But I decided that I wanted to go into the New Year with my natural hair color, so I dyed it until it can grow out.”
“You lost the eyebrow ring too,” Suzette said. She looked down at my wrist. “Are you going to get the tattoos removed too so you can try to look like you belong with my brother?”
“Suzette!” Rylan glared at his sister.
“Actually, I don't really care what anyone else thinks.” I kept my voice even and polite, albeit a little on the cool side. “If someone doesn't accept me for who I am, then they're not someone with whom I'd want to be acquainted anyway.”
“Well,” Lindsay broke in to the conversation. “If you ever decide you want to see a plastic surgeon about those scars.” She looked at my cheek and my arm. “Just ask Theresa. She has every plastic surgeon in a hundred mile radius on speed dial.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Rylan scowl. I was starting to understand why he'd waited to introduce me to his family.
“Unless you want a boob job,” Theresa spoke up. “That's a number you'd have to get from Lindsay.”
Just when I thought there would be some sort of middle-aged women cat fight, the waiter appeared to ask for drink and appetizer orders. Everyone ordered alcohol, which I didn't think was a very good idea, but I did too, so I didn't feel right saying something.
“Nice necklace,” Suzette said as the waiter walked away. “How much did it cost?”
“It was a Christmas present,” I said tightly. Rylan was talking to his mom and I hoped he wasn't paying attention to anything else. I had a feeling Suzette wasn't going to let it go with that explanation.
I was right.
“Did you even have anything on your Christmas list that didn't cost thousands of dollars?” Her voice was low and I could tell she didn't want Rylan to hear her. “What else did he buy you?”
“I didn't ask for anything,” I answered honestly even though I knew she wouldn’t believe me. “And I told him it was too much.”
“But you still kept it.”
My temper started to bubble up, testing my restraint. She loved her brother and wanted to protect him. That's what this was about, nothing more. I almost convinced myself.
“Yes, I kept it.” I made myself meet her eyes. I didn't have anything to be ashamed of. I hadn't asked for an expensive gift and I didn't love it because it cost a lot of money. I would've loved it just as much if it had been costume jewelry. “Because it's not about me. It's about him.”
Suzette's mouth flattened into a thin line.
“He gave them to me as a gift. He wanted me to have them because he thought they'd make me happy, because he wanted me to wear them.” I tactfully left off the part about him wanting me to wear only them. Suzette didn't need to hear that even though I had to admit that it would've been nice to see if I could get a rise out of her.
“Awfully convenient, isn't it?” she asked. “That he'd choose something so expensive for someone he's only been dating a couple months.”
“Convenient?” I raised an eyebrow.
She shrugged. “What's next, a car because you don't happen to have one? A bigger apartment when your lease is up? Or are you just going to invite yourself to move in with him?”
I stiffened. Not much, but enough that she caught it.
“You've got to be kidding me.” Her voice rose. “You're moving in with him?”
All eyes turned towards me and none of the looks were friendly.
“Well.” Rylan cleared his throat. “I guess that cat's out of the bag.”
Chapter 30
I'd read in books where passages of heated conversations were described as explosions. I never truly understood what that meant until now. The moment Rylan confirmed that I was indeed moving in with him, it was like a bomb went off.
Everyone started talking at once.
Suzette wanted to know how he could trust me when he barely knew me. After all, he'd been with Lara for years and had never known she was a lesbian. Theresa seemed to be more concerned that the money he usually gave her would go to me. Lindsay echoed whatever her husband said, and Adam was emphatic that I planned on tricking Rylan into getting me pregnant so he'd marry me and I'd either have access to his accounts or I'd divorce him and take half.
“Enough!” Rylan slammed his hand down on the table. His face was flushed, eyes flashing. “I love Jenna. She's moving in with me tomorrow and she's a part of my life. You're either going to learn how to deal with that or you're going to be seeing a lot less of me.” He reached over and took my hand, wrapping his fingers around my cold ones. “We come together or not at all.”
“Rylan.” Theresa's voice was soft. “Just think about it, dear. You have a lot to lose if she's just after your money.”
“Don't you mean you have a lot to lose?” Lindsay snipped.
For the first time in my life, I was almost grateful that I didn't have family. I knew Rylan loved his parents and his sister, and for us to be together, I needed to accept his family, but I definitely saw some benefits to not having all of this chaos and tension.
While Adam tried to referee between his ex-wife and the current Mrs. Archer, Suzette leaned towards Rylan, completely ignoring the fact that I was there. “Dad had a good point, Ry. You're a good man and we both know if she got pregnant, you'd never leave her.”
Rylan's fingers tightened around mine and I felt the anger coming off of him in waves. Without him saying it, I knew that a lot of that anger was on my behalf.
“Listen to your sister if you won't listen to us,” Adam joined in. Lindsay and Theresa didn't look happy, but now their glowers were focused in my direction. “One little hole in a condom or her 'forgetting' to take her birth control.”
“I'm sitting right here!” I snapped, unable to control myself any longer. I stood up and yanked my hand out of Rylan's. “If you have a problem with me, say it to me, not him.”
“Very well.” Theresa poked at her hair with one long acrylic nail. “We don't know anything about you. How do we know you aren't going to try to steal Rylan's money or force him to marry you?”
“I don't want his money,” I said. “And I didn't ask to move in with him. He asked me.” I lifted my chin. “And as for me tricking him into getting me pregnant...”
“Jenna,” Rylan said softly.
I didn't look at him. “Not that it's any of your business, but that won’t be a problem because I can't have kids. I can get a doctor's note if that'll make you feel better.”
I was slightly gratified to see everyone looking shocked and embarrassed, but I needed to get away before I said something I'd regret.
“Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to use the ladies' room. I'll be back in a few minutes.” I turned and walked away, not looking back even when Rylan called after me.
I was torn between seething and wanting to cry. And the last part made me even angrier. I didn't cry. Not for people like that. It was just that I didn't like telling anyone personal shit, especially the ‘not having kids’ part. And to have to do it that way, to defend why I loved him...
I pushed open the door with a little more force than necessary, wincing as it banged against the wall. Fortunately, there wasn't anyone in the bathroom to hear it. I paced the short length of the room, trying t
o regain my composure. I couldn't go back out there like this. I was too worked up and they knew it. Granted, they'd started it, but if I wanted them to accept me, I would have to rise above their behavior, prove that I wasn't some low-class gold-digger.
I took a slow breath, then let it out. While they could've expressed themselves better, I had to admit that Rylan's family had legitimate concerns. I knew my intentions towards Rylan were honorable, that I wasn't after his money, but his family didn't know me. Hell, he barely knew me. I hadn't lied to him, but he honestly had no way of knowing that, not really.
I stopped in front of the sink, wetting a paper towel and dabbing my face with it. I couldn't think like that. He knew me. We might not have known each other long, but we knew each other better than some people who'd been together for years. We hadn't only been through a lot, we'd talked, shared. He knew about my past, what I'd been through, and he didn't care.
I looked at my reflection. My skin was paler than usual, except for two spots of color on my cheeks. I closed my eyes and tried counting to ten. When that didn't work, I went to twenty. I was still counting when the door opened.
“Jenna.”
Dammit. It was Suzette. She was pretty much the last person I wanted to talk to. Still, I managed to put a cordial expression on my face before I turned around.
“What is it, Suzette?” The question came out harsher than I'd intended.
“You're not good for him,” she said bluntly. She crossed her arms and looked down at me. She may have been a year younger than me, but if I'd been anyone else, the fierce look on her face would've scared the shit out of me.
I didn't respond. There was no point in arguing. The best thing to do would be to let her get everything out of her system, then figure out where to go from there.
