Love Like Theirs

by Sophie Love

  “And…” he pressed.

  “And because I’m still mad at you about last night!”

  Milo nodded. “There. That wasn’t too hard, was it?”

  Keira put her bread down and frowned at him. “You’re infuriating, do you know that? Why can’t you just say sorry?”

  “I thought I already did.”

  “That was last night.”

  “It requires two apologies?”

  “YES! It requires as many apologies as it takes until I stop being mad!”

  “Got it,” Milo said with a nod. “I’m sorry, Keira. I’m sorry. Keira, I am truly sorry.”

  “Oh, shut up!” Keira said, hitting him with another pillow.

  Milo laughed. But then, once he’d recovered, he grew serious. “Keira, I actually am sorry that I upset you. It hadn’t occurred to me that making arrangements with my friends would upset you. But I can see now why it was insensitive.”

  Keira pursed her lips.

  “Am I getting closer?” he asked.

  “Maybe…” Keira said.

  “And I really like you,” he added. “I don’t want to screw it up. Especially over something like that. So easily avoided. I have learned my lesson. I will speak to you first before making plans.”

  Keira nodded. She could tell his apology was heartfelt and that he truly understood why she’d reacted how she had.

  “Okay,” she said. “You’re forgiven.”

  “I am?” he asked. “Phew!” He blew air out his mouth. “I wasn’t sure if we’d make it through our first fight.”

  “It wasn’t a fight,” she said, rolling her eyes.

  “Yeah, I think it was,” he replied. “People don’t throw pillows for no reason.”

  “Sorry about that,” Keira said, blushing.

  “Don’t be,” he told her. “I always want to know when you’re mad. Or else how can I change things? That said, there is literally nothing I can do about the snoring. You’ll have to get used to it.”

  Keira laughed. She picked her bread up and began to eat again. With the air cleared, she felt much better. And she realized then that relationships—romantic or otherwise—were always going to go through little bumps of miscommunication and misunderstanding. It was how they were dealt with that mattered. And Milo had dealt with that one perfectly, really. He had not made her feel bad about her feelings, or the childish way she’d expressed them, nor had he turned it into a fight or reacted defensively. He’d just been very Milo about the whole thing. He’d been, well, perfect.

  “I have a question,” Keira said then.

  Milo looked over at her, eyebrows raised. “Fire away.”

  “Well, it’s more of a request actually,” she said.

  “I’m listening.”

  “You know how I was so mad at you last night, I said no sex…”

  “Yes?”

  “Well, I’m not mad anymore.”

  A grin spread across Milo’s lips. “Say no more.”

  *

  A whole morning disappeared before their very eyes. When midday arrived, neither wanted yet to leave the bed, so Milo went to a corner shop nearby and picked up sandwiches, which they ate in bed before resuming their marathon lovemaking. When the sky started to darken, Keira flopped back against the bed, exhausted.

  “I’m done,” she announced. “My legs are jelly. I can’t focus straight. We have to stop.”

  She looked over at Milo, giggling. He propped himself up on his elbows and smiled at her, his eyes sparkling with desire.

  “You are very beautiful,” he said, his fingers playing with her hair.

  “So are you.”

  “I really like you,” he added.

  “I really like you too.”

  Milo continued. “I like you so much I want to take you home to meet my parents.”

  Keira’s eyes widened. “You do?”

  Milo nodded. “Yes. I want them to get to know you. And you them. But is that too much? I understand if you feel like it is too soon.”

  Keira lay back against the pillow, still trying to catch her breath. She mulled over Milo’s proposition. All the different pieces of advice she’d been given over the last few days began swirling in her mind. But above all else, she remembered Bryn telling her not to overthink things, to trust her instincts. And her instincts were telling her to go for it, to be brave, to experience everything she could with this man while she had the chance and throw caution to the wind.

  She looked back at Milo. “Yes.”

  “Yes?”

  “Yes. I’d like to meet them too.”

  He looked thrilled. “I’ll call my mom right now.”

  “NO!” Keira cried. “Not from the bed we’ve just been, you know. Go and do it over there.” She pointed at the desk.

  Milo laughed. “You’re strange.” But he did as she said.

  Keira watched him, gazing adoringly upon his body. He really was a unique soul, a one in a million guy. She felt lucky, no, blessed, that their paths had crossed. It felt a bit like fate.

  And if she really took Bryn’s advice and listened to her gut instinct, then she would go as far as to say she was falling for him.

  She was falling in love.

  CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

  Keira woke up in Milo’s strong arms the next morning, feeling content and warm. But it didn’t take long for the calm feeling to fade when she remembered that yesterday she’d agreed to meet his family. She was struck with sudden nerves and sat up, pushing him off.

  Milo stirred beside her. “Morning. Did my deviated septum keep you awake at all last night?”

  He was murmuring, still half asleep, but Keira had much more important things on her mind than Milo’s snoring.

  “What time are we seeing your family?” she blurted, ignoring his question.

  “I told Mom we’d head over after breakfast,” he said with a yawn.

  Keira bolted right out of bed. “I have to get ready,” she said. “What should I wear?”

  As she began flapping around the room in panic, Milo started to come to his senses, and he looked at her curiously before starting to laugh.

  “What on earth are you doing?” he asked, sitting up fully and watching her with an amused frown.

  “I’m trying to get ready,” she said. “But I can’t find my black jeans!” She crouched down, sifting through the open suitcase at the foot of her bed and throwing items haphazardly around her.

  “Calm down,” she heard Milo say from somewhere above her, out of view. “They’re not monsters. They don’t mind what you wear. Just dress like you normally would.”

  “So these stone-wash jeans would be appropriate?” she said sarcastically, holding up a pair of—perhaps misjudged on reflection—skinny, ripped, pale blue jeans. Then she stood, another panicked thought overcoming her. “And what about my hair?” she cried, hurrying to the mirror. “Does it look okay? Should I put it up or wear it down loose?”

  In the reflection of the mirror, she saw Milo getting out of bed. He came calmly over to her, wrapping his arms around her chest. He pressed a kiss into her cheek.

  “They will love you,” he reassured her reflection. “I promise you. You have nothing to worry about.”

  Keira took a deep breath. Behind her, Milo felt so solid and warm. His presence soothed her. In his arms, she began to relax.

  She turned to face him, gazing up into his eyes with adoration. How had she found such a sweet man? It seemed like fate was intervening.

  “Oh,” Keira said then, as her gaze fell past Milo to the strewn clothes on the floor, falling on the pair of black jeans she’d been searching for. “There they are.”

  He laughed and released her. She scooped the black jeans up off the floor and slid them on. Then she paired them with a simple plaid shirt. She hoped the outfit made her look down to earth but not sloppy. Approachable but not lazy.

  “Ta-da,” she said, once she was dressed. “How did I do?”

  Milo chuckled. “You loo
k beautiful. You always do. Now can we please go and eat? I am starving.”

  Keira nodded, and together they waded through the discarded clothes and out of the room.

  Elsewhere in the hotel, the breakfast buffet was being served, and it filled the halls with the smell of delicious foods. But Keira and Milo didn’t feel like B&B food, instead preferring to head out to a cafe. Out on the street, the sky was milky gray, threatening, as it had for days, to snow.

  As they strolled the streets toward the cafe, Keira felt Milo’s hand reaching for hers. She let him lace his fingers through hers, smiling to herself at the sensation of their first handhold. It felt so right, so natural. And his hands helped keep out the biting cold.

  Once in the cafe, Keira, who had grown so accustomed to the Swedish-style breakfast now and had decided to completely ditch any pretense of a diet, ordered a large open sandwich and super-strength coffee. But when they sat to eat, Keira found her appetite had diminished. She picked at her food.

  “You’ve hardly eaten,” Milo commented. “Are you okay?”

  Keira grimaced. “I guess I’m anxious. It’s not like me to lose my appetite. Or freak out about what color jeans I’m wearing.”

  As she said it aloud, it occurred to her that her level of anxiety matched the amount that she wanted Milo’s family to like her. And that meant one thing and one thing only. He was important. Her stomach swirled with the realization.

  “Is there anything I need to know before I meet your parents?” she asked, that familiar sensation of panic arising again.

  “Like what?” Milo asked, smiling as he shook his head. “You mean like whether they have purple skin and three eyes?”

  Keira rolled her eyes. “No. I don’t mean that. I mean, like, are there any topics I shouldn’t bring up? Politics, for example? Or, I don’t know, which basketball player is better?”

  Milo chuckled again. He rubbed her arm. “I promise you, my parents are both completely normal people who you can ask completely normal questions to. They both love debating politics so you won’t offend them in that regard, and everyone knows it’s LeBron James, so there’s nothing controversial there.” He winked. Keira couldn’t help but smile. But Milo continued speaking, poking his sandwich as he did so. “That said, that’s just my parents. Regina, on the other hand…”

  Keira’s eyes widened. “Your sister? What’s wrong with her?”

  “Like I said, she’s the smartest person in the world,” Milo explained. “She’ll tell you all about meteorites and star systems and other stuff like that until your ears bleed or you drop dead from boredom. The trick is to be firm. But not too firm. She’s been known to bite.”

  Keira’s eyes grew wider still. Then Milo burst out laughing.

  “I’m only joking!” he exclaimed. “Honestly, you should have seen your face.”

  Keira scowled at him. “Not funny, Milo. I want this to go well.”

  “It will,” he reassured her, reaching across the table and squeezing her arm. “Regina is a normal person. My parents are normal people. They will love you. There’s no way they can’t.”

  Keira looked into his eyes and knew he was speaking from the heart.

  *

  After breakfast, they hailed a cab to take them to the small town where Milo’s parents lived. It was a few towns over from Stockholm, not far, but the drive sent them crisscrossing up into the mountains. It was truly beautiful and Keira marveled at the view.

  “The mountains are incredible,” she said, gazing up through the window at them.

  “I know,” Milo said. “I was very lucky to have them to look at as a child.”

  She remembered her strange question from before when she’d first met Milo and he reminded her of Jossi, about whether he’d climbed a mountain.

  “You were never tempted to climb them?” she asked him now, amused at how the topic had come full circle.

  “Nope,” he said. “Dad and I would hike in the countryside, but nothing as extreme as mountaineering.”

  “Kind of tempting though,” she said, looking up to their snowy peaks. “The view from there must be incredible. Imagine seeing the Northern Lights from the top of that mountain.”

  “I guess so,” he said, smiling.

  Keira was so entranced by the mountains that she was shocked when the cab pulled to a halt.

  “We’re here?” she asked, surprised.

  Milo nodded. “Yes. The house is right there.”

  Keira peered out the window and saw a gorgeous little house, right on the edge of the mountain. It had a sweeping pathway leading to the front porch.

  “But it practically is in the mountains!” Keira commented.

  Milo laughed. “Yes. I thought it was very funny how you were talking about climbing them when really I grew up in them! And yes, the Northern Lights are spectacular from here. If the sky is clear tonight, we can stay up and look at them.”

  “No wonder your sister became an astrophysicist,” Keira murmured, awed by the wonder of it all.

  Just then, the porch door opened, and a woman hurried out toward the cab. She was short, rather plump, and had dark, curly hair. Her grin was unmistakably Milo’s. This, Keira realized, must be his mother. And she looked overjoyed to have her son home.

  Milo opened the back door and left the cab, heading straight into his mother’s open arms. Keira took a deep breath and got out of the cab, too.

  “You must be Keira!” Milo’s mother exclaimed, turning her attention from her son to Keira. “I’m Yolanta. Oh, it’s so wonderful to meet you.” She reached out and took Keira’s had, pumping it up and down enthusiastically. Then she pulled her into her bosom, hugging her tightly.

  Keira felt herself instantly relax. Milo’s mother was clearly an extremely personable woman, and very loving. Keira felt immediately at ease in her company.

  “I can’t wait to sit down and learn all about you,” Yolanta added. “Come in, come in. Do you like coffee?”

  “I love it,” Keira said.

  She followed Milo and his mother inside the house. It was very warm inside, a homely cottage with walls painted a rich, burnt orange color. There were tons of potted plants all over the place, too, making the entrance hall feel a bit like a jungle, or some kind of Moroccan palace.

  “You have a lovely home,” Keira commented.

  “Thank you, darling,” Yolanta said. “This way. Let me introduce you to Nils.”

  They went into the living room. It was a compact room, taken up mainly by a huge, squishy couch. Sitting on it was a thin gentleman who had Milo’s eyes, and a woman who Keira assumed to be Regina, the astrophysicist sister. They both stood as she entered.

  “Keira,” Nils said first. He opened his arms to her. Keira hesitated before moving into them for an embrace. He was very wiry, a tall, bony man. It wasn’t often she hugged older men, having no father of her own, and the sensation was unfamiliar. “We’ve heard a lot about you.” He moved away and gestured to Regina. “This is our daughter.”

  “Hi,” Keira said, shyly, waving at Regina.

  But Regina opened her arms too, pulling Keira into them like some kind of mother hen. Keira’s instinct was always to recoil from overt displays of affection, but she knew that was more her problem than anyone else’s, and let the hug happen.

  “I’m just making some coffee,” Yolanta said.

  “I’ll do it, darling,” Nils replied. He stood and headed for the door, embracing Milo on his way out of the room.

  “Please sit,” Yolanta said to Keira.

  She took one of the seats, glancing about her nervously at the homely furnishings and the myriad family photos plastering the walls. Milo’s family was clearly very close and loving. She couldn’t help but compare it to her own family, who, though loving, weren’t always particularly close.

  It didn’t take long for Keira to relax into the company of Milo’s family. And soon, she realized that this was somewhere she could really see herself fitting in.

  * />
  Dinner was a loud, jolly affair. Instead of leaving Yolanta to do the work, the whole family cooked together. And they attempted to rope Keira in too.

  “But I’m a terrible cook,” she protested, blushing.

  “Well, now is the time to learn,” Regina said. “I’ll show you how to prepare the fish.”

  Keira grimaced. For a novice chef, gutting a fish was really throwing her in at the deep end! But Regina was patient, good at explaining what to do, and Keira found her worries disappear. Soon, she was actually enjoying herself, being part of the bustling dinner-making experience.

  She helped Milo set the table.

  “Are you coping?” he asked her.

  “I am,” she said, grinning now. “I’m having a really great time. They’re all so lovely.”

  “I told you,” he said.

  Regina came in with a salad bowl and placed it on the table. Yolanta followed with wine and glasses. Nils came last with the main fish dish, and he laid it in the middle.

  “Grub’s up!” he exclaimed.

  Everyone sat and began chatting easily. Keira found them so laid back, and she quickly learned where Milo had got his wit from. Everyone! They were so funny. It occurred to Keira that she didn’t feel even an ounce of loneliness anymore.

  “Keira, you’re most welcome to stay for the rest of your trip,” Yolanta said. “Staying in hotels all the time must be very tiresome. Don’t you miss home?”

  “I do,” Keira said, surprised.

  But her mind was still processing the offer to stay with them. There wasn’t much more authentic for her article than being with an actual Swedish family. But more than that, she really liked them and wanted to spend time with them.

  “So?” Yolanta asked again. “We’d love to have you here. You’re most welcome.”

  Keira grinned, suddenly confident in her decision. “Actually, that would be wonderful.” But she remembered then that all her stuff was in the hotel, the vast majority strewn across the floor.

  As if reading her mind, Milo said, “We can head back to the hotel after dinner and collect your things. Check you out. Is that okay?”