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“Meeting your family is kind of…big. What ifthey don’t like me?”
“When it comes to my sister, it’s not an‘if.’ She doesn’t like me, so she’s not going to like anyone Ibring.” Maybe that type of negativity wouldn’t sell my familygathering to Charlotte, but she deserved the warning.
“You make it sound so tempting.” Charlottesighed. “I guess it’s only fair if I meet your parents. You’ve metmine. And you’ve met my brother.”
“You’ll only be meeting my mom,” Iclarified. “Unless you bring a Ouija board.”
“Oh. Ouch.” She grimaced. “Sorry.”
“If you’d met my father, you wouldn’t besorry.” I didn’t want to tackle that particular subject first thingin the morning. “Speaking of parents… God, this sounds incrediblycreepy, considering our age difference, but do your parents knowwhere you are?”
She nearly choked on the drink she’d taken.“Don’t be gross!”
“Was that gross? It sounded gross in myhead, but I thought it was that—”
“That our age difference is gross?” Shechallenged me with an arched brow. “Is that how you feel?”
“No, but I don’t have any shame.” I held upmy hands in defeat. “Let me try that again. Do you have peopleworried about you?”
“Now, that sounds murdery.” She gesturedvaguely in the air. “I texted my mom this morning. She knows I’m inNew York, and she knows I’m with you.”
“Ah. And how does she feel about…” I pointedbetween the two of us.
“She doesn’t know that it’s serious yet.”Charlotte flushed as red as the strawberries on her plate. “Notthat I’m assuming this is serious—”
“I’m in love with you,” I interrupted. “Isthat serious enough?”
“I don’t talk to my parents about my lovelife. Do you?” she countered.
“Fair enough.” And I assumed Scott hadalready filled in their parents about the relationship details hedid know. He seemed to love to tattle on his sister. It had beenfunny to listen to all the stories about Charlotte before I was apart of them.
“You don’t think I’m the kind of person whowould capriciously disappear, right? Leave everyone to worry aboutme and not give a shit?” she asked.
“No. You strike me as someone who goes outof her way to make sure she’s pleasing everyone.” Which might makethe weekend hell on earth for her. I didn’t want this party, thecompany my family kept, the society standing that I wanted no partof, to chase her off. “And I don’t want you to feel that way aroundme.”
“I don’t need to feel that way around you. Iknow you’re happy to have me around.” The way she said it almostconvinced me. But I knew too much about her past and her privatepain to naively think she’d changed her entire personality becauseof me and after one conversation about it.
“Iam.” I made sure she could hearthe emphasis in my voice. “Iamhappy to have you around.Just you, and not some version of yourself that you’reperforming.”
She reached across the corner of the tableand put her hand over mine. “You’re the only person I might be ableto believe when you say that.”
“So, I’ve proved that I love you?” Asdamaged as Charlotte was, I wasn’t sure she’d ever actually acceptthat I loved her.
She pretended to consider. “Mmm… I mightneed another seven days to convince me.”
I took her hand and squeezed it. “If that’swhat it takes.”
I was prepared to give her the rest of mylife. I could think that without breaking into a cold sweat, sothat made it official, as far as I was concerned.
In the grand scheme of things, another sevendays was nothing at all.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
(Charlotte)
“Bad news.”
I looked up from my breakfast. It’s possiblethat I’d miss Matt’s personal chef more than I’d miss Matt when Iwent home. My omelet was so good, I almost forgot he was there.