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Rhett reached over and took my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “Your daughter’s manytalentsare indeed a delight to discover, Veronica. And I’m sure we’ll have many opportunities to explore them all.”
Jesus fuck, the way he put the emphasis ontalentsmade me want to blush.
“Now that we’re all settled, I have a little something for both of you.” Rhett grabbed the gift bags he’d placed on the floor and handed one each to Mom and Dad. Jeez, he really was laying in on thick.
Dad’s eyes lit up as he examined the whisky bottle. “Well, I’ll be... Rhett, you really shouldn’t have.”
“It’s my pleasure, Gregory. Just a small token of appreciation for welcoming me into your home.”
Mom was already prying open the box of Belgian chocolates, her eyes wide with delight. “Oh, these look simply divine! Thank you so much, dear.”
She beamed at Rhett, and I could practically see the hearts in her eyes. Yep, he had them both eating out of the palm of his hand now. I had to give the guy credit - he certainly knew how to turn on the charm when he wanted to.
The sound of a commotion at the front door had Mom bouncing up from her seat. “Oh, that’ll be Tyler and Misty. I can’t wait for you to meet them.”
We all stood up to greet them. Tyler was already frowning when they walked in, which let me know the night had just taken another downward turn. Fun times!
“Tyler, Misty, this is Rhett, Scarlett’s... um...” Mom trailed off, looking uncertainly between Rhett and me.
“Partner,” Rhett supplied smoothly, extending his hand to shake Tyler’s. “It’s a pleasure to meet you both.”
Tyler gave a curt nod as Misty batted her heavily mascaraed eyelashes. “Well, isn’t this just too perfect?” she tittered in thatgrating, high-pitched voice of hers. “Rhett and Scarlett - your names just sound like they were made for each other!”
I wanted to gag at her sugary sweet tone. Rhett, however, just went along with it. “Indeed, it does seem fate had a hand in bringing us together.”
He slid his arm around my waist, pulling me flush against his side. The overwhelming masculine scent of his cologne made my head swim. I shot him a sideways glance, but he simply winked conspiratorially.
“I would love to hear how you two met, since Scarlett hasn’t told us much. If everyone is ready to eat, I can serve the first course, then we can hearallabout it.”
“Oh, before we do that,” Misty began, “I thought it would be nice to bring something for dessert. I mean, I know Scarlett probably baked something, but?—”
“She did, she did. A wonderful cherry pie that’s already in the fridge.”
“Oh, I see, well, um, Tyler mentioned…”
“Mom, I said that Misty might like to bring something, even though Scarlett…”
Mom shook her head. Oooh, what was going on here? A showdown? Mom flushed uncomfortably and tried to disguise the pointed look she shot to Rhett. I couldn’t help but glance at Rhett myself, to see him taking in the whole conversation, with a small frown marring his perfect brow.
“How about I serve the entrée?”
And that was that. It looked like we were having my cherry pie for dessert. Maybe I should bring Rhett to dinner more often.
Mom fetched the tureen of cauliflower soup and placed it carefully into the middle of the table and served everyone. Once everyone had started eating, she said, “I’msolooking forward to hearing this story.”
“It’s certainly a story for the ages.”
Oh god, here we go. I shot Rhett a warning glare, silently begging him not to say anything too crazy.
“You see, Scarlett and I first crossed paths on opposing sides of a legal case.”
Mom’s eyes widened. “Oh my, that sounds dramatic! What kind of case?”
“A land development dispute. Scarlett here is representing a group trying to block one of my company’s projects, citing environmental concerns.”
“Environmental concerns?” Dad frowned, glancing between us. “That sounds like a conflict of interest.”
“Oh, it’s a heated battle, that’s for sure.” Rhett winked at me. “Your daughter is more than a match for me. Tenacious, sharp as a tack. She definitely keeps me on my toes.”