I was worried that it would be too much. My family was loud and somewhat in your face, and I didn't need their help pushing Gabe away. Managing that on my own would be a piece of cake.
Standing from my stool, I walked around the island and finished adding strawberries to the miniature strawberry shortcakes. My hands were covered in whip cream by the time I was finished, and I felt like I resembled the mess that was on my hands.
My mom walked into the kitchen looking beautiful in her light blue dress that brought out her blue eyes that she passed down to me. My mom's hair was light brown but was the same crazy mass of curls that I had. She had her curls pinned back in a pretty up-do, and she looked like she was insanely happy.
It was one of the biggest things that I loved about my mother. No matter how hard she tried, she could never hide how she was truly feeling. When she was sad, you could see it in her features, but when she was happy, it seemed to pour off of her. It was contagious. She filled our house with smiles and laughter growing up. She never felt like anything we wanted to do was too silly, and she would always put everything she had into making us happy.
"What's wrong, baby girl?" She tucked a stray curl behind my ear while I washed my hands.
"Nothing's wrong. Just getting everything done." I didn't look up at her as I spoke. It was another thing about my mother, but this one I didn't love so much. She could see right through me.
"Uh huh. Is that why you are practically washing your skin off?" She reached up and turned off the faucet then handed me a towel to dry my hands. "Tell me what's going through that pretty head of yours."
"I don't know." I groaned. "I don't even know where to start."
"Well that's simple." She sat down on the stool I vacated only a moment earlier. "Start by telling me his name."
I giggled and ran my hand through my curls. I had told her that I invited some friends tonight, but I really didn't even know how to explain Gabe just yet.
"Gabe. His name is Gabe."
"And what's your concern about Gabe? What do you keep replaying over and over in your thoughts?"
"Honestly?" I took a deep breath. "I'm just worried that he's not going to stick around."
Even though the thought had been running through my mind, it hurt more when I said it out loud.
She watched me for a moment before she spoke again. "If Gabe feels for you half of what you feel for him, I don't think he'll be going anywhere."
"That's the problem." I grabbed a spoon from the drawer beside me. "I don't know what he's feeling. Things have been great between us, but Gabe has run in the past when things got hard. I won't be able to handle it if he does that again."
"First of all," she stood up and leaned across the island toward me, "you can handle anything. It might hurt like crazy, but you would get through it. The question you need to ask yourself is, is he worth it. If he isn't, let go of him now and save yourself more pain in the future. But if he is, if he causes your heart to flutter every single time he walks in the room, if thoughts of him run through your mind constantly and you can't help smiling, then you hold on for dear life. If he runs, you run after him and fight for him. Neither one of you will be perfect and life would be so boring if you were. You're going to fight with each other, but you also have to fight for each other. Love isn't easy. It never will be, but baby, it is so worth it."
My chest tightened at her words and the way her eyes sparked to life when she talked. I knew what she said was true, and in that moment, I knew I would fight for Gabe if it came to it. I just hoped that he would fight for me.
My mom pressed a kiss to my cheek. "Go get cleaned up. Everything is almost done in here, and everyone will be here any minute."
"No. I just need to do a few more things."
"Erica Leighanne, I am your mother, and I said go." She pointed toward the hallway that led to my childhood bedroom that looked exactly the same as it did when I left it.
"Thanks, Mom." I pulled her into a hug.
"You're welcome, baby. Now go put something on that will drive him crazy when he gets here."
I laughed then did exactly what my mother told me to do.
Everyone was mingling and having a good time. My dad had his arm wrapped around my mom's waist as they walked throughout the room and spoke to everyone who came to celebrate their love. It was in no shortage either. You could see how happy and in love they were.
Gabe and my friends hadn't arrived yet. I wiped my hands on my gray dress as my nerves seemed to get worse with every passing second. Poor Jon. He was getting the brunt of those nerves. He passed by me with a scowl on his face as he sat out another plate of food. He thought he was just going to sit around and drink beer, but I reminded him that the two of us were co-hosting this party and he had to help. He grumbled about not being a server but picked up the tray of food and put it where it belonged.
Our cousin Travis laughed at him, but when I gave him a look, he quickly grabbed his beer and followed Jon out of the kitchen.
I was making sure that all the trays were still full when the front door opened and I heard Kat's voice saying hi presumably to my mother.
I walked to the door and spotted Gabe right away. He was standing directly behind Kat and Blake with Johnny and Cash, and his eyes were on me. My parents' were standing in front of them, and Blake was shaking my father's hand.
My dad wasn't particularly intimidating, but he did have an air about him that demanded respect. He worked hard his whole life to provide for his family, and his handsome face was starting to show that hard work. His blond hair was peppered with grays that blended in and were almost unnoticeable. He had deep laugh lines around his mouth that showed a lifetime of smiles and happiness. He was about the same height and build as my brother which made him a little bit smaller than Gabe.
"Hey, guys." I pulled Kat into a hug and smiled at Gabe over her shoulder.
"Mom, Dad, you know Kat and Blake. These two knuckle heads are my friends Johnny and Cash." I waived my hand toward the brothers and they both shook my father's hand. Gabe stepped up next to me and put his hand on the small of my back. It was like he realized how nervous I was and was offering me his silent support. My mom smiled at me knowingly.
"This is Gabe." My dad turned in our direction and it instantly hit me that I had no idea what to introduce him as. Panic hit me. Did I call him my friend? Just the thought of saying it tasted bad on my tongue.
My dad reached his hand out to Gabe.
"He's my … " I looked up to Kat as if she could telepathically tell me what to say, but she was about as helpful as a pen with no ink. She grinned at me, and I could tell she was waiting to see what I would say. Traitor.
"Hello, sir. I'm Gabe Lawson. I'm Erica's boyfriend." Gabe reached out his hand and shook my father's.
My dad looked over at me because I hadn't even mentioned Gabe to him. I raised my eyebrows to him and gave him an exaggerated smile that I reserved only for him. As a daddy's girl, I knew what it took to keep my dad on his best behavior.
My dad smiled back at me then turned back to Gabe whose hand was still in his. "It's nice to meet you, Gabe. Y'all come on in and get some food."
My parents' led the way to the food table, but Gabe kept me firm in place with his hand on my hip. I looked up at him, and he gripped my jaw in his hand before pulling me in for a kiss. His tongue traced my lips, and I instantly opened up for him. My body melted against his, and I momentarily forgot we were standing in my parents' house filled with my family. It didn't even register until one of my uncle's cleared his throat behind us.
I pulled away from Gabe, but he kept my body against his with his hands pressed against my lower back.
"Hey, you." He ran his nose along my jaw.
"Hey." I sounded as breathless as I felt.
"You look beautiful," he said as he twisted one of my curls between his fingers.
"Thank you. You don't look so bad yourself." It was a complete lie. He didn't look bad at all. He looked amazing. His legs were covered in a pair of black trousers, and he had on a light blue button-up shirt with the first two buttons undone. His blond hair was styled back away from his face and his beard hid the sharp jawline that I knew lied beneath. He looked like he belonged on the front of a GQ magazine.
We walked further into the house, and I introduced him to friends and family as we walked by. While I loved all of my family, the only ones whose opinions actually mattered to me were my mom, dad, and Jon's. Not that their opinion of Gabe would actually affect the way that I felt about him, but I wanted them to like him. We didn't need any extra obstacles in our way.