“You’re gorgeous,” Judy said, appraising me.
I blushed in response.
“Mom, stop,” Jesse admonished.
“Sorry,” she said. “This is new for us.” I knew she was referring to the fact that Jesse had never brought home a woman to introduce to them.
She leaned up and kissed her son tenderly on the cheek. I saw the love in her eyes, and it was hard to reconcile the story he’d told me in the car with the two people in front of me. Fifteen years was a long time, though.
“I brought you something,” he said. Judy clapped her hands together in excitement, and he went outside to get the end table. I set Barry down and followed him to help him unload the end table, and I folded the blankets that we’d wrapped around it. He set it down and shut the tailgate, and then he came over to me. I tossed the folded blankets back into the bed of the truck, and he wrapped his arms around me in an unexpected display of emotion. He lifted me off my feet and pressed his lips to mine, and then he put me back down and buried his face in my neck.
“She’s right, you know,” he murmured, his lips against my neck.
“About what?” I asked.
“You’re gorgeous,” he said, and I felt his grin against my skin as his sexy scruff tickled my sensitive flesh. I shivered at his words even as I heated over from the sentiment. I hugged him a little tighter to me.
“I’m glad you’re here,” he said, and with those words, he erased all of the tension and awkwardness I’d felt from what had slipped out of my mouth earlier. If he had some reason that he was holding back, I had to be patient. I had to let him do things in his own time.
He carried the table to the door and I opened it. His parents were still standing in the hallway.
“Jesse bear, this is beautiful,” his mom said, clearly overcome both with emotion at her son’s talent and the meaning behind the beautiful piece of furniture he had crafted with his own hands in commemoration of his sister’s death.
“I pictured it in here,” he said, carrying it into the formal room just to the left of the front door and setting it into place. He fussed with it for a moment, and then he stood back and we all admired it.
“I love it,” Judy said, clapping her hands together like a little girl again. She was adorable. “It’s absolute perfection.”
Jesse pulled his mother into a hug, and she held tightly onto him while his father gazed at the table in appreciation.
“Jess, you’ve got a real talent, son,” his dad added.
Jesse bear and Jess? I was in love with his parents. They were basically the two cutest people ever.
“Isn’t it beautiful?” I gushed. I was proud of him, and clearly his parents were, too. We all gazed at the piece for a quiet moment.
“Thanks, everyone,” Jesse said, and if I wasn’t mistaken, I swear I saw a hint of a blush color his cheeks. “What’s for dinner?” he asked, once again proving his excellent skills of deflecting any attention from himself.
“Oh, Jesse. Just enjoy it,” his mom said, squeezing his arm. So apparently I wasn’t the only one who picked up on his expertise in attention deflection.
He rolled his eyes, and then we all headed to the kitchen.
The house was fairly small – only three bedrooms, one of which was an office – but it was situated right on the beach overlooking the Pacific Ocean. I stared out the patio doors off of the kitchen for a moment. I had always loved the beach. I had always found it calming and tranquil just to listen to the waves rolling in and out, and I couldn’t wait for the chance to roll the sand between my toes.
The kitchen was fairly large, with an island in the center and plenty of counter space. There was a half wall separating the eating area from the family room, but you could easily see the television in the family room from anywhere in the kitchen.
“I just made some chicken salad for sandwiches,” Judy said, heading to the refrigerator. She pulled out a bowl of chicken salad, and then she headed to the pantry for chips and bread.
“Can I help?” I asked.
“No, sweet girl, but thank you for offering. Both of you sit and relax. What can Phil get you both to drink?”
“Beer,” Jesse said.
“I’ll just have some water,” I said.
“Have a beer,” Jesse urged, as if to tell me it was okay if I drank in front of his parents.
“Okay. A beer, then. And water.”
Phil smiled at me and brought four beers to the table along with my water while Judy pulled out plates and napkins.
A few minutes later, I was eating the most delicious chicken salad sandwich of my life with Jesse’s amazing family.