“I know, but even you have to admit it was dodgy that she wouldn’t even tell us her boyfriend’s name.” She turned to Cooper. “Said she wanted everything about him to be a surprise for when we met him. Go figure.”
“Well, I uh,” Kayla fumbled, “I did.”
“I see that now. But I also know how Mom is about digging into our personal life.”
“Again, Susan. I’m right here,” her mom interjected. “Besides, there’s nothing wrong with my desire to see my children happily married. It’s only natural. But now that we have Cooper—”
“Mom!” Kayla closed her eyes in mortification. Thank God this relationship wasn’t real, or this conversation would be even more awkward than it already was. “Stop it.”
“What? Marriage is something that every new couple should discuss up front.” Her mom smiled at Cooper. “It’s good to know where you stand early on, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Absolutely, Mrs. Moriarity.” He threw his hand over her shoulders. “Marriage is a very serious topic that one should never take lightly, and it’s something we’ve discussed several times. We both know where we stand.”
She smiled even bigger. “I’m glad to hear that.”
“Stop torturing them, Mom.” Susan hugged Kayla tightly, and Kayla held her close. When the hug ended, Susan motioned her fiancé, Max, over. “Cooper, it’s great to meet you.”
Cooper stepped forward, both dimples in full force just like Kayla had asked for. “It’s lovely to meet you, too, Susan. Kayla and I are so happy for you and Max.”
Kayla nodded. “So happy. I can’t wait to see your dress, too. I mean, the picture you emailed was nice but I’m sure it’s even more beautiful in person.”
“I’ll show it to you tomorrow when you come to dinner,” Susan promised, grinning at them both. “Oh, here’s Max.”
“Kayla, you’re here!” Max hugged Kayla, then turned to Cooper. His blond hair was longer than she remembered, and he was clean-shaven. He was a little shorter than Cooper, but not much, and he wore a black suit. He looked happily in love. “Hello, I’m Max.”
“Cooper Shillings.” Cooper shook his hand, inclining his head. “I’m the boyfriend who everyone thought was fake, apparently.”
Max laughed. “Well, welcome to the family. Glad to see you’re real.”
“Thank you for having me.”
Her mother clapped her hands and sighed, looking way too happy to have both the sisters and their men here together. “Susan and Max, you two have to mingle, since it’s your wedding party. Off you go now.”
Kayla kept Susan close. “But we just saw each other.”
“You’ll see each other again,” her mom said primly.
Susan smiled at Kayla and smoothed her satin dress. The red was quite a lovely color on her. “We’ll have more time tomorrow. There’s a reason we took the day off before the wedding to relax.” She counted off on her fingers. “Rehearsal dinner tonight, small family gathering at home tomorrow. A bit unorthodox, given that most rehearsal dinners are the night before. But it’s my day and this is the way I wanted it.”
Good for you for going after what you want, Kayla thought.
“Right. Now off you go, Susan.” Her mom gently turned her in the opposite direction. “Cooper hasn’t met your father yet.”
“Oh.” Susan looked over her shoulder at Cooper and cringed. “Good luck with that.”
Cooper blinked at her. And he might have paled, too. “Uh, thanks?”
“He’s not that bad,” Kayla said to Susan. Then she looked at Cooper and tried her best to be reassuring. “He’s really not.”
“Yes, he is,” her mom said sympathetically. “That’s him, in the corner. Ignore any rudeness you might get—it’s all in the name of his love for Kayla.”
Kayla watched Cooper’s eyes follow her mom’s gesture, then he stiffened. He turned to Kayla with a scowl. She flinched, not sure why he looked ready to bite her head off. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Nothing at all,” he muttered. He straightened to his full height and then smiled at her mom. “Why don’t you go along ahead of us, Mrs. Moriarity. I just want a second with Kayla before we follow.”
“Of course, dear. I’ll see you in a few.”
She practically skipped toward the corner where Kayla’s dad sat, frowning at Cooper even from across the room. Cooper waved at him politely, then turned to Kayla. “At what point were you going to mention your father is the man I’m going to be working for?”