Tender Is The Night(40)

"We'll say we met through the Bureau-mutual friends. I like your golden  blonde hair and your sparkling blue eyes, your competitive spirit, and  you have just enough snark in you to keep things interesting."

She glanced over at him, wondering if that was really what he liked about her or if he was making it up.

"Think they'll believe that?" he asked.

"That I have snark-yes."

He grinned. "I can go into more detail and tell them how much I like  kissing you, how passionate you are, how great you look naked in my  bed."

She flushed and said, "We're not trying to give anyone a heart attack."

"So what are you going to tell them you like about me?"

She thought for a moment. "I like that you're sharp-a quick thinker.  You're competitive and you never let me win, which makes me try harder.  Mostly, you're a good guy. You have more heart than you admit to, and I  know you'd take a bullet before letting someone else get hurt."

She looked over at him as she stopped at a light. As their gazes met,  something deeper and more serious passed between them, as if they both  had suddenly realized just how much they did like each other.

A car horn blared, and she realized the light had turned green. She put  her foot on the gas and gave her attention back to the road. "Don't be  surprised if my mom wants you to come to the wedding and all the other  events next week. I think it's better if we just vaguely go along with  her rather than say we won't be there together."

"Fine. Let's get through brunch and we'll worry about the rest later."

A few minutes later, she parked down the street from her parents' house.  There were already a lot of cars, so she suspected most of her family  was already inside. As they walked down the sidewalk, she saw two of her  cousins and their wives get out of a car.         

     



 

"That's Drew on the left in the sunglasses," she told Devin. "He was in  the Navy and is now a pilot for the Coast Guard. The dark blonde is his  wife, Ria. The brunette next to her is Sara and her husband Aiden. Aiden  and Drew are two of Emma's brothers."

"What does Aiden do?"

"He used to be a smokejumper. Now, he does construction with my uncle."

"Smokejumper?" Devin muttered. "You do come from a family of thrill seekers."

"Aiden is one of the leaders in that department. So is my brother,  Hunter. He's never met a mountain he didn't want to climb or jump off  of." She slipped her hand into Devin's. "Ready to be my boyfriend? My  babe? My snickerdoodle?"

He laughed. "Boyfriend, yes. If you call me snickerdoodle, I will have to blow your cover."

"Fine. Then just smile and pretend you love me, because it's show time."



* * *



It wasn't difficult to pretend he was in love with Kate, Devin realized  as she introduced him to her relatives and friends of the family. The  two-story house was filled to the brim with all ages of people-from the  elderly to babies in arms, and everything in between.

The kitchen counters and dining room table were filled with dishes of  food, and it was clear the cooks had made a real effort. There were no  bags of chips and store-bought appetizers but casseroles, veggie wraps,  gourmet sandwiches, salads, and meat skewers that were hot off the  barbecue.

He couldn't imagine what it had been like to grow up in this big,  boisterous family. There was so much love, so much laughter, so much of  everything. He felt a little jealous. Even when his parents had been  together, life had been a lot quieter than this. And neither of his  parents had many relatives, so even extended family had been hard to  come by.

"Are you okay?" Kate asked, grabbing two beers off a side table in the  dining room as they made their way toward the back of the house.

"I'm great."

"You look a little dazed."

"It's a lot to take in," he said, taking a swig of beer. "This happens every Sunday?"

She nodded with a smile. "Not always here, but somewhere. Family  gatherings are very important to everyone. No birthday, no holiday, goes  by without appropriate celebration. Here comes Mom and Dad."

She slipped her hand into his, and he tightened his fingers around hers,  thinking that he was enjoying being her fake boyfriend a little too  much.

"Kate, you came," Sharon said with delight. "And you brought Devin. I was afraid you were going to make me chase you down."

"I wouldn't do that." She let go of Devin's hand to hug her mother.

Devin shook Tim's hand, seeing the quiet regard in the older man's eyes. "It's nice to see you both again," he said.

"You, too," Sharon said, giving him a speculative look. "So tell us a  little about you, Devin. Did Kate say you were in the FBI?"

"I used to be. Now I'm a private investigator."

"Why did you leave the Bureau?" Sharon asked.

"A lot of reasons," he said vaguely. "I like being my own boss, so it's a good move for me."

"Do you investigate for anyone in particular?" Tim asked.

"I'm an equal opportunity investigator," he said lightly.

"How did you two meet?" Sharon asked.

"Through mutual friends," he said.

"FBI friends," Kate added. "We should get something to eat."

"So you live here in the city," Sharon said, ignoring her daughter's comment. "Are you and Kate going to do long-distance?"

"It looks that way," he said lightly.

"I told you, Mom, this is all new," Kate said.

"It can't be that new if you came back early to spend time with Devin,  and you didn't want anyone in the family to know you were in town."

Devin smiled seeing the discomfort on Kate's face. She might be a  skilled agent, but when it came to her mother, she was definitely out of  her league. "That's my fault," he said. "I wanted to spend some time  with Kate before she was busy with the wedding."

"You should come to the wedding," Sharon said. "In fact, I insist. I'm  sure you want to spend as much time together as possible. You're welcome  at all the events. I'm quite certain that Mia would love to meet  Devin." Sharon looked at Kate. "Does Mia know about your new  relationship?"

"Not yet," Kate said.

"Tim, Sharon," a man said loudly as he approached the group.

As Devin stepped back, he saw Jack Callaway approaching, an attractive blonde at his side, who was probably his wife.

When Jack saw him in the group, he stopped abruptly, his gaze darkening. "Agent Scott? What the hell are you doing here?"         

     



 

"He's with me," Kate said quickly.

"Why is he with you?" Jack demanded, his hard gaze swinging to Devin. "Are you using my niece to get to me?"

"No," he said shortly.

"We're dating," Kate said.

"Since when?" Jack asked suspiciously.

"Awhile," Kate said.

"What's going on?" Tim interjected, his gaze growing concerned as the tension grew within the group.

"Devin is investigating a series of arson fires," Kate said. "An FBI  agent died in a fire eighteen months ago, and that agent was Devin's  partner. He left the Bureau to focus on solving her case."

"I'm sure you're aware that there have been two more fires," Devin said  to Jack. "Maybe now you'll reopen the case that should never have been  closed."

"That's already been done," Jack said tersely. "But we're not discussing  this here. This is my family. And you don't belong here. You need to  leave."

Before he could say a word, Kate stepped up. "He's not going anywhere,  Uncle Jack. He's with me. And he's not using me. I know exactly what  he's working on."

"You're both staying," Sharon said firmly. "Jack-I don't understand the  problem between you and Devin, but you can work it out elsewhere."

The woman next to Jack put her hand on his arm. "Sharon is right," she  said. "This sounds like business, and today is for family."

Jack blew out a breath and then said, "Fine. But I'm warning you-if  you're messing with Kate, every man in this house will make you pay."

"Got it," he said evenly.

Jack turned and walked away, his wife following.

"Maybe we should go, Mom," Kate said.

"No. I meant what I said," Sharon said firmly. "You'll stay. You'll eat. You'll have fun. I'll catch up with you later."

"And I'll go find Jack," Tim said.

"Sorry about that," Devin told Kate.

She shrugged. "Uncle Jack was out of line. I'm going to talk to him."

"Don't do that on my account."

"I'm not doing it for you; I'm doing it for me. You're my guest, Devin, and my uncle can deal with it."

Her determined expression matched the one her mother had worn a few moments earlier. "You definitely take after your mom."

"I take after my uncle, too. He would go to the ends of the earth to  protect his friends and family. He should understand your motives better  than anyone."