The One For Me (Danver #8)(90)
And then the moment was upon them. Her mother, pulling her husband along behind her, marched over to the DeSantos looking like a drill sergeant. As Ella crept up beside Crystal, she whispered, “Oh shit, I tried to distract her, but she’s relentless.”
But the DeSantos, proving they were more astute than anyone could have guessed, performed a small miracle. Marcus went directly to Crystal’s mother and Celine went to her father. When her mother extended a hand stiffly to Marcus, he took it in his own and brought it to his lips. “Mrs. Webber, I would know you anywhere. You look so much like your beautiful daughter that it’s uncanny.” Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Declan smirking, while Ella jammed an elbow into his side. Celine seemed to be trying a similar approach with her father, and from the look of bliss on his face, he was eating the attention up.
“Well.” Her mother snorted, but there was no heat behind it. Instead, she gazed at Marcus helplessly as if she didn’t know how to handle his charm. “Please call me Dot. Nice to meet you.” She pointed at Mark, and then shocked them all by saying, “I’m real fond of your son. He’s a hard worker, and he takes care of my daughter. He gets a bit cheeky sometimes, but boys will be boys, won’t they, Marcus?”
Marcus threw back his head and laughed before extending an elbow to her mother. “Shall we find our table?” he asked, and she blushed like a schoolgirl and hastily accepted.
As both sets of parents walked away, Crystal turned to gape at Mark. “I can’t believe it. The DeStudo magic has worked again. How in the world did you and your father manage to do the impossible?”
Giving her a devilish grin, Mark said, “Just call me big . . . Mr. Big.”
“Oh brother.” She giggled, loving this silly side of him. Going up on her tiptoes, she murmured for him alone, “How about later, you show me if you can live up to that name?”
Pinching her on the butt, he looked around to make sure no one was near before saying, “There’s a broom closet somewhere around here with our names on it. Let’s go find it now. I’ve got something to prove to the woman I love, and it can’t wait.”
“By all means, lead the way, Mr. DeStudo,” she teased. “In case you didn’t already know it, I’ve always got your back—but I’m more than happy to handle your front as well.” Within moments, they found their own little corner of the world and they were happily lost in each other, just as they would be for the rest of their lives. If anyone in the other room missed them, Crystal was certain that Declan would stop them from looking in any closets.
Don’t miss the next book in the bestselling Danvers series,
WISHING FOR US
Coming in November 2016!
Continue reading for a glimpse at Emma and Brant’s story in
NO DENYING YOU
Available now.
“Honey, have you given any more thought to getting some bigger tits?”
Emma rolled her eyes and dropped her head onto her desk. Why couldn’t her mother bake cookies, knit sweaters or do any of that other Betty Crocker shit? No-o-o, she couldn’t be that lucky. Katrina Davis—or Kat, as she liked to be called—had always wanted to be the cool mom on the block. Heck, most of Emma’s childhood friends still called her mother for advice. The woman didn’t pull any punches. “God, Mom, can we please not talk about my tits today? Or lack of them?”
“Em, it’s for your own good. You’re too attractive to sit at home all the time. Men are visual creatures, so maybe a new rack is exactly what you need. Your father can’t keep his hands off mine. And you’re not getting any younger. You don’t want to wake up one day and have them fall out of bed before you do.”
“Gross, Mom. This whole conversation is really gross. I don’t want to hear anything about your sex life with Daddy. Ever. I’d like to be able to look him in the eyes just once without the constant stream of images in my head of the things you feel the need to confide to me. Maybe you should just go Catholic—then you could confess to someone with a more professional opinion.”
“Oh, Em, get over it. I’m just trying to help. You know what? I’ll even pay if I can pick them out. I’ll e-mail you some information and you can let me know what you think.”
“Mom, for the last time, I like my tits just fine!” As soon as she shouted that last bit, Emma froze at the sound of a throat clearing behind her. Please tell me that the asswipe isn’t behind me, ple-e-ease. As she swiveled slowly in her chair, she groaned. Fate definitely wasn’t on her side. Her boss, Brant Stone, stood behind her with his usual condescending smirk. She quickly said her good-byes to her mother although she could hear her still speaking as she gingerly placed the receiver back in the cradle. Determined not to give him the satisfaction of seeing her rattled, she raised a brow, asking as politely as she could manage, “Did you need something?”