Doing It for Love(13)

"Don't tease me like that. I'm nervous enough."

"Don't be nervous," he says. But when he turns to the house we parked in front of, he tugs on his hat, hard jawline tensing as he grinds his teeth. I run a hand up and down his thigh, trying to suppress the urge to call him a hypocrite.

He looks down at my hand, jaw relaxing when he strokes his thumb across the diamond.

"They don't know yet."

"You want me to hide it?"

His hand stops me from sliding the ring off. "No. I'm just warning you, she's going to ask if you're pregnant."

"Been there."

"And when we tell her you aren't, she'll ask if we're crazy."

"We're crazy in love." I make a kissy face at him, and he rolls his eyes. I roll mine right back. "Okay, I'll try not to embarrass you."



       
         
       
        

"I feel old now," I say.

"You are over two decades."

"You're over two and a half."

"Cougar chaser."

"Cradle robber."

He laces his fingers with mine, and we go silent but for our breathing. I know I promised him a make-out, but lying here in the creaky tree house listening to the soft thuds of his heart is too blissful to make me want to move.

"Alec hung that poster, by the way," Landon says after a moment. I grin at the faded and cracked Emma Watson picture. Underneath, carved in the tree bark, it says 10 POINTS TO GRYFFINDOR.

"Don't lie," I tease. "I've seen you watch those movies with far too much enthusiasm."

"I enjoy the cinematography."

I snort and roll on top of him. His eyes look sad, so I pepper kisses across his face.

After a ridiculous number of pecks, he cracks a smile and catches my cheeks. He pulls my forehead against his and his hands tangle in my hair, creating goose bumps up and down my neck. His eyes close and mine follow, sinking us into our quiet world again. It's so amazingly perfect here. His breath, his warmth, the scruff on his chin, the faded words on his T-shirt and baseball cap.

I could live like this forever.

"So could I," he whispers. I smile and slide down his body to rest my head back on his chest. It feels new again. Somewhere different. And things start to stir up in my loins. I wonder if he's sporting wood.

I reach down, and realize almost too late that I'm not supposed to touch, so I just sort of awkwardly hover over his zipper.

He raises an eyebrow, then his smile widens into that competitive grin, and I move my hand to shove his face away.

"Landon?" a male voice calls from the yard. Landon shifts underneath me and pokes his head out the wide opening of the tree house.

"Hey, Pop." He calls his parents Ma and Pop, and I'm smiling again. "Give me a second."

I lean up off Landon, and the devil butterflies wake up. Okay, future father-in-law is up next, and I'm hoping that Hurdle is a lot shorter than the mother-in-law one. I quickly do a swipe under my eyes in case there are any mascara goobers and then adjust my shirt. Landon takes my hand, subduing the possessed stomach for the moment.

"Now, be careful," he says with a wink. "The boards are loose."

I punch his shoulder, and I don't even feel bad about it.





Chapter 10


The Wangfords' dinner table is small. We're all squished in, Landon's shoulder smashed with mine, his giant of a father on one end, elbowing the wall every time he picks up his wineglass. Mrs. Wangford is at the other end, tiny and looking comfortable physically, but emotionally she keeps looking at my left hand like I'm about to pull a gun on her. The only one-besides Buster-that looks completely at ease is Elle, Landon's sister, who is on her second helping of Pad Thai. 

"Did he ever tell you about his last night here before he moved?" Elle says through a mouthful, gesturing at Landon. "He blew up the garbage can, and we found him naked in Dad's garden the next morning."

I laugh around my glass, and Landon points his fork at his sister. "That's an exaggeration. I was in my boxers."

"You were so commando."

Landon huffs, shakes his head, then makes his mouth very busy. I take another sip of wine. It stings my throat a little, but it's something to do. I don't want to scarf down my food before anyone else.

"So," his mom says, eyes burning into my hand. "Are you pregnant?"

Mr. Wangford chokes on his food and Elle gives him one hard smack on the back.

"Julie-"

"What? We're all thinking it." Mrs. Wangford looks back at me. "Is that what this is all about?" She points directly at my hand, and I feel like I should hide it, but I keep it firmly planted in sight.

"Liz isn't pregnant, Mom." Landon calls her Mom this time. "But we are getting married."

"Well, no shit." Elle laughs around her food. "But I'm calling malarkey on the pregnant thing."

"I'm not," I say, probably surprising the whole table that I've finally said something.

"But you're, like, twelve." Elle laughs again, picking up her wine. I do the same, swishing it around like I know what I'm doing, even if I don't.

"Twenty-two actually. But thanks, I guess."

"Are you crazy?" Mrs. Wangford says, and Landon gives me a look like, "I told you so." I drain my wineglass.

"We're … crazy in love," Landon says, and I have to fight laughing at him. "We've set the wedding for Jan-"

"The baby is due in January?" Mr. Wangford says, eyes wide as he leans over to look at my stomach.

"No, I'm not pregnant." I hold up my empty wineglass for proof. But Mr. Wangford doesn't look like he's heard anything I've said, still looking at my stomach like it's impossible for me to be so far along.

"So, you're just … getting married. At twenty-two years old," Mrs. Wangford says, voice lighter and less accusing, but the way she looks at me has me reaching for more wine.

"Yes," Landon says, filling my glass for me. "And the wedding is in January. We want you guys to be there."

"And Elle to be a bridesmaid," I add, looking at my new sister-in-law, who is enjoying herself way too much. She tips her glass at me as if to say, "If this wedding happens, sure."

The wine still burns as I down some more. Mrs. Wangford looks to my ring again, then up and down my body, and I'm wondering what I've done now when she asks, "Do you like the diamond? Is it big enough for you?"

"Mom … "

"What? I'm allowed to ask."

My eyes widen, and I let my hand fall to Landon's lap and squeeze his thigh twice. He finds my leg and squeezes back once.

"It's beautiful," I tell her. "I have a hard time not staring at it 24/7."

Landon's dad lets out a nervous chuckle, but his mom just gives me one of those fake half-smiles. I find the bottom of my wineglass again. Landon fills it up without my having to ask.

"Oh, you know who has a giant ring?" Elle says after finishing her own glass. "Freddie Clawson."



       
         
       
        

"She's engaged?" Mrs. Wangford says. "That's too bad." She turns to Landon and me. "Her and Landon were so close. We really thought they'd be the ones to tie the knot. But you know … " She waves her hand at me as an afterthought, then takes a bite of her Thai.

Ugh, I need a Tums. My chest is burning and I feel like I'm about to burp fire. Landon's eyes meet mine for a brief second. I tell him with mine to keep quiet. We've had enough arguing for one night, I think. And they clearly want to move on from the marriage thing.

Not even a congratulations. What a bust family.

I reach for more alcohol.

Mrs. Wangford swishes her red wine and eyes me thoughtfully. I stay straight-backed and calm, smiling like, yep, I'm so going to marry your son and I can handle all the looks you throw my way, even though my innards are crumpling in a heap of dried massaman curry.

"Ha! Mom's giving Liz 'the look,' " Elle says around a giant mouthful of Thai. She leans across the table. "Sorry, the last time Landon brought a girl home was, like, six years ago. So a few of us"-she blatantly points at her mom with her fork-"are a bit rusty."

"Oh, that's right," Mrs. Wangford says as if her daughter didn't just call her out. She points her wineglass at Landon. "Sophie. I loved her. What's she up to nowadays?"

"I don't know, Mom." Landon squeezes my thigh, and I find the bottom of my wineglass for the billionth time. Things are starting to blur.

"So, what do you do?" Elle asks with a wide grin, probably assuming I work at the mall. Well … I sort of do.

I gulp down more wine, the burn in my throat not nearly as potent as it was during glass one.

"I work at Bed Bath & Beyond," I announce proudly. "Employee of the Month this past June and July." Damn straight. August was a bust, though, because of my mid-month proposal and baby scare. I snort into my glass, and I'm not sure why.

"She works with Alec," Landon says, interrupting whatever his mom was about to say. She's stuck with her mouth open, and when she realizes how ridiculous she looks, she sticks a shrimp in there. Buster makes me jump as he settles his head in my lap. I decide to scratch behind his ears while I have a stare-off with my future mother-in-law.