by Paris Hansen
Gabriel was determined that he had to win over those that meant the most to Savannah. There was no doubt in his mind that this was the woman he was going to marry someday and he wouldn’t have a chance in hell at doing that if her family didn’t approve. Once he convinced them that he was the one for their daughter, he’d have to convince Savannah. Sometimes he wasn’t sure which was going to be more difficult, the family or the daughter. Savannah was ridiculously stubborn and sometimes obviously blind to how he felt about her. It didn’t matter how long it took though, he would spend every day for the rest of his life, if he had to, convincing her that she was all he needed.
“I know, but I can’t help it. They can be a handful, especially when it comes to my relationship status. I told you how Mom and Brook tricked me into the whole dating service thing. And you should have heard them whenever I’d report back about my dates. They told me I wasn’t trying hard enough and that I was sabotaging things on purpose.”
“But she didn’t know about me. If only you’d told her that you’d already found the one, you just couldn’t date him, she probably would have given you a break,” Gabriel laughed which earned him a light smack to the arm and a huge smile from Savannah.
“Gabriel, I’ve never brought a man home to meet my family. Brook is the only one who’s ever met anyone that I’ve ever dated and that was only because she happened to be in the right place…or wrong depending on how you look at it. Really, I’ve never liked anyone enough to care what my family thought about them. I’ve never been more scared that someone is going to meet my family and run screaming because they’re crazy.”
Gabriel laughed. “I’m not averse to a little crazy you know. I have a feeling that everything is going to work out great. But no matter what you say and no matter how long we sit here, I’m going to meet your family tonight, babe, so we might as well just head in and get it over with.”
Savannah sighed dramatically and then looked at him with her terror filled blue eyes. Within seconds the terror seemed to change to resolve; she knew she couldn’t stall the inevitable any longer. She smiled up at him, grabbing her purse off of the floor next to her legs. With a deep breath, she pushed her shoulders back and opened the door so she could climb out. Gabriel laughed at the show she was putting on, like she was resolved to head into her execution instead of a nice dinner with her family. He followed her out of his truck and then met her on the other side so they could walk in together. Wrapping his arm around her waist, he gave her a quick squeeze before they started toward her parents’ front door. This was definitely going to be an interesting evening.
Before they could even get part way up the sidewalk, the front door swung open, a woman who was maybe in her mid-fifties filed out onto the porch followed closely by a man about her age. Brooklyn and Finley stood behind them, both looking like they were up to no good. Savannah probably thought they were going to be on her side, but he had a feeling that Savannah’s sister and best friend were only going to add to the craziness instead of leveling things out.
“Oh honey, he’s even more gorgeous than you described,” the older woman blurted out as she pulled Savannah into a hug. Before anyone could respond, she pushed Savannah away and pulled Gabriel into a tight embrace.
“Mom…” Savannah groaned.
“Oh come on Savannah, look at him,” her sister said as she eyed him up and down.
Gabriel couldn’t help but laugh which got him another smack on the arm from Savannah. Her mom seemed to think it was great that he was laughing at the situation. She grabbed his arm, a smile on her face while she introduced him to her husband. As she ushered him into the house, he looked over his shoulder to see Savannah still standing on the sidewalk, shock written all over her face. As soon as their eyes met, she scowled at him, which only caused him to laugh some more.
“Thank you for inviting me to your home today, Mrs. St. James. I’ve been looking forward to meeting you, although I almost feel like I know you all from everything that Savannah has told me.”
“It’s Rebecca dear. I’m so glad you could make it. I’ve been trying to get my daughter to bring you over since the moment I found out about you. For a while I was wondering if she made you up to get us off her back.”
“Mom!”
“It’s true Savvy. I started to think Gabriel wasn’t real. If it wasn’t for your sister insisting he actually existed, I would have never believed you were dating someone until I met him, especially since he sounded too good to be true.”
Gabriel watched as his favorite blush crept up Savannah’s cheeks. It made him wonder what exactly she had said about him to her family. Maybe later he’d turn it into a game to see if he could coax it out of her, unless her mom decided to spill the beans first. Rebecca smiled at her daughter, either unaware or not caring that she had just embarrassed her eldest child. Gabriel figured it was more likely the latter. Rebecca St. James didn’t seem oblivious; in fact, if Gabriel had to guess he’d say that everything she did was calculated. He wouldn’t be surprised if the photo albums containing naked baby pictures of Savannah were already sitting on the coffee table ready to be shown to him after dinner.
“Now I’m curious to hear what your daughter’s been saying about me. Hopefully, she hasn’t been building me up too much. I’m really not that great. Did she tell you how she didn’t want to date me because she thought I was just a bartender?”
“Savannah!”
“Gabriel, really?” Savannah let out another sigh before walking past them into the kitchen. Gabriel laughed, knowing he was getting himself into trouble, but he really couldn’t help himself. He kind of liked seeing her rattled. It didn’t happen very often; Savannah was almost always in complete control; calm, cool and collected. But all of that went out the window as soon as they started to get ready to head to her parent’s house. Gabriel really didn’t understand why she was so nervous, but then he also wasn’t close to his family. Odds were Savannah would never meet his parents, even though he was absolutely sure his mother would love her.
“Uh oh, looks like Savannah’s about to lose it,” Michael St. James announced with a snicker. “We should probably stop picking on her though. Poor Gabriel here probably hasn’t seen that side of her yet. We wouldn’t want to scare him away. Plus, if we let him continue to push her buttons, he definitely won’t be getting laid tonight.”
“Michael!” “Dad!”
Brooklyn and her mother yelled at the same time which only made Michael laugh. Gabriel had barely gotten to know these people, but he knew he liked them already. It was easy to see where Savannah got her humor and attitude from. This was what a family was supposed to be like; supportive, fun and humbling all wrapped up in a ton of love. The affection that the St. James family had for each other was plainly written on their faces and evident in the way they poked at each other trying to get a reaction.
Rebecca led him into the kitchen where Savannah stood unloading the salad ingredients they brought. Her cheeks were flushed and he could tell that her jaw was clenched tight. Gabriel really hoped she wasn’t angry with him; that she knew everything he had done and said since he walked up to her parent’s front door was in fun. Walking up behind her, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek. Her body started to relax a little, but he could tell that she was still a little tense.
“I’m sorry,” he whispered into her ear.
“It’s supposed to be us against them.”
“But I want them to like me,” he told her as he grabbed the salad dressing out of the bag. Since the bag was empty, he put his hands on Savannah’s hips and spun her around so she faced him. She was sulking, refusing to meet his eyes. With his thumb, he pushed her chin up, forcing her to lift her head so he could look into her eyes. She looked anywhere but at his face, which only made him smile.
“Babe…impressing your family is important to me, but not if it means upsetting you. For the rest of the night it’s us versus them and we are totally going to win.”
With a laugh, Savannah wrapped her arms around Gabriel’s neck. It was moments like this that Gabriel cherished. Even though he knew that her family and best friend were in the room, he didn’t even notice them. In that moment, only he and Savannah existed. He leaned down, brushing his lips against hers in a chaste kiss. Her arms tightened around him as their lips met a second time and it was all he could do not to take things further. Thankfully, the clearing of a throat behind him helped keep him in check.
Breaking the kiss, he rested his forehead against Savannah’s and waited to make sure she was okay. The beautiful blush that he loved so much covered her cheeks even though she didn’t seem the least bit embarrassed by their public display of affection. She smiled up at him before removing her arms from around his neck so she could turn to face her family. Gabriel stole one more glance at Savannah before looking at her parents. Michael seemed to be fighting back a smile; the women on the other hand weren’t trying to fight anything. Rebecca and Brooklyn had matching grins on their faces; even Finley had a knowing smile on her face, which from what he knew about the woman was something of a rarity.
“If you guys are done with the make-out session in my kitchen, I could use a hand with the grill,” Michael said while trying to keep from laughing.
The women, once again, didn’t bother holding in their laughter. Even Savannah started to laugh, to which Gabriel shook his head. He leaned down and kissed her on the cheek before following her father into the backyard. Laughter filtered out of the kitchen for a long time after he left, which reinforced in Gabriel that this was exactly what a family was supposed to be like. They enjoyed each other’s company, ribbed each other good naturedly and seemed to support each other unconditionally. None of those things had ever been a part of his family and it made him sad to know that his brother might have never known what it was all about. He just hoped that Jonathan had been able to feel something like this with Lacey’s family before he died.
“You know, I think in these situations I’m supposed to interrogate you and ask you what your intentions are for my baby girl, but after seeing that exchange in the kitchen, I have no doubt that you love my daughter.”
“Savannah means more to me than anyone in the world.”
“I’ve been worried about her. I know she’s happy with the way her life’s been going. She loves her work, but I’ve been worried that she’s lonely and I never wanted that for her. I think her sister’s divorce scared her more than she’d ever admit. For a while there I thought she planned on going through the rest of her life alone, which would have been fine with me if I thought that was what she truly wanted.”
“Your daughter is fiercely independent sir. And stubborn. I think she wanted to prove to herself and others that she didn’t need to have someone in her life to accomplish her dreams. Now that she’s sure of that, she’s open to being in a relationship. Honestly, I have to say I’m glad she waited or we never would have happened. Any earlier and I wouldn’t have been in the right frame of mind…I wouldn’t have been the right man for Savannah. Before Jonathan’s death I was just going through the motions, living my life the way my father wanted me to. After my brother died, I was angry and wasn’t really the best person to be around. It took years for me to get here. Now that I’m here, this is the only place I want to be. I want to spend the rest of my life with your daughter.”
Gabriel watched Savannah’s dad as he moved the steaks around on the grill. The older man didn’t say anything for a long time which made him a little nervous. Instead of dwelling on the silence, Gabriel took in his surroundings. The St. James backyard was large and spacious with multiple levels. Off the deck was a grassy area that would have been a perfect play area for kids. He could almost imagine a young Savannah playing there with Brooklyn. On the left side of the yard were raised flowerbeds filled with a bunch of flowers he didn’t recognize.
The far end of the yard was where Mrs. St. James’ garden was. Savannah had told him about her mother’s desire to grow every vegetable she could in the Washington weather. Some years she had a great turnout, other years it was a bust, but for as long as either of the St. James girls could remember, their mother had a garden in their backyard. Savannah often joked that it was how their parents stayed married for so long. Her mother would take out her frustrations on the weeds in the garden instead of on her father.
“Savannah has been an entirely different version of herself since you came into her life. She’s practically glowing and just being around her, I can feel the change. She’s happier than I’ve ever seen her and even though I know she’s stressed out about the new opening, it’s not at the same level that it’s been in the past. You mellow her out, which is amazing to see and I have to thank you for that. But I also have to tell you, that if you ever hurt her, I’ll have to kill you,” Michael finally said his eyes showing the truth in his statement.
“I would expect nothing less sir. In fact, if I ever hurt her, you might have to get in line behind me, Finley and your other daughter. I appreciate what you’re saying though and believe me when I say that I never want to hurt Savannah. I never want to be the reason that she is sad or angry or heartbroken. I will do everything in my power to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
Again silence overtook them as they finished cooking up the meat and peppers. Before anything else could pass between them the women filed out onto the deck, their arms filled with bowls of food and bottles of wine; their laughter breaking the peace that the men had found. Michael plated the steaks and handed them to Gabriel before putting the vegetables he’d grilled onto a plate as well. Gabriel watched as his girlfriend’s father, set the plate on the table and then leaned down to lovingly kiss his wife. He had never seen his parents show affection to each other, let alone when there were guests at the table. Once again he was struck with the recognition that this was what a real family was like and Gabriel had to admit that he loved being a part of something so warm and inviting.
Sitting down next to Savannah, he watched as she interacted with her family. Her face was lit up with excitement and happiness from being surrounded by the people she loved. This was what Gabriel wanted in his life. He wanted a family to share things with and he wanted to create a family like this one. He wanted to grow old with Savannah and have children with her so that someday, they could sit in their backyard meeting their children’s significant other. Never in his wildest dreams did he think this was what he would ever hope for in life, but he also never knew what he was missing. Someday, he would be the one kissing his wife while everyone looked on and he couldn’t wait.
Chapter 7
After meeting her family, Gabriel became an even more permanent fixture in Savannah’s life. She had been scared that he would run, not wanting to deal with the craziness that was the St. James family, but he fit right in, like he was meant to be a part of the clan. He didn’t care if they teased him, but when they teased her, he jumped to her defense and then harassed them right back. She loved seeing him bond with the people she adored most.
Since that nerve-racking Saturday night, Gabriel had joined her for more than a dozen meals with her parents and had gone out or stayed in a bunch of times with Brooklyn and Finley. Whenever they weren’t with their loved ones or at work, they were together. She had never felt more comfortable with another human being in her life, especially not this quickly. In less than half a year, Gabriel had become an important piece of her life. He was her heart and she was terrified that something bad was going to happen. She loved him, but she couldn’t tell him. It didn’t matter that she knew deep down he felt the same way. Saying the words out loud was petrifying, mainly because Savannah had never said them to anyone outside of her family and Finley.
For the last week she realized how much she loved Gabriel. Even though they had been sharing the same bed, their schedules had kept them from actually spending time together. She would have to leave before Gabriel woke up and he would come home after she fell asleep. Occasionally,
they’d wake each other up in the middle of the night for some fun, but it wasn’t the same. Their relationship was about more than just the mind blowing sex. She wanted to spend time with him, talk to him about his day and tell him about hers. Not being able to spend quality time with him made her heart hurt.
For the first time in over a week, Savannah had been able to work her butt off to clear her schedule. With Brooklyn volunteering to work late, Savannah could surprise Gabriel at Arrow. Of course, he wouldn’t be able to leave with her, but they could have dinner together and she could hang out with him until he could leave. He was working on hiring more staff so he didn’t have to spend so many hours at the restaurant, but the process was slow going. Gabriel trusted Ray, Sylvia and Meghan, but he had to hire people to replace them before he could promote them, which had proved to be easier said than done.
“Are you sure you’re okay to stay?” Savannah asked her sister again.
“Stay tonight and open tomorrow. I’m absolutely positive. You and your man need a good night together. Plus, what else would I do with my time? I’d much rather be productive here, than sit on the couch and watch another episode of Property Brothers at home.”
Savannah laughed. “I owe you big time for this. I know I see him every day, but waking up to a sleeping boyfriend is not the same as actually hanging out with said boyfriend. Hopefully he can cut out a little early so we can have some quality time at home.”
With one more thank you and a hug, Savannah left Brooklyn in the office at Delectable Delights and headed down the street to Arrow. She had grabbed a box of cupcakes before she left to give to the staff. Of course Sam still wasn’t her biggest fan because of her pastries, but he was coming around. She even caught him eating one of her cupcakes the last time she dropped some by. It probably helped that she almost always ordered dessert when she was at the restaurant, whether she ate dinner or not.