by Keary Taylor
“So is it true?” Julian asks as he lets my hand go and slides his hands into his pockets. “You two are like, a real deal thing? The next big celebrity couple? Whale, as they’ve been saying?”
“She didn’t immediately dump my ass when I used the ‘L’ word yesterday, so I guess you could say it’s the real deal thing,” Kale says as he slips his hand into mine and looks at me with hunger and love in his eyes.
“No shit?” Julian says, actually looking taken aback. “You used the ‘L’ word? Wow, I guess people take you by surprise.”
“Shut up,” Kale laughs, his nostrils flaring slightly, as he fakes a punch at Julian. “You who was too scared to tell my sister you loved her until she basically forced you to propose.”
“Seriously?” I ask with a chuckle as my eyebrows raise. “That sounds like quite a story.”
“Best night in the history of mankind,” Julian beams. “The night I conquered the unconquerable Sage McCain.”
“I still can’t believe you got Sage to go under the needle,” Kale says as he shakes his head. “She’s been terrified of shots her entire life.”
“Sage, your scary, uber-put-together sister has a tattoo?” I ask in disbelief.
“Just one,” Julian says, and I can see how proud he is of that fact.
“Where was it you said she is again?” Kale says as the chef announces that lunch is ready and we all head for the kitchen. Kale grabs a gallon of orange juice off the counter and starts downing it right out of the jug.
This must be a normal thing, cause it doesn’t even phase Julian. “She’s in Japan. Or rather, she’s in the air on her way home from Japan. She gets back in tonight. About the same time Riley and Lake get back from their honeymoon.”
“We should have everyone over,” Kale says, excitement in his voice. He looks at me, his eyes bright. “Everyone can officially meet Whitney, and who knows where we’ll be after a few days.”
And everything in me glows that there was a “we” in that sentence that implies wherever I’ll be, Kale will be there, too.
“Sounds good?” I say, unsure, because the thought of actually meeting all of his family is intimidating. But Ming is coming over tonight. I invited my parents, but Mom gave some reason they couldn’t come that sounded a lot like an excuse. So, Ming is it—I’m down to one person I can count on. Kale is lucky he has a whole clan. How could I ever say no to that?
“Can we?” Kale asks to the rest of the house. Cause in reality, this new, crazy reality, it’s really up to the powers that be.
“If you think you can trust everyone to keep their mouths shut and they all sign the same form this bad boy did, that’s fine, I guess,” Hadley says as she pops a grape into her mouth. She eyes Julian up and down, no shame.
“Shouldn’t be a problem, right?” Julian looks at Kale, oblivious to Hadley’s eye-stripping of him.
“I think we’re on!” Kale says, clapping his hands excitedly.
Yay?
CHAPTER TWELVE
We finalize the single on my end. At least, we think it’s done for now. Elysium will add in all the instrumentation, tweak it to perfection, and then we’ll see if there are any parts we need to go back over. But for now, I’m done. Matt sends all the files back to LA.
The day it wraps up is Friday, and I am a nervous freaking wreck.
Cause today I meet all of Kale’s family.
I shower. Let my hair dry on its own into inconsistent waves. Put on leggings, a long white T-shirt, and my favorite denim vest. I stare at myself in the mirror in the bathroom as the party start time of six grows closer and closer.
What if they don’t like me? What if they judge me and Kale, like everyone else has been? About how fast and sudden this has been. About the fact that we’re both only twenty-two? We’re young and in love—how cute. How nice.
But that’s not how I feel. Every day, I feel more and more like being with Kale was exactly where I was supposed to end up. He’s my polar opposite in pretty much every way, but he fills all the holes I had and all my weirdness and made them into something I’m learning to be okay with.
The door to the bathroom opens and there stands the very man.
He gives me this look, and I just know he knows.
“I can practically feel your overthinking thoughts screaming through the door,” he says as he walks over to me. He stands behind me, placing his hands on my shoulders and rubbing them. He looks at me in the mirror and I stare back, biting my lower lip. “What advice did I give you that first night we met?”
“Make everyone okay with who I really am,” I say, as my eyes drop from his. My hands shake, so I cross my arms and pin them to my body.
“Exactly,” he says. I look back up and he’s got a supportive smile on his face. “Just be yourself, and be okay with that, and they’ll love you. My family is not going to eat you alive, they’re just not like that. So shake it off. Have fun tonight.”
I turn around so we’re face to face. My chest brushes his, and I loop my arms behind his neck.
“I’m scared they’re going to judge us, just like everyone else, that this happened so fast,” I confess, meeting his eyes hesitantly.
Kale doesn’t say anything at first, just studies me, and I see the wheels turning in his head. “Look, to be honest, they might. And well, it has only been fifteen days. But what does that matter? I know how I feel, Whit. I know I crave being around you like I have the need to breathe. I know I feel like I’m alive again when you’re around. I love you, and to me, none of that other stuff matters.”
The breath catches in my chest, and I swear I float as I look up at him. “Do you really love me?” I say quietly.
Kale brings a hand up, caressing my cheek. “I’ve never been someone to be unsure about how I’m feeling. I’m either happy, or I’m upset. I’m confident, or…well, I guess I’m always confident,” he says with a smile as I laugh with him. “So yes, I know, Whitney. I know I love you.”
Everything in me soars at his confession. And everything in me believes him.
Kale McCain loves me.
He’s said it. It’s there. And I can feel it in me.
But a realization hits me.
Ever since Kale became tangled in my life, I’ve been terrified that I’d wake up, and realize that he was just a fantasy, that he wasn’t real. That he was just toying with me, and I was just another one of his temporary dates. He’d find someone more interesting, prettier, more confident than me and move on.
So this entire time, I’ve been holding back. I’ve been protecting my scared little heart, and I can’t say those words back.
“Kale,” I whisper. “Don’t think there isn’t anything there for me, cause it would kill me if this ended. But I think I’m still just getting up to speed that this is real and…”
“Hey,” he says as his hand tips my chin up so I have to look at him again. “It’s okay if you don’t love me back. Yet. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a bit of a blow and a stab in the back of the knee, but yeah, this happened at warp speed. It’s okay if it takes you a bit longer to catch up.”
“Really?” I say, feeling a tight coil release just slightly from my chest. “You’re not upset? You don’t want to dump my awkward rear end right now?”
He gives a little, lopsided smile and shakes his head. “Not even close. Right now I want to introduce you to my family and make them love you as much as I do.”
A smile grows on my lips, and I close the distance between us. “You’re incredible,” I breathe into his lips.
And just as we’re about to sink into a life-changing kiss, screams and laughter rip through the house.
Kale chuckles against my lips. “The hellions have arrived.”
I lean back, holding onto the front of his shirt. “Let’s do this.”
I’m a coward.
I let Kale walk out of our—holy freaking cow—our bedroom first. I wrap my hands around one of his beautiful arms and walk a step behind him, totally hiding
.
All the production people left to give us some space. They were talking about heading into downtown Seattle for some partying and drinking. I hope they’ve at least picked a designated driver. Seattle’s roads are wicked to those unfamiliar with them, deadly to the intoxicated.
We walk into the living room and there’s a small herd of kids stampeding around, getting into things, laughing, screaming. A little boy who looks like he’s about five is chasing two little girls, twins, that look to be two-ish. Another girl, maybe seven, watches them with a smile on her face.
“There’s my jet-setting brother,” Drake says as he walks up to Kale with a smile. I finally have to let go of him so he can hug his brother. They’ve both got big smiles, genuinely happy to see each other.
“Kids, this isn’t our house,” the adorably tiny blonde woman scolds the kids. “Please remember your manners.”
The little boy stalls for a moment, as do the twins. The mother smiles for a second. And then they’re back at it.
“I’m sorry,” she says, her voice sounding tired, but she says it with a smile. “I try to keep them under control, but kids are kids.”
“Drake, Kaylee,” Kale says, turning to me and wrapping an arm around my waist. “I want you to meet my girlfriend, Whitney. Whitney, this is Drake and Kaylee.”
Kaylee immediately steps forward and gives me a hug that’s awkwardly low since there’s a good nine inch height difference between us. “It’s so nice to finally meet you,” she says as she releases me and has to look up and up at me. “I’ve been seeing the two of you everywhere lately, it’s nice to see you in person. I guess technically again.”
“You, too,” I say, giving a breathy smile. I twist my hands together, telling myself not to do or say anything awkward. “Your kids are adorable.”
“All her work, trust me,” Drake pipes up. To my surprise, he walks up and hugs me, too. “You must be a brave woman to host the entire McCain clan. We’re a ruckus bunch.”
I chuckle as he lets me go and my eyes turn to the kids. The twins are jumping on the couch, giggling like a pack of hyenas. “It’s our pleasure.”
“Our, huh?” Kaylee says with this brilliant smile as she bumps Kale’s shoulder with hers. “You guys already sound all married couple-like.”
I feel my face blush hard. Kale, cool as ever, just wraps his arms around me again, leans down, and presses a kiss to my lips.
“Hey, hey,” Drake says, playfully pushing us apart. “There are children in the room.”
We all laugh, me feeling embarrassed. I cover my smile with a hand.
The doorbell rings.
“I got it,” Tony says. He is the one person who didn’t go into the city with the rest of the crew. Tony opens the door to reveal an entire clan.
“Got your own security detail and everything, huh?” Drake says as he leans in close and raises and eyebrow.
“I didn’t get much choice in that matter,” I say, looking back at Tony, who surveys the scene outside as everyone comes in. “But I appreciate him and his help. Things can get kind of scary.”
“I bet,” Drake says with a supportive smile.
And right away, I know I’m going to get along with Drake just fine. He just has this calm way about him, like he knows exactly how to put a person at ease.
“There are the honeymooners!” Kale calls as Lake and Riley walk through the door. And almost as if on cue, the rest of the family starts clapping. Riley blushes. Lake does a dramatic bow.
Huh, maybe Lake isn’t what I thought. I didn’t expect that from what Kale told me about him.
“Do I need to make the both of you take a shower before we let you into the house?” Kale asks, making a face. “I’m pretty sure a suffocating cloud of s-e-x smell wafted in here when the two of you walked in.”
“Shut up,” Riley says, her face beet red, as she shoves Kale. She’s got a little smile on her face, though.
“Shut up’s a bad word!” the older girl and the boy shout at the same time.
“Sorry guys,” Riley calls. We all break out into a laugh.
“Look, I know it’s a Friday, but those papers have to be into the client or we will lose this deal.” The very sophisticated and very annoyed sounding voice floats into the house as Sage Dohring walks through the front door like a well-dressed force of nature. “I know, but this isn’t an option. It has to get done.”
Her voice rises in pitch and severity. So does my level of terror. “Call me when it’s done. Bye.”
“Give me your phone,” Julian says. He holds a hand out. He’s wearing a suit and everything. And holy cow does he look amazing.
“I can’t,” Sage says, sounding a bit annoyed. “This deal has to close today or we’ll never recover this client.”
“Sage,” Julian says, raising an eyebrow at her. “You know Gretchen is going to take care of things. She always does. So give me your phone and stop terrifying your brother’s girlfriend.”
To my horror, everyone’s eyes dart to me.
My eyes are wide, my mouth hanging open just slightly.
And what else can I do?
I give an awkward laugh, my eyes darting around like I’m sketched out.
But thankfully everyone else laughs, too.
“I’m sorry,” Sage says, handing her phone over to Julian. “I get into work mode and everything turns into do or die. I’m Sage.” She crosses the room in her very expensive high heels and holds out a hand. I shake it, hoping my fear of her doesn’t show.
“Nice to meet you,” I say, my voice way smaller than I would have liked it to be.
The last of the crew finally walks in. Kale’s parents.
A woman with gray hair and a solid build walks in and the second her eyes meet mine, a huge smile forms on her face. “There she is!” she exclaims. She rushes forward, catching me off guard, and wraps me in a suffocating hug. “Oh,” she huffs. “I always knew my baby boy would find someone perfect for him.”
I laugh, hugging her back. “You just met me,” I chuckle. “How could you know I’m perfect?”
I realize it’s an awkward thing to say to the mother of my boyfriend as soon as it leaves my lips, but it’s too late to take back now.
“Trust me,” Drake says. “She has this sixth sense. Once you’ve got Mom’s approval, you’re as good as married.”
My eyes grow wide and scared once again, this family, the entire situation is so much to process.
“It’s true,” she says with a shrug of her shoulders and a smile. “I just know.” She takes one of my hands and one of Kale’s and gives another happy sigh. “I’ve got a feeling about you two.”
“Slow down, Mom,” Kale says, actually looking slightly uncomfortable. “You’ll scare the poor thing away. I’d kind of like to keep her around.”
“See,” Mom says, giving me a wink. “I’m Robin, by the way.”
“Robert,” the quiet father of the clan says as he extends a hand. I shake it, giving an overwhelmed smile.
“Thank you all for coming,” I say, slinking back to Kale’s side. I slip my hand into his and press my side into him.
I might be overwhelmed right now. There’s so many of them. They’re so loud, and confident, and together. And warm. The very opposite of my academic, stoic family. But this is also kind of amazing. Kind of incredible.
And kind of feels like I’m right where I’m supposed to be.
“Dad, are you feeling okay?” Sage asks.
“Me?” Robert says, lifting his head off the back of the recliner. “I’m fine. Just tired.”
“You sure?” she asks, her brows furrowing. “You look kind of pale tonight.”
“Stop worrying about your old man,” he says with a chuckle. “I’m just getting old.”
“If you say so.” She keeps eying him with uncertainty, but doesn’t pester him further.
“So, how long will you two be back in Washington for?” Robert says, changing the subject.
We’re all sitting i
n the living room. Spread on couches, the floor, the rug. The kids are back in my and Kale’s bedroom, watching a movie on the TV. Except Quinn, who is sleeping peacefully in Sage’s lap. It’s kind of an odd sight. Sage doesn’t seem the motherly type, but her nieces and nephew adore her. It’s easy to see. And she adores them.
“Um,” I take the lead when Kale looks down at me. “We finished recording my single, and then we have a photo shoot together on Wednesday. I think they want to do that here. I’m guessing they’ll expect us back down in LA soon after that’s done.”
“How’s it feel, bouncing from place to place like that?” Robin asks. She sits in a dining chair next to Robert, her hand in his. “That’s got to be hard.”
“I don’t know,” I say, searching internally for how I feel about it. “It’s all been happening so fast, it’s kind of hard to process it all. But yeah, I do feel kind of…homeless, in a way.”
“I don’t know how you’ve done it for the past three years, Kale,” Robin says, smiling at him and shaking her head.
Kale shrugs. He’s sitting in the other recliner. I’m sitting on the floor just to the side of him, my left arm resting on his leg. His fingers play with my hair, twisting in the strands. He seems relaxed, comfortable. Kale thrives with his family around. He loves them. It’s easy to see everyone adores the baby of the family.
Quinn gives a gasping sigh, though her eyes don’t open. She rubs her eyes and rolls over in Sage’s lap, pushing herself forward and half onto Julian’s lap. He runs his fingers through the child’s white curls.
“So how much longer are you two going to wait to start a family?” Robin prods in Lake and Riley’s direction.
They’re seated on the loveseat. Lake’s arm is along the back of the couch, totally dominating it with his huge size. Riley is snuggled up into his side, looking sleepy and content. But the second Robin asks her question, Riley’s eyes widen just slightly, and her face turns a shade darker pink.
She looks up at Lake, at the exact moment he looks down at her. They both have a little smile that grows on their faces.