“Sounds nice. I want in on this dream. Were you wearing a string bikini?”
She laughed. “No, I was wearing a yellow sundress with spaghetti straps. The sun felt so good on my body that I swear I can still feel the residual effects now.”
“Heated mattress pad. Welcome to Dex’s virtual summer resort. Guaranteed good dreams. You’re welcome any time.” He smiled and set her boots at the bedside where she could easily slip into them. “How’s the headache?”
She’d almost forgotten about it. “It’s gone. Guess your virtual summer resort worked its magic.”
“Good. You’ll feel even better when you get some of my bowtie pasta and homemade shrimp, broccoli, and mushroom Alfredo sauce in you.”
“That sounds sooo good. I’ll admit, I couldn’t eat a bite of lunch after Jasmine’s visit.”
“Let’s not talk about her anymore, okay?” Dex placed a tender kiss on her lips.
“Okay.” Aria followed Dex down the stairs.
Pop looked up from the ground floor, his hand resting on the carved balustrade. “Feeling better, Aria?”
“Much better, thank you.” How sweet of him to ask.
“Good, I’m glad to hear it. Guess I can put that snake oil back in the cupboard, eh, Jason?”
“Yup, looks like we won’t be needing it after all.”
Aria laughed. “But keep the pixie dust handy, just in case.”
Chapter 18
“Keeping vigil by the window won’t make them get here any quicker, you know.” Aria laughed.
“You’re right.” Mom sat on the couch and looked at her wristwatch. “Do you think I should call your father and ask if he found the girls at the airport okay? With today being Christmas Eve and all, things can get hectic.”
The mechanical drone of the garage door signaled Dad’s arrival. The prospect of seeing her sisters filled Aria with anticipation. She rushed to the kitchen with Mom close behind.
The door from the garage burst open, and Kayla and Lauren bounded in with gleeful squeals. Aria hugged one, then the other. “I’m so glad you guys are here. I’ve missed you.”
Lively chatter filled the room. It wasn’t easy to keep up with everyone talking over one another.
“All right, girls.” Mom patted the air and shushed them. “Come, let’s sit in the living room and catch up, then we’ll have lunch.”
Dad came in, straight-faced, with the shoulder strap of one carry-on bag crossing his chest, another soft-sided bag tucked under his arm, and a drag-along suitcase with a chipped wheel thumping behind him. “Don’t mind me. I’m just the resident Sherpa who lives and breathes to carry your stuff up the mountain.”
Aria noticed the playful wink and secret smile Dad sent Mom as he passed through the kitchen. She scrambled to the car with her giggling sisters and helped carry their things up to her room. “We’ll pull out the pop-up trundle and sleep together for a few nights. Grandma and Grandpa Jennings should be here later tonight, and they’ll use your old room. It’ll be fun, just like old times when the two of you used to pile up in bed with me and we’d talk into the wee hours.”
Mom came in with an armload of linens and two pillows for the trundle and set them on the dresser.
Dad hung an arm over her shoulder. “Well, Mama Bear, there’s your cubs, all in one room.”
“I know. Just look at them, Davie. We made pretty babies, didn’t we?”
“Eeewww. Can we go back to believing the stork brought us?” Kayla laughed. “Let’s go down to the living room and catch up like Mom suggested.”
“I’ll be down in a minute.” While everyone filed out of her room, Aria stayed behind and called Dex.
“Hey, babe. How’s my beautiful woman today?” Dex’s compliment warmed her heart.
“I’m good, thanks. My sisters just got here. It’ll be fun hanging out with them. How’s your day going so far? Did Pop’s brother and sisters get there okay?” She’d laughed when he told stories yesterday about his great aunts and uncles, and called the lunch he was preparing for their Christmas Eve celebration the early bird special.
“Yup, they’re all here with their spouses. I suspect there’ll be a lot of nodding off after lunch. Kind of like kiddie daycare, only with old people.”
“But you love them all, don’t you?”
“I do. They’re a funny bunch to hang around with, especially Uncle Beans and Aunt Tootie.”
Aria couldn’t hold back her laughter. “I’m not going to ask how they got their nicknames.”
“Kind of self-explanatory, eh?” Dex chuckled. “I hate to cut you off, Ari, but I’ve got to baste the turkey and throw some potatoes in the oven. I’d like to have everything ready in about an hour.”
“Okay, I’ll let you get back to KP, and I’ll go visit with my sisters.”
“Tell them I said hi. I’ll pick you up around five thirty tonight.”
“I’ll be ready. Bye.”
Aria skipped down the stairs and fell onto the couch next to Lauren.
All conversation stopped.
On the loveseat, Kayla and Mom’s gaze locked onto Aria, their mouths curved into smiles.
“Uh-oh. What’s going on?” Aria looked from one to the other.
Kay broke into a devious little giggle. “Mom just told us you were going out with a hot sergeant. One of Dad’s guys, no less.”
The Cheshire-cat grin on Mom’s face bore no trace of apology for spilling the beans.
“Start talking, lady.” Lauren elbowed Aria’s ribs then faced her. “Mom says you met him at a friend’s wedding.”
“That’s right, and I can hardly wait to tell you all about him. You’ll get to see him for a few minutes when he picks me up tonight. He’s taking me to his parents’ house for dinner.”
Kayla’s jaw dropped. “Meeting the parents is huge. It means he’s serious about you.”
Aria hoped with all her heart the statement was true.
* * * *
Dex parked Pop’s truck in the Greco driveway and rang the doorbell.
A blonde opened the door and smiled broadly. “Hi. You must be Dex.”
“Right. So which one are you, Kayla or Lauren?”
“Kayla.” A cold breeze fluttered through her long blond hair. “Aria has been talking about you nonstop since Lauren and I got here this morning.”
“Good to know.” Thoughts of Aria had filled his day, and he hadn’t minded one bit when Pop made him tell his great-aunts and uncles about her.
“Good grief, Kay.” A second blonde marched to the door. Narrower face, a bit taller, and equally pretty, she bore a striking resemblance to Kayla. “You gonna stand there all day with the door open, or let him in? Hi, I’m Lauren. Come on in.”
Major Greco came downstairs and shook his hand. “Hey, Dex. Carolyn is helping Aria with a stuck zipper. She should be down shortly.”
Aria had said there would be all sorts of relatives converging on the Greco house for Christmas, and this name didn’t ring familiar. “Carolyn?”
“Carolyn. My wife. Remember?”
“Last time I asked, you told me her first name was Missus.” Which Dex had taken as an unofficial order not to get too familiar with the major’s pretty wife.
Lauren and Kayla laughed.
Greco chuckled too. “Guess I did tell you that, didn’t I?”
“Hi, Dex. Sorry to keep you waiting.” Aria came down the stairs and stopped a few treads before the landing.
“Wow. You look great.” More like sexy as all get out in her figure-flattering black dress, but he couldn’t very well say that with her father standing nearby. Dex offered a hand and guided her down the remaining steps.
Aria held fast and beamed a radiant smile. “Thanks. You look extra nice tonight too.”
“Thanks. We better get going. I’m a little l
ate getting here. I wasn’t keeping track of the time and left the house later than I’d intended.” He helped her put on her coat and turned to Kayla and Lauren. “Nice meeting you. I’ll see you tomorrow, and we can get better acquainted.”
* * * *
A breath of winter air chilled Aria’s insides, but her hand stayed toasty warm wrapped in Dex’s. He led her to the truck and opened the door to an empty cab.
“Where’s Pop?”
“He’s not coming.”
“But why? Did his company stay longer than expected today?”
“No. Go ahead and get in, and we’ll talk about it while we’re driving.”
“All right.” Climbing up into the truck wearing a slim-fitting dress would require a bit more finesse than sliding into a car. “Uh-oh. No running boards?”
“Nope. Need help?” A silly grin crossed Dex’s face.
“Well, it’s either that, or I’d have to hike my dress up in a very unladylike fashion and embarrass myself to get in.” Not a pleasant thought, nor something she would really entertain doing.
“Hmm, interesting. In that case, I might have to rescind my offer to help.” He laughed. “Just kidding. Here we go. Just watch your head on the doorframe.”
Dex picked her up by the waist, gave her a boost onto the seat, and shut the door.
She waited until he backed the truck onto the street and started forward. “So, why isn’t Pop coming? You said this was an annual family dinner. I assumed since Pop lived nearby, he’d be on the guest list for sure.”
“He wasn’t invited.”
“Whaaat? He’s the family patriarch. Shouldn’t he be an honored and welcomed guest for a dinner like this? Why would he not be invited?”
Dex gave a flippant shrug. “Grudges, misunderstandings, anger, you name it.”
“Like what?” She didn’t care that she was prying. Pop had become near and dear to her, and it didn’t seem at all fair that he would be deprived of a meal with his own son and family.
“As far as I can tell, the friction between Pop and Dad started when Dad was dropping me off at Pop’s one summer. Pop told me to go inside because he wanted to talk to my father. Their little talk morphed into a yelling match. Let me rephrase. My father did a lot of yelling.”
“What were they arguing about?”
“Me.” Dex’s chest rose and fell with a deep breath. “The windows were open, so it wasn’t hard to hear what they were saying. Pop told my dad, ‘Son, you get only one shot in this life at being that boy’s father.’ He went on to tell my dad that he needed to spend more time with me. You know, playing ball, going fishing, and just being there when I needed him.”
“And your dad took it badly, I assume?” Criticism of his parenting skills had to have hurt.
“He went on a tirade. Cursed Pop out royally. In so many choice words, he told Pop to mind his own business, then screamed for me to get back into the car.” Dex shook his head. “I poked my head out the window, crying. I said I never wanted to go home again, and that I wanted to live with Pop and Grandma. Then I ran into the woods.”
Dex put on his blinker, pulled into a vacant store’s lot and parked, leaving the engine running. “There’s a whole lot more to it than what I just told you, but—man, I really don’t want to go to my parents’ tonight. Maybe we should just turn around and go somewhere else for dinner. A snazzy restaurant. McDonald’s. Burger King. I don’t care.”
“Dex.” Aria reached over and rubbed his forearm. “I shouldn’t have brought it up. I’m sorry. But I still think we should go. Your mother would be disappointed if we didn’t show up. Do it for her.”
“You’re right. She was the whole reason for us going in the first place. But just so you know, I have another big problem tonight.”
“What’s that?”
Dex unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned toward her. “I didn’t get my kiss when I picked you up.”
The pulsing rhythm in her chest accelerated. “We can remedy that.”
“I wouldn’t want to ruin your lipstick.” His small, provocative smile drew her eyes to his mouth.
Dex took her hand and kissed the back of it. Slow and methodical, his kisses excited her nearly as much as if they were exploring her lips. Dreamy blue eyes held her gaze in the light of the streetlamps. Mesmerizing. Enticing.
“I’ll fix my lipstick later.” Aria threw off her seatbelt and kissed Dex hard and long.
* * * *
“We’ll be there in a couple of minutes.” Dex turned off the main road and into his old neighborhood. “See that little white house with the blue trim?”
In the passenger seat, Aria snapped her lighted compact shut and dropped it into her purse. “Yes. What about it?”
“That’s where we lived until Dad made partner in the law firm he was with at the time.”
“It’s tiny. Can’t be more than a thousand square feet of living space, if that. All five of you lived there?”
“Yeah. Three bedrooms, one bath, and the smallest kitchen and living room you’ve ever seen. I think the walk-in closet at my rental house is bigger than my sister’s room was. My brother and I shared a room. We had bunk beds. I got the top. That was way back when my dad used to go by Charlie, my mom worked as a hairdresser, and we still knew how to laugh and have fun as a family.”
“Charlie? He was named after Pop?”
“Yup. Charles Allen Dexter, Jr. Once we moved into the McMansion in the ritzy subdivision on the other side of this one, he decided he wanted to be called Charles. After living there a year or so, he asked my mother to quit working at the salon because it didn’t seem right for an attorney’s wife to have a job that accentuated her lack of education. His words, not mine.”
Mom’s downcast eyes still haunted him. Dex couldn’t believe his father could be so shallow and uncaring. If Mom had hated her job, and Dad’s goal had been to relieve her of stress, it would have been one thing. A loving thing. But his selfish request served only to feed his insatiable ego and nothing more.
“Did she enjoy working at the salon?”
“Loved it. She worked around our school hours and was always there when we got home. I have good memories of barging through the kitchen door, being greeted with a hug, and smelling cookies baking in the oven. Good times. I’ve got an awesome mom.”
“Sounds like it. I’m looking forward to meeting her.”
“When we cross Montage Lane we’ll be in my parents’ subdivision.” Dex drove a few blocks and stopped at a stop sign. “ETA two minutes.”
“Copy that.” Aria laughed. “Estimated time of arrival, two minutes.”
“All right, then. Let’s roll.”
Chapter 19
Aria pulled the compact out of her purse and checked her makeup one last time. “How’s my hair? It’s hard to get a good look at it in this little mirror.”
“Your hair is fine. Trust me, you look beautiful. And, here we are.” He made a left turn onto the property.
The exquisite home looming large in front of her triggered a bad case of nervous jitters in Aria’s stomach. A portico held up by four ornate columns extended over the entrance, and tall windows topped with half-moon transoms lined the front of the house, some of them aglow from light within.
“That’s your parents’ house?”
“Yup. Cozy, isn’t it?” His tone dripped with sarcasm. “Looks like a bank if you ask me.”
Dex drove past the portico’s white marble steps and pulled into one of the four parking spaces beside a multi-car garage. “Hold on a sec and I’ll help you out of the truck.”
“Okay, thank you.”
Aria walked to the front door holding Dex’s hand and waited as he rang the bell. “Is Jeeves going to answer the door wearing a tux with tails?”
Dex cracked a smile. “Very funny. No, they don’t have a butler. But th
ey do have a maid that comes in to clean on a regular basis, and groundskeepers.”
The door opened inward, and Dex’s mother smiled warmly. “Hello, sweetheart. Come on in out of that bitter cold, both of you.”
Aria stepped inside, still clasping Dex’s hand as he kissed his mother’s cheek.
Dex peeled off his coat and helped Aria out of hers. “Mom, this is Aria Greco. Aria, this is my mother, Allison Dexter.”
“Hello, Mrs. Dexter. I’m very pleased to meet you.”
“Oh, my, look how beautiful you are.” Mrs. Dexter ignored the hand Aria extended and wrapped her in a motherly hug. “And I’m thrilled to meet you as well. Would you like something hot to drink? Coffee, cocoa, or maybe tea to chase the chill out of you?”
“No, thank you. I’m fine.”
“All right, then. Jason, your brother and sister are running a few minutes late, but—” Mrs. Dexter turned at the sound of footfalls. “Oh, there’s your father now.”
Mr. Dexter walked across the spacious entryway and stopped next to his wife. “Well, hello. Sorry, I was across the house and wasn’t quite sure if I’d heard the doorbell.”
The photo Aria had seen of him didn’t do him justice. It was no surprise that this attractive couple could produce a son as handsome as Dex.
He shook Dex’s hand and gave a slight nod. “Jason. And who might this lovely young lady be?” Mr. Dexter sprouted a friendly smile.
“Dad, this is Aria.” Dex touched Aria’s lower back. “Aria, may I present my father, Charlie Dexter.”
* * * *
Aria slipped her hand into Dex’s as they followed Mrs. Dexter into a large formal living room to the left of the grand foyer. The doorbell rang the moment she and Dex sat on the plush leather loveseat.
Mr. Dexter, who had come into the room last, raised a hand and smiled at his wife. “I’ll get it.” He left and returned shortly with a young man and woman trailing behind.
“That’s my brother and sister.” Dex patted Aria’s knee then popped off the loveseat and hurried to the slim, dark-haired girl. “Annie!” He circled her waist with his arms, scooped her off her feet, and spun in a circle.
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