“Not yet,” Scott supplied, giving Tess a look that was a mixture of sympathy, apology and...defiance? Daring her to dispute him, perhaps? “Maybe Santa will bring her one for Christmas.”
“Oh, how exciting!” Dana giggled. “Bet it’ll be a good one.”
“Congratulations, Tessie.” Ken kissed her cheek. “I hope you’re both very happy,” he added, reaching out to shake Scott’s hand. “Welcome to the family, Scott. You’ve got yourself a treasure here.”
Scott looked at Tess again when he responded, “Yes, I’m aware of that.”
They were suddenly surrounded by well-wishers, hugged and congratulated and barraged with questions neither was prepared to answer. She noted that Glenn had disappeared into the crowd after unwittingly initiating this excitement. Standing at Scott’s side, she gritted her teeth behind a bright smile and settled for a couple of stock answers. “It’s a recent development” and, “No, we haven’t set a date yet.” She appeased her sister somewhat by promising to visit the next afternoon with all the details.
“We weren’t planning to announce it just yet,” she added with a chiding look toward Scott. “He just got carried away.”
“My bad,” Scott agreed. “I guess I’m just too excited to keep it to myself.”
“Oh, that’s so sweet,” someone crooned while Tess fantasized about strangling him.
They took their leave as soon as they could politely do so. Dana’s husband cracked a suggestive joke about the newly engaged couple wanting to be alone together, earning himself a cold stare from Nina that made him swallow visibly. Tess clutched Scott’s arm in a white-knuckled grip and almost dragged him out the door.
A taut silence surrounded them in Scott’s car as he drove through the gates of the neighborhood. Only when they were on the highway headed toward her condo did he sigh and say, “Okay, let me have it.”
She twisted beneath her seat belt to face his profile. “I can’t even come up with the words.”
“Look, I’m really sorry, Tess. I know that was awkward for you—”
“Gee, you think?”
He winced. “It got away from me. That Glenn guy was grilling me about our relationship, talking about asking you out, brushing me off as nothing more than your boss, and I simply told him the truth. I didn’t realize you and your family were within earshot, though I guess I should have checked before I spoke.”
“Or maybe not have spoken at all?”
“Maybe.”
She could tell he wasn’t entirely sorry. Just what male ego button had Glenn pushed? Surely it hadn’t been intentional; Glenn wasn’t exactly the territorial type. For that matter, she’d never thought of Scott that way, either.
“Technically, I didn’t say we’re engaged,” he added somewhat stiffly. “I told Glenn I’m going to marry you. I just didn’t mention I haven’t officially asked yet. You could have made it clear you haven’t given me an answer yet if you didn’t want everyone to start congratulating us.”
“Oh, that wouldn’t have been awkward at all.”
“Sorry, Tess. But we knew when we started attending these things together that people would want to know what’s going on with us. Like I said, Glenn asked about our relationship and I told him the truth. I want to marry you. I thought we’d already established that.”
She couldn’t quite define the emotions crashing through her. She wasn’t surprised, exactly. Scott had made it clear that this was the direction in which his thoughts had been headed. All that talk of what a good team they made, what a brilliant idea he’d had about them, how nicely she fit in with his family, how well she understood his demanding obligations and responsibilities. Yet in all of that talk, not once had he mentioned love. He’d even had a hard time telling her he’d miss her while he was out of town.
She rode without speaking for the remainder of the drive, and he didn’t push her to express her thoughts. He turned into the parking lot of her condominium compound. “Are you going to invite me in?”
With a little sigh, she reached for her door handle. “Of course. Come in.”
They really did need to talk. The problem was that when they were alone together in her condo, talking was too often the last thing on their minds.
Inside her living room, she dumped her coat and bag on a chair, then turned to face him as he waited patiently for her to speak first. After a moment, she gave a wry laugh and pushed back her hair. “One thing about you, Scott—dealing with you is never boring. Neither at the office nor, it turns out, at parties.”
“I hope that’s a compliment.”
“Not entirely. Every once in a while it might be nice to be prepared for what you’re going to do next.”
Taking a step toward her, he caught her hands in his, gazing somberly into her eyes. “I really am sorry I embarrassed you in front of your family, Tess.”
She bit her lip, then couldn’t resist saying, “Did you see Nina’s face?”
A sudden grin tugged at his lips, though he seemed to be trying to contain it. “Yes. I’d say we surprised her.”