He smirked. “You can’t scare me, Serena.”
Andrew rushed in and climbed into Devin’s lap. “Want to see my favorite one?”
“I do,” Devin said with a wink to me.
I left them alone, going to the little kitchenette. I wanted to be alone to take a breath because I felt like I hadn’t breathed since Devin showed up at the park. If I thought I was playing with fire before, I was damn near burning in the flames now. I peeked around the corner to see Devin and Andrew looking at the book. My heart ached to tell him the truth and for us to overcome all those limits. Surely Devin would protect Andrew from his mother, right?
But would learning the truth change how Devin felt about me? And if so, what would he do in his anger? Ugh. My life had become an endless cycle of a catch-22 that I couldn’t get out of and eventually would blow up in my face.
I texted my mom to ask her if I could bring a guest. She responded with yes and wanted to know who it was. I told her it was a friend, as I knew she’d freak out if she knew a Roarke was about to have dinner at her house.
I cleaned Andrew up and then the three of us headed down to my parents’ apartment.
“My mom is probably going to freak out a little bit when she meets you,” I whispered to Devin. Andrew stood next to him and took his hand.
“Why?”
“You’re a Roarke. A famous prominent New York family.”
He rolled his eyes. “I don’t shit daisies.”
“Umm, you said a bad word,” Andrew said looking up at Devin.
“Sorry. I’m human like everyone else.”
“She’ll also probably try to marry us off, and I know how you feel about marriage,” I said, wanting to make sure he understood what he was getting himself into.
“It all depends on the in-laws,” he said with a cheeky grin.
If that was true, I’d be better off staying away from him, because I knew his parents wouldn’t accept me.
“We’re here, Mom, Dad,” I
said opening the door.
“Come meet Devin,” Andrew said running to the kitchen.
“Remember, you asked for this,” I whispered as my father entered the room.
“I’m Graham Moore,” my father said, as he scrutinized Devin even as he extended his hand.
“Devin.”
He didn’t use his last name, which only meant he was concerned about my mother freaking out.
“Hello, I’m Alys—” My mother stopped short when she saw him. “You’re Devin Roarke.”
“I am. It’s lovely to meet you, Mrs. Moore.” He extended his hand to her.
My mother looked from me to Devin. “I …ah…if I’d know a Roarke was coming I’d have cooked something—”
Devin waved her comment away with his hand. “Whatever you’re cooking smells delicious. Thank you so much for including me.”
“What brings you to our neck of the city?” My father was still frowning, like he didn’t quite trust Devin.
Devin smiled as he looked at me. “Serena.”
Both my parents’ eyebrows shot up to their hairline. Then my mother got this hopeful look. I glanced at Devin to see if he noticed it. In her mind, we were married already and probably had more kids.