“I’ll give you some of mine when I get it back,” Jasper said. “He does all kinds of flavors. What’s your favorite?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never really been a jerky eater,” Ava said.
“Oh! Oh, my heart! It hurts. Those words stung, beauty. Cut me right to my core,” Leo said.
“You can stop being dramatic now,” I said. “We don’t want to distract Jasper while he’s cooking. Remember what happened last time?”
“Last time?” Ava asked. “What happened last time?”
“He stumbled back into the grill and burned his ass,” Leo said.
He said it with such a straight face that I wasn’t sure if Ava believed him.
“No he didn’t,” Ava said.
“God as my witness,” Leo said.
“I mean Jasper’s tall, but his butt doesn’t come all the way up to the grill,” Ava said.
“You starin’ at my ass?” Jasper asked.
“That’s actually a good question,” I said with a grin.
“I’m just saying,” Ava said with a giggle.
“Wanna see the burn scar?” Jasper asked. “It’s right there on my left ass cheek.”
“She’ll pass,” I said.
I heard a car pull up as we all turned our heads. Ava locked up beside me as the car came dragging to a stop. Leo and Jasper looked at one another before Leo came to Ava’s side, standing just in front of her in case things got rough. Despite my opinion of the situation, Ava wanted to invite her family to this get together. She wanted to try and make amends with them after spending a few months away from their grasp. I loved her big heart and her willingness to make things work, but I also knew people didn’t change.
But, for Ava’s sake, I supported her decision.
We watched as her brothers stepped out, their eyes widening at her protruding stomach. They looked so much like her, it was almost impossible to deny who they were. They ran and gave her a massive hug, doting on how good she looked and how they had missed her. I shook their hands and they clapped my back, then I introduced her brothers to mine.
Then, I looked over and saw her parents step out of the car.
Their eyes were hard on me as we all stood around Ava. The last thing I was going to let them do was ruin this for her. These family cookouts were supposed to be a stress-free time for all of us to get to know one another and update each other on our lives. It was a time for Ava to get to know my family and for me to get to know hers better. And I wasn’t going to allow her bullshit parents to ruin that for us.
I’d drag them off this property with my bare hands if I had to.
“Hey Dad,” Ava said.
The sea of men surrounding her parted as her father and mother approached us. Their eyes raked up and down her body, clocking her stomach and drawing in deep breaths. I watched their faces closely, ready to pounce at a moment’s notice in case anything went south.
But then, a smile bloomed on her mother’s cheeks.
“You look gorgeous, sweetheart,” she said.
Ava and her mother embraced as her father rubbed her back. Ava soon threw her arms around her father’s neck, holding him close to her. I watched in partial shock as her parents embraced her, but the moment was pierced with the sound of another car coming up the driveway.
And I gawked when I saw my parents behind the wheel.
Ava rushed to my parents, hugging them tightly as they got out of the car. We all embraced as the steaks rested on the grill, with Jasper running into his cabin to get more food. My parents were introduced to Ava’s and tensions slowly dissipated. My anxiety and my protective stance turned into one that was welcoming and warm, and I was shocked as to how my father and her father got along.
Despite all the bullshit those two had gone through with their companies, it was shocking how much they had in common. They talked about their golfing trips and their experiences traveling abroad. They both had a love for Barcelona and classic literature. The two of them talked like they were old friends, sipping from beer bottles while Jasper cooked up more steaks. I held Ava close to my side, pressing a kiss to the side of her head.
“Did you ever think you would see this?” I asked.