Imagine With Me (With Me in Seattle 15)

“He did,” she says with a smile. “He was almost giddy with pride.”

She finishes reeling in her line, and I paddle us back to shore. Just as I’m pulling the canoe out of the water, Lexi stands and somehow ends up face-first in the lake.

Before I can rush over to help, she comes up sputtering, pushing her wet hair out of her face.

“Meant to do that,” she says. “Boy, that crisp water sure is refreshing.”

She stares at me, and then we both start laughing, big belly laughs that bounce off the trees and echo back to us.

“You’re a mess,” I say, taking her in. “Let’s get home and put you in the shower.”

“Yes, please.”

I lay my jacket under her on the seat of the SUV so she doesn’t soak the leather too badly, and thank the gods that the cabin is only a five-minute drive away. She hurries into the shower to warm up and clean herself off, and I decide to go downstairs to work out a bit in the home gym that came with the house.

I’m into my third set of pull-ups when I hear her scream.

“SHAWN!”Chapter 13~Lexi~I don’t ever want to go fishing again. The lake is beautiful, and I enjoyed being with Shawn, but the fishing part was not fun.

Also, falling in the shallows wasn’t my favorite thing either.

I rinse my hair, ring it out in the shower, and then wrap it in a towel and dry myself off. I borrow one of Shawn’s black T-shirts, brush out my wet hair, and pad through the house toward the kitchen when I hear the front door open.

Did Shawn go outside for something? I thought he was down in the basement, working out. Just as I turn a corner into the foyer of the house, a man walks inside.

We both freeze, staring at each other.

“Well, it’s a mighty fine day in the life of an old man when he finds a lovely lass staring at him.”

I blink rapidly. This is clearly Shawn’s dad. And I’m standing here, half-naked.

Fuck.

“I’ll go find Shawn,” I say quickly and hurry away, running down the stairs. “Oh God, oh God, oh God.”

I search the cavernous basement and find the gym area on the opposite side of the house.

“Shawn.”

He doesn’t hear me. He’s wearing headphones.

I try louder. “Shawn.”

Nothing.

“SHAWN!”

He drops to the floor from his pull-ups, rips off his headphones, and spins toward me.

“What’s wrong?”

“Your dad is here.”

He frowns. “Where?”

“Upstairs. He came in the front door, and I was standing there…like this.”

His eyes roam over me and then he has the nerve to laugh. “I have to tell you, my da’s been in love with Ma for going on forty years, but I’m sure he enjoyed the sight of you when he walked in.”

“This isn’t funny. I’m not wearing any underwear.”

His green eyes flash up to mine. “He can’t see that.”

“But I know it. I just met your dad without any underwear on. There’s something just wrong with that.”

“It’s going to be fine. You go get dressed. I’ll go find out what they’re up to.”

I scramble up the stairs ahead of him and make a beeline for the bedroom we’re using as Shawn goes in search of his parents. I pull on underwear, jeans, and a sweatshirt, and then blow my hair dry. I don’t worry about makeup, but I feel much more comfortable facing Shawn’s parents now that I’m clothed and not obviously just out of the shower.

When I walk downstairs, I find all three O’Callaghans in the kitchen.

“There she is,” Shawn says with a grin. He gestures for me to join them and takes my hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze. “I’d like to properly introduce you to my parents. Lexi Perry, this is Tom and Fiona O’Callaghan.”

“Hello,” I say with a small laugh. “I’m so sorry about the way you—”

“Nonsense,” Fiona says right away. “We didn’t ring anyone to let them know we were coming. Well, except for Kane. We wanted it to be a surprise, we did.”

“And it worked,” I say, shocked when I’m wrapped in a big hug by the older woman. She has the same red hair as Shawn’s sisters with just the beginnings of silver threading through. Her eyes aren’t green, they’re blue as the ocean. Her body has softened a bit with age, but she’s strong and beautiful.

“I should have rung the bell,” Tom says kindly, his green eyes dancing with mirth. “I beg your pardon, lass.”

I laugh and lean over to give the man—as tall as his sons and just as strong—a hug. “Let’s start over. Hi, I’m Lexi.”

“We weren’t expecting you guys for at least another month,” Shawn says as he pulls out crackers, along with some cheese and fruit from the fridge, and starts making his parents a snack. “This is a surprise.”

“We decided to come early to see our children, take in some mountain air, and relax a little,” Fiona says.