I stiffen in his arms, exhaustion fleeting as I prepare for a possible lecture.
“Dad—”
“No, I’ll do the talking and you do the listening.”
I lift my face to his and see the stormy confliction in his eyes that match mine. Everyone has always said I’m a spitting image of my mom, except for my eyes. They are identical to his.
“He was
n’t a surprise. I’ve been patiently waiting for you to tell me about him.”
“You have?”
“Yes, I could tell for weeks now there was someone special in your life. I may not have a mother’s instinct, but I’m a very intuitive man.”
“I wasn’t hiding him or our relationship, but you can be a little intimidating.”
“I understand your discretion. You came home tonight looking like a heartbroken woman. Even though you tried to be strong, I could tell this argument with him was weighing on you. Usually, I would threaten to kill any man that put that look of sadness on your face, but I felt a little sorry for him.”
“You felt sorry for him?” I whisper in disbelief.
“I remember meeting your mom. She was so sweet, so pure, and the most beautiful woman I’d ever laid eyes on. I fell like a puppy at her feet, worshipping everything about her. She waited four months to tell your grandparents about us. It drove me nuts. By the time I finally met them, I was ready to propose. If at anytime during our relationship she would have told me she was spending the weekend away from me, and I found out two guys were going with her, I would have lost my shit. There’s no way I would have been okay with it. She would have found herself handcuffed to me. I was a very jealous boyfriend.”
“I remember the stories.” I giggle at the memories and the thought of my dad being such a sap.
“She kept things from me, too. Nothing major, but I was determined to know everything about her. I was a madman with my pursuit, to the point of craziness.”
“Lawson does get a little jealous. He has a possessive streak.”
“When I saw you tonight, the sadness on your face, I admit it wasn’t a good first impression. But then it hit me in the gut, when you shared with us about his aggravation. My male instinct kicked in. Maybe I’ve been too protective of you. If you really like this guy, and you trust him, I think you should open up.”
“Me too. I don’t care what people think about me, but I can’t believe his stupid ass thinks I’m a lab rat,” Jonas groans from the sofa.
“I agree, lab rats resemble geeks.” Enrique comes back into the room, wearing sleep pants with calculators, a matching black tee, and his glasses. He’s a poster card for a geek. Albeit, a very handsome, Latin geek.
I try to muffle my laugh but fail, falling into Dad’s chest and howling out loud. “You guys are awful!”
“We chatted today when you girls weren’t paying attention. Kevin has a point. How hasn’t Lawson clued in?” Enrique asks.
“Because I never told him about my upbringing. I’ve skimmed over the details. As for the four of you, we’ve avoided any major conversations about our schooling and accomplishments,” I tell him.
“Isn’t that part of the ‘getting to know you’ stage? Every woman I’ve ever dated wants my pedigree before dinner is over.”
“I wasn’t aware you actually dated. Taking a girl home from the bar isn’t exactly my definition of relationship building.”
“HEY!” He waves his hand down his body. “I’m not just some piece of meat. I have standards.”
“Since when?” Jonas and I ask at the same time, and my dad’s chest vibrates against my cheek.
“What are we missing in here?” Jenny and Bessie join us again, dressed for bed.
“Enrique was enlightening me with his dating advice.” I wink at them.
“Oh lord, that should take about three seconds,” Bessie taunts.
“Laugh all you want, but I can promise you there’s a reason I’m called Latin Lover.”
“More like Latin love ‘em and leave ‘em.” Jenny cracks up at her own joke.