My fork clanked to my plate, just fell right out of my fingers. He hadn’t told me that before, and God, I wasn’t surprised. It was such a Will thing to do. It made me love him even more, but then I thought about his job and me, and…what was I doing? This so wasn’t fair to him. Will had so much to lose.

“That’s very honorable,” Dad told him.

“That sounds like you,” Mom added to my father, and it did sound like Dad. I waited for those words to hurt or make me jealous, but they didn’t.

Will’s gaze darted to me. “It’s not a big deal. So, you’re heading into graduate school?” he asked me. “That’s an incredible accomplishment. I think I remember hearing that you want to be a professor? I could never do something like that.”

First, he had no way of knowing that, and Cherise’s grin told me she caught on. Second, as much as I appreciated it, I didn’t want him to feel like he had to do that. “I don’t know. I figure what you’re doing is pretty great.”

Will shrugged. “It’s nothing.”

When I looked around the table, everyone was staring at us, so I shoved a bite into my mouth and dropped the subject.

“Do you have any plans for the rest of the summer?” Dad asked Will. “Outside of work?”

“Spending time with friends, mostly. This has been a great summer so far, and I have a feeling it’s only going to get better. My birthday is in two weeks, so I’m hoping to plan something fun for that.”

For the second time, my fork fell out of my hand. “Your birthday is in two weeks?” Why hadn’t he told me? Also, it wasn’t supposed to matter to me. “I mean, that’s cool—that your birthday is coming up. I hope you do something fun.” I was awesome at this. Will was trying not to laugh, the asshole. I could tell.

“Isn’t that when we’re going to the beach house, Daddy?” Cherise asked. “You should come, Will.”

Oh, shit. My sister looked at me and smiled. Also, I’d totally forgotten about that trip.

“It is. We would love for you to join us,” Dad replied.

“You should!” Mom added. “There’s plenty of space. The more, the merrier.”

“I couldn’t. I wouldn’t want to intrude,” Will replied.

“You wouldn’t be. I insist,” Mom said.

Wait. What in the hell was going on here? My family was inviting Will on our family vacation?

“Uh-oh. You’re screwed, kid. She always gets her way,” Dad told him.

Me? I was struggling to breathe.

“I do,” Mom confirmed.

Will’s gaze darted to me, then quickly away. “Oh…well, okay. I, um…yeah, I’d love to. It depends on the dates and all. I’ll have to check and make sure my family isn’t doing anything.”

“Sounds good, then,” Dad said, and I tried not to vomit.

When we finished eating, Dad told me, “Come talk to me for a minute.” I froze up, and somehow, I knew Will did too.

I followed my dad into his office. We’d had many conversations in there over the years. He closed the door behind us, and we sat down in two of the armchairs beside the window.

I waited for him to ask if I was having sex with his PA, but when he opened his mouth, what he said was, “I wanted to make sure you know I love you, son.”

“Huh? Of course I do.” Where was that coming from?

“I don’t know if I always do a good job of making sure you know that. No matter what, okay? I think sometimes we don’t know how to talk to each other, so we both avoid doing it. I’m not proud of saying that, but I’m man enough to admit my mistakes.”

I nodded, looking down. “I know, Dad. Me too. It’s not just you. I could try harder.” My father and I didn’t go to lunches or talk on the phone the way Mom and I did. We’d never been as close.

“I worry sometimes that you might think I’m not proud of you. Or that I wish you were someone different. I’m not gonna lie, I think we both know I wished you’d been interested in Crane, but you’re not, and that’s okay. I respect the hell out of you for going for your dreams, for not doing what was maybe expected of you or assumed you would do. You’re your own man, and I’m damn proud of who that man is. You’re smart, kind, independent, strong, and yourself in a world where people don’t always appreciate those who are. You’re a better man than I’ve ever been, and I’m thankful for you, exactly the way you are.”

My eyes stung. I lost my words, couldn’t figure out what to say. “I… Thank you. I love you,” I told him, and then we both shoved to our feet, and we were hugging, and I was crying. God, I was so lucky. I wiped my face, trying not to snot all over him. “Sorry. I just, I needed to hear that.”

Tags: Riley Hart Stumbling into Love Romance
Source: readsnovelonline.net