She shrugged. “I have no plans for today, but I was thinking about this evening.”
“Oh? Would you like to go to dinner? Movie?”
She chewed on her lower lip, telling me she was nervous about something. “Dinner, yes, but, um, well, I have plans.”
That took me by surprise. “Oh, I see. Maybe another night.”
“No, actually, I wanted to know if you would like to go to dinner with me. And my dad.”
“Your dad?” I asked, automatically leaning away from her. It was not what I expected. I would have never predicted that would come out of her mouth.
“Yes, my dad.”
I cleared my throat. I needed to clarify some things without coming off like a total asshole. “Evie, I like hanging out with you, but I want to make sure we are on the same page here.”
“What do you mean?”
“Meeting your dad,” I said, knowing it was blunt.
“Oh,” she said. “No, no, no.”
“No, no, no, what?”
“I wouldn’t be introducing you as anything other than my friend. We are friends, right?”
“Yes, we are.”
“If it bothers you, that’s cool. I probably shouldn’t have asked. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable. My dad asked me to have dinner with him tonight. I was hoping me and you could have dinner, and well, it just seemed like why not do both?”
I mulled it over and decided I may as well. “Okay.”
“Really?”
I shrugged. “Sure, why not? It’s just dinner.”
“Right, just dinner between friends.”
“What should I wear? Is this an Applebee’s kind of restaurant or should I wear a suit?”
She groaned. “I’m so sorry. You hate suits, and here I am, constantly asking you to wear a suit.”
“Hey, it’s cool. I don’t really mind the suits. It’s just not something I could wear every damn day for twelve hours a day.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.”
She leaned forward and dropped another one of those chaste kisses on my cheek. “Great. I’ll see you tonight then.”
“You’re leaving?” I asked with surprise.
“You need to sleep,” she said, putting a hand up to my hair.
“I suppose I should probably try and take a nap. I don’t want to look like a zombie when I meet your dad for the first time.”
“Get some rest and I’ll see you tonight.”
I walked her to the door and said goodbye. I watched her leave, a little disappointed that she wasn’t sticking around a while longer. I had missed being around her while I was gone. I went upstairs and caught my reflection in the mirror.
“Shit,” I muttered. I did look like hell. No wonder she ordered me to get some sleep.
I headed for bed. A couple hours would do me good. I lay down and pulled the light blanket up and over me. I thought about the coming dinner. I was a little worried about meeting her father. I didn’t do that kind of thing. I didn’t meet the parents.
It was no big deal, I told myself. We would sit down, have some steak, talk about the weather, and then go home. Nothing to it. Easy-peasy.
If it was so fucking easy, why in the hell was I so nervous?
Chapter 22
Evie
I was a nervous wreck. I couldn’t believe how nervous I was. I wasn’t sure if I was nervous about seeing Xander or nervous about Xander meeting my father. It was new territory for me. He would be the first in a long, long, long time. I couldn’t even remember when I brought a man home. A boy. I think the last time I was probably sixteen and going to the Homecoming dance with an upperclassman. That had been a fucking nightmare.
I stared down at the three dresses I had pulled from my closet and laid on my bed. I couldn’t decide what to wear. I was acting like it was my first date with Xander. It was, but it wasn’t. It wasn’t a date. It was dinner with my dad and Xander would be along for the ride. Not a date.
I decided to hop in the shower before it got too late to do it and then I would really be freaking out. I showered, shaved, and slathered lotion from head to toe. I put on a matching bra and panty set that made me feel sexy. I was going through way too much trouble for a date that was absolutely not going to end in sex.
I couldn’t help it. I wanted to impress Xander. I wanted him to want me. I stared at the dresses again and decided none of them were right. I went back into my closet and started the hunt all over again. I was wedged in between the blues and blacks when I heard the doorbell. My first thought was it was Xander. Then I remembered he didn’t know where I lived.
I walked to the door with my robe on and peeked through the door. “What are you doing here?” I asked Nelle.
“I am going in late tonight and thought I would stop by.”
I grabbed her arm and pulled her inside. “Thank god you are here. I need help.”
“Help with what?”
“I don’t know what to wear!”
“You have one of the healthiest closets I have ever seen. How can you not find something to wear?”
I groaned and dragged her into my room. “I think there are too many choices.”
She looked at the dresses on the bed. “I like that one,” she said, pointing to a blue and black bandage dress.
“Really?”
She nodded. “Absolutely. It hugs your body. It’s perfect for a date.”
“This isn’t a date,” I reminded her. “I’m having dinner with my dad.”
“And Xander, the guy you are banging.”
I put a hand on my hip. “Stop. It isn’t that.”
She shrugged. “You are acting like you are getting ready to introduce your boyfriend to your father for the first time.”
I sighed and flopped down on the bed, pushing the dresses out of the way. “I am, aren’t I?”
“Yes, you are. You are nervous because you like this guy and you need your dad’s approval.”
“It would be nice if they could get along. I don’t expect them to hang out or go to football games, but I want my dad to like him. My dad is far more world-wise than I am. I have to trust his judgment and his experience.”
She didn’t look like she bought into that line of thinking. “You are not exactly a naïve little country bumpkin. You have dealt with a lot of people and know how to handle just about anyone.”
I sighed. She was right. “But how weird would it be if Xander and I did want to date or hang out more often and my dad hated him? I would always feel like I was lying to my dad.”
“Evie, you are twenty-eight, not eight, not eighteen. Your dad should trust your judgement. He knows he didn’t raise an idiot. You are more than capable of making sound decisions.”
I worried my bottom lip. “I know. He knows, but he is still the kind of man that questions everything. He has some pretty high standards. I don’t think there is ever going to be anyone that passes muster.”
“Except for me.” She grinned. “Your dad loves me.”
“Now, he does, but trust me. He wasn’t thrilled with the idea of you in the beginning.”