Page 28 of Sheltered

“What?!”

I loved my mom’s reaction, so I continued to laugh. But I did that while I filled her in on what happened that night. Of course, I went on to share how he’d asked to take me out on a real date, how we’d had such a great time that we went ziplining the next date, and how he was going to be taking me to see a movie at the drive-in theater this weekend.

After I’d gotten all of that out, she said, “Wow. It sounds like he’s a great guy.”

“He is,” I promised. “Honestly, I never thought I’d be so lucky to meet a man like him. He wants to spend time with me doing all the things I’ve never done but have always wanted to do.”

“What a way to make some wonderful memories. I’d love to meet him, and I’m sure your dad and brothers will feel the same,” she said.

“So, it’s okay if I bring him to dad’s birthday dinner?” I asked.

If the words she said next didn’t indicate precisely how she felt, the tone of her voice would have done it. I could hear the smile on her face when she answered, “Absolutely. We’ll look forward to meeting him. I’m just so excited for you, Harlow. I wasn’t sure the day would ever come that you’d ask to bring a guy to dinner. This is wonderful news.”

Warmth moved through me. I was so lucky to have the family I did. Even though it was my mom I was talking to now, I didn’t question that both my dad and my brothers would be just as happy for me as she was. If I was happy, they’d be the same.

“Thanks, Mom. He’s been very busy at work this week, and we do connect with each other every day, but I probably won’t ask him if he’s free to go until I see him this weekend,” I told her.

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll include him in the reservations, and if he’s unable to come, I’ll just call the restaurant back to let them know. I’m sure it won’t be a problem.”

“Okay. That sounds good. I should probably get going now, because my client is likely going to be here any minute now, and I want to get my stuff from lunch cleaned up,” I said.

“Okay. I’ll talk to you later, then. Enjoy the rest of your day, and don’t forget to let me know if dinner plans need to be changed.”

“I won’t. And you have a good time with that office. I’ll be praying for you,” I teased.

She groaned. “Ugh, don’t remind me. Talk to you later, Harlow.”

“Bye, Mom.”

I disconnected the call with her, sat there for a moment recalling the conversation, and gave myself permission to feel that wave of appreciation for my family wash over me again. I might have wanted to call Blaze on my lunch break today, but I was glad I took the opportunity to call my mom.

Now, I just had to hope Blaze was okay with going to meet my family so soon after we decided to see where things would lead between us.

I was praying it wouldn’t scare him off.

EIGHT

Harlow

“This is far cozier than I thought it was going to be.”

Finally.

It was finally Saturday evening.

While I always looked forward to the break at the end of a long week at work, I couldn’t recall a time in my life when I considered an actual countdown to it.

All week long, I’d noticed this overwhelming feeling of anticipation moving through my body. It didn’t matter if I was in the middle of working with a client, texting back and forth with Blaze, or chatting on the phone with my mom or Olive. No matter what I was doing, no matter what was there to occupy my mind, it seemed as though my body knew what was ahead and refused to allow me to forget it.

The moment I opened my door and saw Blaze standing there, the feeling disappeared. It was as though my body had breathed a sigh of relief and could finally relax at the sight of him.

Of course, part of that could have been because he was just so incredibly handsome. I thought I realized that the first night I met him, but there was something about seeing him for the first time in a week after the weekend we’d had together that felt different.

Maybe it was knowing just how much fun we’d had then and would likely have this weekend. Or perhaps it was that I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about the kiss we’d shared and was desperate to do it again.

I’d struggled to hold myself back a bit, but fortunately, Blaze didn’t. He had stepped forward and slid his arms around me as he pressed a soft kiss to my lips. “Hey,” he murmured.

I smiled against his lips and whispered, “Hey.”