Say You Want Me

“You want to convince your grandmother, don’t you?” He wiped his hands with a paper napkin. “I’ll pick you up and we’ll come in, the inseparable lovebirds. Your grandmother will go home satisfied you’ve found the perfect man at last.”

“Don’t get too far into the role, okay?” She scribbled her address onto another napkin and handed it to him.

He read it and stuffed it into his pocket. “What should I say when people ask how we met?”

“That’s easy. Tell them we met at the hospital. Cops come in here all the time.”

“And we’ve been dating how long?”

“Six weeks.”

“I’m a fast worker, huh?”

“G.P. knew my grandfather six weeks when they got married.”

“How long were they married?”

“Forty-one years.”

He laughed. “And you don’t believe in fate!”

“G.P. and Grandpa were lucky. That doesn’t happen very often.” She didn’t want to talk about her grandparents’ marriage with him. She opened the door. “I have to get back to work.”

He stopped and kissed her cheek on his way out. “I’ll see you tomorrow evening. I’m looking forward to it.”

She stared after him, still feeling the warmth where his lips had been. One moment she was furious with him, and the next he did something that made her positively melt. He’d crashed into her quiet, ordered life like a meteorite. She figured the sooner they ended their deal and parted company, the better off she’d be.

His earlier words to her echoed in the back of her mind (or was that her conscience again?): Liar.

CARTER ARRIVED at Joni’s apartment promptly at 4:45, having circled the block half a dozen times to avoid showing up too early. He ate half a pack of breath mints while he was waiting and cranked the air conditioner full blast, praying his antiperspirant didn’t fail. Though he hoped he didn’t show it, his stomach was in knots at the thought of meeting Joni’s family, especially the infamous G.P.

He didn’t have much experience with families, though as a cop he’d seen plenty of family feuds gone wrong. If the rest of the family was anything like prickly Joni, he’d have one hell of a time keeping his cool tonight. But he intended to give it his best shot. Joni might be difficult at times, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that the two of them could make some magic together. Call it destiny, fate, or mere coincidence, but Joni had come into his life from out of nowhere, and he wasn’t about to let her leave too soon.

She greeted him at the door, dressed in an orange tank top and white shorts. He had a tough time not staring, and had to continually pull his gaze away from her long, tanned legs and soft curves. “You look great,” he said.

She smiled and surveyed his jeans, boots and knit polo. “You clean up pretty good yourself.”

“I brought you something.” He handed her a pink rabbit’s foot key chain.

“What’s this for?” She inspected the rabbit’s foot.

“For luck. You said you don’t believe in it, but the rabbit’s foot works whether you believe or not.”

She laughed. “All right. I’ll humor you.” She clipped the key chain to her purse. “Are you ready?”

He took a deep breath. “I’m ready. By the end of the evening, your grandmother will love me.” And maybe her granddaughter’s feelings will be a little more affectionate as well.

The drive to her parents’ home in Alamo Heights took only a few minutes. The house was already surrounded by cars, and a trio of little girls chased each other across the front lawn. “You have a big family,” he said.

“Not that big. I have three brothers, Matt, Greg and David. Then there are their wives and children—the girls on the lawn belong to Greg and Matt. David has a baby boy. Aunt Lisa and Uncle Richard will probably be here, and my cousins Marcus and Larry. Uncle Leo and Aunt Lucy, and their sons, Bruce and Peter. Bruce’s wife Penny and their two boys, Zach and Thomas…”

“Like I said. A big family. Must be nice.” He found a parking space down the street and guided the car in. “Three brothers, huh? So you’re the only girl. And the youngest, I’ll bet.”

“David is younger, but, yeah, I’m the only girl.”

He grinned. “No wonder you don’t like being bossed around.”

She stuck her tongue out at him. He was still chuckling when they walked through the front door. The roomful of people fell silent. He looked at her and saw the telltale flush creeping up her neck. “You didn’t tell them you were bringing me, did you?”

She gave him a look of apology. “I, uh, I forgot.”

A woman in her fifties with Joni’s eyes moved toward them. “Well, don’t just stand there. Come in!” She took Carter’s arm and led him farther into the room.

“Mama, I’d like you to meet Carter Sullivan. Carter, this is my mother, Adele Montgomery.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Carter said. “I’d have known you for Joni’s mother anywhere.”

“And I’m Joni’s grandmother.” A thin, angular woman with a thick crown of snow-white hair inserted herself between them and offered her hand. “Pamela Pettigrew, but everyone here calls me G.P.”

“Pleased to meet you, G.P.” Carter shook hands with the old woman, who had a surprisingly strong grip.

She kept hold of his hand and looked him over, starting at the polished toes of his boots and ending at the top of his head. He tried not to squirm, though he had the feeling he was being sized up like a side of beef. G.P. turned to Joni, who stood with her fists clenched at her sides. “Why have you been keeping this man a secret?”

“Well, I, uh…” She looked at him, telegraphing panic.

He put his arm around her. “I think Joni wanted to be sure of my feelings before she sprung me on the whole family.”

G.P.’s eyes narrowed. “And what are your feelings?”

He leaned closer and spoke in a confiding tone. “Just between you and me—I love her.”

He’d meant the words as a dramatic gesture, but a sudden tightness in his chest when he glanced at Joni told him they might be true. This beautiful, aggravating woman had gotten under his skin in a hurry.

JONI STARED AT HIM, openmouthed. Why had he thought it necessary to say something like that? Especially with her whole family watching and grinning like kids at the circus.

She slid her gaze over to G.P. Her grandmother was still holding Carter’s hand, studying him with considerable interest. “Come sit over here and tell me something about yourself,” she said, leading him to the sofa.

Aunts Lisa and Lucy moved over to make room, so that Carter ended up sandwiched between G.P. and the grinning aunts. “Tell me how you and Joni met,” G.P. said.

Carter leaned back against the sofa cushions, long legs stretched in front of him. Joni stood behind her mother’s chair, while the rest of the family arranged themselves around the room. Carter glanced at Joni, then delivered his lines: “I was sitting at a restaurant all alone, depressed because I didn’t have someone special in my life, and all of a sudden, this beautiful woman walks right over and sits down at my table.”

Joni gasped, drawing curious looks from those near her. She dabbed at her eyes with her fingers, pretending to be all choked up. In reality, she was furious. What did he think he was doing, telling her family the truth?

“She’d mistaken me for the man she was supposed to meet at the restaurant,” Carter continued. “One look and I knew fate had sent me the woman I’d been waiting for. We talked all evening, and I guess you could say we really hit it off.”

“What a romantic story.” Aunt Lucy sighed.

“When was this meeting?” G.P. asked. “How long have you known each other?”