“This is a mistake,” Jude warned in her ear when she hugged him.
“Shut it.” She batted her eyes at him, feigning innocence. “Mom and Dad…” she gave Jude a barely-detectable scowl “…and Jude, this is Luke Jones, my … boyfriend.” She said it like a question as she looked up at Luke with a bit of apprehension. Boyfriend seemed so childish for a distinguished psychiatrist.
He kept his eyes and friendly smile focused on her family, so she assumed the label was okay.
“Luke, these are my parents, Grant and Sunny, and my brother, Jude.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you.” He shook their hands, then they all sat down at the table two seconds before the waiter rushed over to get their drink order.
Jessica ordered wine. Luke ordered beer—a local brew. Grant nodded in approval. Jessica rested her hand on Luke’s leg. A silent thank you.
“So Jessica told us you’re a doctor.” Sunny smiled.
Yes, she had told them that, but they already knew. They knew more about Luke than she did. Since Claire’s death, her father made every move Jessica made his highest priority. He and Jude had both offered to fill her in on all the details, but she didn’t want to know, at least not that way. Luke would share his past on his own time.
“Yes. I’m a psychiatrist.”
They nodded.
“Our daughter’s psychiatrist?” Grant questioned.
That … that was the one piece of information they didn’t know. She begged Jude to keep it a secret, to make sure their father never found out.
“I was.”
Jessica turned toward Luke. Stunned. There was no other word. Not in her wildest dreams did she imagine him telling them that, not with his professional career at stake. A bubble of silence enveloped their table.
Grant looked at Jude. Of course he wondered how that bit of information failed to make it to him. Jude glared at Jessica with apparent anger over the secrecy that was blown with two simple words from the good doctor himself.
Grant cleared his throat. He was a dark-haired, burly man with a Tom Selleck mustache. Most people found him intimidating. Jessica, however, was a daddy’s girl and knew his softest side. That side wasn’t on display during dinner. “And now you’re romantically involved?”
“I’m in love with your daughter.”
“Enough to risk ending your career?” her father continued as Jude and Sunny watched like spectators at a Wimbledon match.
Jessica feared the answer. The question weighed heavily on her own mind. Truthfully, she didn’t know what she wanted his answer to be. Thinking of herself as a monster for so long made it easy to feel unworthy of Luke’s love, and even more unworthy of him taking such a life-changing risk for her.
“Yes.”
Sunny looked at Jessica, both of them teary eyed.
Grant nodded. “And dealing with her past?”
“It’s my number one priority.”
Another nod. “If you hurt her—”
“I’m certain I won’t live to tell about it, sir.” Luke smiled and finally, so did her father.
It seemed Luke had passed her father’s test and everyone relaxed, except Jude. The thing she loved most about him was also the thing she hated the most. He believed no man would ever be worthy of his “little” sister. There was a better chance of San Andreas making Vegas a beach town than Jude accepting Luke as a worthy man.
“So … we have a bit of news.” Taking a breath of courage, she forced an uneasy smile.
“You’re getting married?” Sunny jumped in with a hopeful guess. Jessica inherited her mother’s beaming smile, but not her curly auburn hair that she wore long and wild like the seventies hippy her name implied.
“Uh … no.” Jessica gave Luke an apologetic look. They had never discussed marriage. He almost went down that road, and perhaps he didn’t care to do it again. It didn’t matter to Jessica. She would take him however she could get him. Everything else was inconsequential details.
“You’re pregnant?” Jude crossed his arms over his chest, a devilish grin on his face. The smug pot-stirrer knew better. He just liked fishing for a reaction. Some things never changed between them.
Sunny went from hopeful to terrified and Grant looked ready to kill.
“No! Jesus, Jude. Stop being such an ass.”
The urge to stick her tongue out at him overwhelmed her. Another habit that felt impossible to break. However, the one thing she wanted more than to be that childish twin was to make Luke proud, so she pulled on her big girl pants to regain her composure.
“Luke got me a dog, Jones. He’s amazing.”
The frown on Luke’s face showed his objection to that statement, but he didn’t say anything so she continued.
“He asked us to move in with him and I said yes.”
“You live in a safe part of town?” Grant asked.
Jessica rolled her eyes. It was a ridiculous question. In all his background checks, Luke’s address had to be at the top of the list. It was possible he had a satellite put in space just to follow his daughter.