“It’s good to be here, Mrs. Evander.”
“Oh, please call me Ruth.” She winked at her before she threw me an inquisitive glance. “I’m curious as to why Bryce didn’t mention anything about bringing you here tonight!”
I rolled my eyes, not surprised by her reproof in the least. I was sure that if I’d told her about Chloe she would go above and beyond to make Chloe feel at home.
“It’s okay, Ruth,” Chloe replied politely, and a feeling of awe settled in my chest. She was amazing at handling this—acting politely and with class. She glanced at me, her lips curling up in a mischievous smile. “It was an eleventh-hour decision, after all, so I apologize if this is inconvenient for you.”
“Oh, nonsense! Look at you, all formal! Relax, we’re family! But why are we still standing here? Come in!”
She moved aside to let us in, and I took Chloe’s hand, relieved that mom didn’t make a fuss about me bringing Chloe.
“Roger! Your son and his girlfriend are here!”
“His girlfriend?” we heard him say from the living room, and a few moments later, he appeared in the hallway. His gray eyebrows furrowed slightly as he assessed Chloe, right before an approving grin formed on his face.
“Hello, son,” he said and hugged me with one arm, patting my back with the other.
“Hey, Dad.” I motioned at Chloe. “Meet Chloe. My girlfriend.”
For a brief moment, Chloe’s and my eyes met, creating an unusual feeling in my chest. Even to my own ears, those two words of endearment sounded too intimate.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Chloe said and shook hands with my dad. “Bryce has told me a lot about you.”
He guffawed. “I hope he mentioned only good things.”
“Absolutely.”
We continued to the dining room, whic
h held massive amounts of food, as if my mother had prepared dinner for ten people, a huge turkey occupying the center of the table. Light music played in the background, adding to this rather cute wintery scene, and I could see Chloe reveling in it.
“So, how did you two meet?” my mother asked us a half-way through our dinner.
I was a bit tipsy after a few glasses of wine, finding this time with my parents to be more enjoyable than I’d thought. My dad engaged himself in conversation more than usual, trying to impress Chloe with the stories from his college days when he played football and aspired to be making a career out of it. Chloe gave him full attention, eagerly listening to his stories, and I wondered if she was going out of her way to please my father only because she was trying to do her job as best she could, or she was genuinely interested in what he had to say.
I caught myself wanting this to be real. There was a part of me that enjoyed this illusion too much, and I had to remind myself that she was just my assistant and nothing else.
“Chloe was my patient,” I answered her. “She was having a terrible cold, and it lasted for a few weeks.” I caught Chloe’s hand on the table. “Isn’t that right, sweetie?”
“Yes. I was so sick that I had to come to Bryce’s office several times. Little by little, we got to know more about each other and found out that we share similar interests.”
“So one thing led to another, and a few weeks later, we got together,” I said and took a sip of my wine.
“I’m a bit surprised that you didn’t mention her to me at all,” Mom told me, a hint of reproach coloring her voice.
“You know how he is, Ruth,” Dad interjected. “He never tells us anything these days.”
“Dad, don’t start. You know I’ve been really busy.”
He raised his hands in the air. “Alright. I won’t. But you know how your mother and I feel about it. If you hadn’t appeared tonight, she would’ve started a war here.”
Mom smacked his hand. “Oh, stop it! Anyway, how long have you two been together?”
“Seven months,” Chloe replied.
My parents looked at each other with identical smiles on their faces, and I knew what kind of thoughts circulated in their minds. Seven months wasn’t a short period of time, and since I brought Chloe here that could only mean this relationship was serious. I wasn’t surprised in the least when the next question popped up.
“So do you two have plans to, you know, get married?” my mom asked.