“You sure are,” I say, wrapping my arms around his neck and kissing him back. I’m cognizant of my teenage daughter awkwardly standing by, so I try not to linger too long, but I can feel Hayden’s happiness, and I’m already bursting with my own.
It’s crazy how thisfeelsright.
“Why don’t I take you ladies out to dinner tonight to celebrate?”
I’m about to say that sounds great, but much to my surprise, Parker chimes in with, “Shouldn’t we include Landon in the big… official family celebration?”
“If he wants to come, of course,” Hayden says. “I think I’ll probably go home and share the good news with him myself, and then I’ll pick you girls up after.”
“Or we could meet you there,” I suggest. “We haven’tseenyour house. I don’t even know your address, and we’re supposed to be moving in.”
“That’s true,” he acknowledges. “Yeah, that’s fine. You can meet me there, and after dinner, I’ll take you in and show you around.”
___
For my engagement dinner, I pick a cream-colored dress out of my closet.The knee-length gown with spaghetti straps is modest and simple, and perfect for a family dinner.
Family dinner.
With Landon Atwater.
It’ll take some getting used to, that’s for sure.
I assume Hayden wanted to tell him alone because he knows Landon won’t consider our engagement such great news.
I try not to let it bother me, though. If I’m going to be his stepmother, I will have to try to bond with him, but the only way that will happen is if he starts being nicer to my daughter.
I know it will probably take some time. I try to tamp down my protective instincts and be patient.
I meet Parker in the hall. Her long hair is down, and she’s wearing an airy red summer dress with a matching pair of red strappy sandals.
“Ooh, you look pretty,” I tell her.
“Stop,” she says lightly, looking me over. “You look gorgeous. Hayden is a lucky man.”
We head downstairs to my car, and I put in the address to Hayden’s house. “I think what’s crazier than being engaged right now is that I agreed to move into a house I’ve never seen,” I tell her as we drive down to the edge of the road.
I don’t even notice this time when we drive by the Hartley house.
Not that Brent is in it. He and Lisa had a big, loud argument in the driveway earlier. Something about how he could have fun with his hooker, so presumably she caught him cheating.
Hayden didn’t offer any details, but he seemed at least a little bit responsible.
I’d feel worse about it, but Brent is gross. Whatever he may have done to instigate things, it’s not Hayden’s fault if Brent can’t keep his dick in his pants.
We have to drive all the way to the beach to get to Hayden’s house. I don’t know the neighborhood at all, but I go where my phone tells me.
Even though I knew Hayden had money—and a lot of it—when the GPS tells me I’ve arrived at my destination, I can’t quite believe it.
The sprawling hillside mansion in front of me is somehow not what I expected.
“Whoa,” Parker says, echoing my thoughts as I roll tentatively into the driveway. “This is where we’re going to live?”
It’s white and black, three levels that I can see. The bottom level has windows of onyx glass like I might picture in a super villain’s lair. The main level has a balcony that wraps around the sides and the back of the house. The top level sits proudly against the backdrop of a darkening sky, and while the purples and swirls of pink are beautiful, somehow the sight strikes an ominous chord.
It doesn’t look homey, that’s for sure.
Then again, home isn’t a building with four walls and a ceiling. A house is what a family makes it, no matter how cold and imposing the structure.