Bit by the Bug (Matthews Sisters 1) (23 page)

‘Katarina? Butterfly?’

‘I want to meet your parents.’ Kat knew what she had to do.

‘My parents?’ He laughed in surprise.

‘Yes. I want to meet your family. You said you told them about me, well I’d like to meet them.’

‘All right.’ he nodded. ‘We’ll go this weekend if you like. I’ll call my mother right now. She’s always trying to get me over for Sunday dinner. But, I’m warning you, they’re eccentric.’

Kat nodded. That was putting it mildly. She knew she should tell him the truth right now, that he’d given her the perfect opportunity to confess all, but she couldn’t
form the words. She was too scared of his leaving her. No, she had to tell Mr and Mrs Richmond no first and then she could confess. Until then, she wouldn’t have any deeds to back her sentiments. She’d sound more sincere if she could tell him she’d already told his parents she didn’t want their offer – not like this.

When he smiled at her, he seemed happy. His eyes gleamed with an inner light, so sexy and playful. ‘What about your parents? Can I meet them as well?’

‘Why don’t we take it one set of parents at a time? Let’s see how this weekend goes first. If we survive your parents, I’ll introduce you to mine.’

‘OK,’ he agreed.

‘Though, I’m warning you. They’re a little eccentric as well. My father has an odd love for Walt Whitman and my mother is . . . Well, she’s a flake. There really is no other way of putting it.’

‘My father has an odd love for Italian silk and my mother is more than an ordinary flake, she’s a debutant flake.’

Kat chuckled. Vincent had described the couple perfectly. ‘Besides, mine are moving to a small apartment here in Manhattan this weekend and it would work better for them if we waited a week or two. Otherwise, we’ll get enlisted for moving detail.’

‘I don’t mind helping.’

‘No, trust me. Besides, I promised I would go over there tomorrow. I’d invite you, but they want a family thing. With Ella finally out of high school and joining the Navy, they said they wanted to be closer to the rest of us.’ She gave a small laugh. ‘The irony is we all moved to Manhattan to get some space.’

‘That’s nothing. I don’t know where my parents are half the time. They have three houses and an apartment here in the city. Sometimes, if I need to get a hold of them, I have to call all three houses, my father’s work and a hotel in Italy.’

‘Oh yeah, poor you.’ Kat laughed. Then, thinking of what he did have to deal with, she instantly wished she could take the teasing back.

Leaning over he pressed a soft kiss to her mouth and moaned softly. He looked into her eyes, as if he wanted to say something more. Her breath caught and she waited, her heart pounding in excitement and nervousness. Whatever it was, he didn’t say it. Finally, he pulled back. ‘I’ll call them right now.’

Kat managed a smile and watched him walk away. Then, leaning over, she picked up her discarded panties and pulled them back on before smoothing down her skirt. Her hand strayed on to her stomach, but she couldn’t think about their small mistake in not using a condom. It was stupid of both of them, they knew better. Now she’d spend every day until her next period worried about what could be.

‘Not right now, though,’ she whispered, dropping her hand from her flat stomach. ‘I have enough things to worry about.’

Just two more days and she’d finally have a free conscience. Now the decision to give up Faux Pas was made, she felt hope in their future together. There was a little sadness at the thought of lost chances, but she knew she was doing the right thing. She’d just have to work harder for her dream. If anything, Kat wasn’t scared of hard work.

Standing in the hall, she didn’t move to follow Vincent. She didn’t want to hear his conversation with his parents. And, as she waited for him to come back and tell her Sunday would work, she held onto the small hope everything might still work out with Faux Pas after all.

Vincent looked at the office door, knowing Kat was just down the hall. He was sorry for losing his temper about Jack, but he couldn’t help it. When he saw that man
down on one knee and heard the tone in his voice, he’d just exploded. The thought of Kat being with any other man tore his insides.

But now hope replaced the anger. She wanted to meet his parents. It had to be a good sign, right? Only women who were serious with a man wanted to meet his family.

‘Richmond residence,’ Walter, his parents’ butler, answered.

‘Hi, Walt, it’s the younger Vincent. Is my father available?’ Vincent sat on the edge of his desk.

‘I’m sorry, sir, but Mr Richmond is at the office,’ Walter said, his tone flat. It reminded him of being a child, growing up around the servants.

‘Of course he is,’ Vincent said, knowing his father to be a workaholic. He also knew he had to have inherited the trait from someone. ‘What about my mother?’

‘One moment please, sir,’ Walter said.

Vincent heard a clink and knew the butler had put the phone down on a pewter tray his parents kept for just such a purpose. He could envision the old butler, in his black suit, walking with slow dignity across the house to where his mother was, which was probably out having cocktails on the terrace.

‘Thank you, Walter.’ He heard his mother’s voice before she answered, ‘Hello.’

‘Mother,’ Vincent said.

‘Vinnie, honey, I was just about to call you,’ she said.

‘I hate it when you call me Vinnie,’ he said.

‘I hate it when you call me mother,’ she answered. There was a tinkling in the background mixed with the sound of wind blowing against the phone’s mouthpiece. He’d guessed right. She was drinking outside. ‘You know you only do it to annoy me.’

He didn’t feel like discussing his childhood with her. It always ended up in irritation on both sides.

‘I thought I’d stop by for Sunday dinner if you don’t have any plans. There’s a woman I’d like you to meet.’
He waited as silence filled the line. ‘Mom? Is that all right? Or do you have plans?’

‘Did you just tell me you are bringing a woman home to meet us?’ Mimi exclaimed.

‘Yes, Mother,’ he said, only to correct himself, ‘Mom. Yes, Mom.’

‘Who is she? Is she special?’

‘Yes, I think she’s special.’ He glanced at the door, remembering the feel of Kat in his arms. He never thought of himself as a wholly passionate being, but when he was with her, he felt alive and his libido kicked up several hundred notches. He felt like an eighteen year old, always thinking about sex with Kat, wanting her, masturbating to her, needing her.

‘Well then, by all means, come to dinner on Sunday,’ Mimi said. ‘Are there any special requests, or should I just have the cook make whatever she feels like?’

‘I trust your judgment,’ he said diplomatically.

She snorted. ‘If that were true, you’d be married to Lily La Rue and I’d have a grandchild by now. You know, she’s still single. Want me to call and invite her?’

‘I’m bringing a date, mom, you did get that right?’

‘Fine, fine, but Lily –’

‘I have to go, but I’ll see you Sunday.’

‘Oh, bye-bye darling,’ Mimi said. ‘We’ll see you Sunday.’

Vincent hung up the phone with a sigh. He hoped his parents didn’t put Kat off. But, she didn’t seem the type to judge a man by his mother.

‘I hate photographers. Reporters are bad enough, but I really hate photographers and their stupid migraine-inducing flashes,’ Megan announced, joining her sisters on the small balcony patio of their parents’ new home located on Ninety-Sixth Street and Columbus. There wasn’t much of a view, just some old brick buildings. They couldn’t even see the street, but at least it was outside.

‘Hey, now! Easy.’ Kat wrinkled her nose at her older sister.

‘Not you, Kat, news photographers,’ Megan corrected.

Kat was glad her sisters were around. They’d always done a good job of taking her mind off things and she really needed to stop thinking of the awkward ‘first meeting’ with Vincent’s parents. She tried to imagine what it would be like to have him with her, meeting her family. Thinking of it only made her more nervous. What if her family liked him, but then Mimi blew her cover and ruined her chances with him? Then she’d spend the rest of her life hearing about ‘That nice boy, Vincent, Kat used to date’.

The location of her parents’ new home was a little too close to Kat’s for her comfort, but what could she do besides change the locks on her door and pretend to never be home when her mother stopped in for unannounced visits? Kat loved her mother, but she liked having distance from her as well. They were just two different kinds of people.

However, the house was pretty on the inside – much
nicer than Kat’s run-down place, but not nearly as extravagant as Vincent’s home on the Upper East. The classic pre-war building was of art deco influence. It had an elevator in it, which was nice since her father was 53 and had a hard time climbing too many steps. There was a sunken living room, separate dining area and a newly renovated kitchen and bathroom. The girls were sure their mother would do her best to un-renovate them into her wacky personal style. It was almost too bad to think that all the wonderful mouldings would end up covered in tacky little knick-knacks and embarrassing family photos.

‘I would’ve been here earlier,’ Megan continued, drawing Kat from her nervous thoughts, ‘but they hounded me the second I walked out of the precinct.’

‘At least you look cute,’ Zoe said, nodding at Megan’s outfit. For once their sister wasn’t dressed like a detective on the case. Her low-rise blue jeans and tucked-in white T-shirt were a huge change from the drab black.

‘Well, all except for that stain on your boob.’ Kat laughed, her eye for detail instantly picking it up. ‘I bet the tabloids blow that up really big, super cop.’

Megan frowned, brushing at a brown trail of dried liquid. ‘I know, I spilled my coffee in the car – again. And don’t call me super cop or I’ll have you arrested. It is bad enough I have to read it in the papers. All I want to do is go to work and do my job.’

The sisters laughed, all except Megan who tried to maintain her frown of disapproval.

‘You know, it’s funny,’ Kat said. She pointed at Megan in her blue jeans and Zoe, who wore a pair of dark pink track pants and grey T-shirt instead of her usual chef ensemble, ‘Here you two are out of uniform for once and –’ Kat swung her finger over to Ella in tight camouflage shorts and a grey T-shirt that read navy, ‘– she’s in uniform.’

‘This isn’t my uniform,’ Ella said.

‘Close enough,’ Sasha teased. Both Kat and Sasha had on dark cropped pants that reached down to the calf and tank tops. They hadn’t planned to match, it just happened, though Sasha wore navy and pink and Kat had on black and light blue.

‘It would be if you were an exotic dancer,’ Kat said. The teasing was doing wonders to take her mind off Vincent. So long as the conversation didn’t turn to her love life, she’d be fine. ‘Where did you find camo hot pants anyway, sis? Are those regulation? What exactly are your plans in the military?’

‘Shut up,’ Ella grumbled, pouting her lower lip as she tried to hide her smile.

‘Ah, look everyone,’ said Sasha, ‘little Ella’s all grown up now. Soon she’ll be drinking beer and struggling in the job market like the rest of us.’

‘I already drink beer,’ Ella said, making a face. ‘And you’re one to talk. Struggling in the job market? What major are you on now? Your fiftieth?’

‘Shut up,’ Sasha said, wrinkling her nose.

‘Ooo, Megan, did you hear that? Your baby sister is abreakin’ the law! Drinking beer before her twenty-first birthday.’ Kat ran behind Ella and put her chin on her shoulder as she peeked at Megan. ‘Quick, you’d better arrest her.’

‘If you’re taking her, you’ll have to take me too,’ Zoe said, stepping between Ella and Megan like a mock sacrificial lamb. ‘I jaywalked this morning.’

‘I, ah, littered,’ Sasha said, stepping in front of Zoe.

‘And I’m an evil photographer,’ Kat laughed not moving from behind Ella, ‘who smokes “the pot”.’

‘You guys suck,’ Megan said, rolling her eyes.

‘Come on, Megs, time to fess up. You ever break the law?’ Sasha asked.

‘Nope, never,’ Megan said. ‘To do so would make me a hypocrite.’

‘Are you kidding?’ Zoe asked. ‘She’s never even broken
a rule. If curfew was ten o’clock she was in by nine forty-five.’

‘Better than Kat,’ Megan said. ‘If curfew was ten o’clock, she came in at three in the morning . . . a week later.’

‘Yeah? Well I think you got into policing for the accessories,’ Kat teased.

‘Yeah, Megan, especially the handcuffs,’ said Ella.

‘Yeah, Megs, do a lot of cops like using unnecessary force in the bedroom?’ Zoe smiled sweetly.

‘I don’t date cops,’ Megan said.

‘Too hard to decide who’s in charge?’ Sasha asked. The sisters laughed. ‘Can’t decide who should be doing the frisking?’

‘I am not discussing my love life with you guys,’ Megan said.

‘That’s because you have to experience a love life to discuss one.’ Sasha stretched her arms over her head. ‘If you happen to find one though, can you see if he has a brother? I need a love life, too.’

‘None of us have one, well, except for Katarina.’ Zoe winked. ‘She and science boy like to play doctor.’

‘Sleepin’ with the boss.’ Sasha clicked her tongue. ‘Very naughty of you, Kat.’

‘You slept with a professor,’ Ella said. ‘What grade was it he gave you, again?’

‘Ah! You promised not to tell,’ Sasha gasped, laughing as she hit at the youngest sister. ‘And I earned that A.’

‘I’m sure you did,’ Ella said wryly.

‘Um, you told all of us about it,’ Kat said. She loved being with her sisters. There was something freeing about being around people who knew all your dirty secrets and loved you anyway. When she set things straight with Vincent and gave their relationship a clean start could he be such a person to her? The banter had taken her mind off him, but he was never too far from her thoughts. She again thought of what she had to do
the next day when she met his parents. Kat forced a smile, not wanting to draw attention to herself. If her sisters even sensed she was nervous, they’d pounce until they’d pried all the details out of her. She wasn’t ready for details.