Breathless (4 page)

“It must be.
He’s taking her to meet his family today.”

“Wow.” Den
whistled under his breath. “He hasn’t taken a girl home in… Hell, I
can’t even remember the last time he took a girl home.”

“Yeah, me
neither.” Jasmine wiped butter from her fingers with a paper napkin
and tossed it on the end table. She was usually meticulous about
keeping her condo spotless, but she would clean up later. The news
that Brent was marrying Ava had hit her hard, but not as hard as
the news that Eli was moving on… and leaving her behind.

“How do you
feel about that, sis?”

“I don’t know.”
She pulled her legs up and rested her chin on her knees. She’d
barely had the energy last night to pull on an old T-shirt and pair
of sweat pants before she fell into bed, but she was grateful she’d
gone to the effort. She felt a chill move through her body, all the
way through to the tips of her toes.

“He’s been a
part of your life for a long time. It’s only natural you’d feel a
little weird about him moving on.”

Moments like
that, Jasmine was grateful she had a twin. Den just understood her
in a way no one else did, not even Eli or Nellie. She used to think
Eli knew her even better than Den, but if that was true, he would
have known she was treading into dangerous territory with him last
night as she questioned everything she’d once believed about their
friendship.

If he was just
a friend, the thought of him with someone else wouldn’t reduce her
to tears. Drunk or not, those tears had been real, and the morning
after, she still felt like crying. In a few short months, she could
be grieving his engagement to a woman smart enough to appreciate a
great guy when she had him. Unlike Jasmine.

“What’s wrong
with me?” she asked, hiding her face in her arms. “Why do I feel
this way? I love Eli. He’s one of my best friends. I should want
him to be happy; he deserves to be happy.”

“The way you’re
feeling is perfectly normal,” Den said, sliding over to put his arm
around her. “You’ll get used to the idea of Eli having a
girlfriend. Just give it a little time.” He rested his cheek
against her head when she leaned on his shoulder. “Sure, your
relationship may change a little, but just ‘cause he has a
girlfriend doesn’t mean y’all can’t be friends.”

“What if I
don’t want our relationship to change?” That wasn’t true, she did
want their relationship to change, but it didn’t seem fair to tell
Eli that when he was on the verge of finding his happy ending with
someone else. She’d had her chance and she blew it.

“It will,
honey. That’s inevitable. Everything changes eventually.”

Jasmine closed
her eyes, wishing she could go back to bed and pull the covers over
her head.

“The folks
expect you out at the house tonight for dinner. Don’t even think
about making an excuse. You missed last week.” He glanced at his
watch. “Mama said she’d be expecting you at church this morning
too.”

Jasmine groaned
and leaned forward, covering her face with her hands. She’d been
avoiding her parents for weeks. They were always trying to fix her
up with one of the
nice boys
from church or the son of one
of their friends. She was convinced they were doing their level
best to fix her up with every dull guy they knew so she’d finally
see Eli for the catch he was. They’d gotten their wish… a day too
late. “Do I have to?”

Den laughed and
patted her back. “I went last week. It’s your turn.”

“You suck!”
Jasmine punched him in the thigh with as much strength as she could
muster.

“Grab a bottle
of water, a pain reliever, and hit the shower, girl,” he said,
getting to his feet with a wide grin. “Don’t forget your big girl
panties.”

Jasmine tossed
a pillow at him as he headed for the door. “Get out of here before
I can lay my hands on something heavier.”

He winked at
her. “You be nice now. Mama’s never gonna be able to find you a
husband if you keep up that attitude.”

She reached for
a vase and he leapt for the door. Jasmine couldn’t hide her smile
when she heard him laughing on the other side. Her brother was
always good for a laugh, even when it was at her expense.

Eli was nervous about
introducing Belinda to his family. They would make her feel
welcome, that’s just the kind of people they were, but the only
other girl he’d ever brought home was Jamie. He’d naively believed
there’d never be another. Even while she lived in Los Angeles and
he played hockey in New Jersey, he’d believed they would eventually
find their way back to each other. When they returned home no
closer to crossing the
friend
line, he started to give up on
that dream.

Belinda smelled
the bouquet she’d brought. “I hope your mom will like these.”

Eli turned the
music down when he realized he’d been lost in his thoughts. “I’m
sure she’ll love them. My mama loves all kinds of flowers.” Belinda
had pushed for the meeting, but he wasn’t sure it was a good idea.
Maybe it was too soon. He still didn’t know where their
relationship was going. They hadn’t talked about being exclusive.
Perhaps they should have had that conversation before he dragged
his family into it.

“I almost
forgot them. My ex called as I was on my way out the door, and we
kind of got into it.”

“I didn’t know
you still talked to him.” All Eli knew about Belinda’s marriage was
she had met him in college, he was a firefighter, and apparently
their marriage fell apart when she decided to quit her job as a
legal assistant so she could go to law school.

“He still calls
sometimes.”

“Y’all still
friends, or is it more than that?”

He drove up the
winding drive to his parents’ ranch house. The house had been his
paternal grandparents’ house, and they had been so grateful when
his parents promised to keep it in the family for as long as they
could. Eli couldn’t imagine still living on a ranch with his
parents, but his older sister and brother-in-law seemed content
there, which took the pressure off him.

“We’re just
friends,” she said, reaching for the door handle as soon as the
vehicle stopped.

Eli couldn’t
help but notice she seemed anxious to get away. Perhaps she didn’t
want to answer any more questions about her ex-husband. He pointed
to an old tire swing he and his sister used to play on as kids.
“There’s my niece and nephew.”

“Aww, they’re
so cute,” Belinda said, tucking a strand of her long brown hair
behind her ear. “I wish I’d thought to bring them something. But to
tell you the truth, I don’t even know what kids their age like.” A
blush crept up her neck.

Caroline was
seven and her brother, Jackson, was nine. As soon as they spotted
Eli, they barreled toward him with Caroline in the lead. Jackson
liked to pretend he was too cool to get excited, but Eli noticed
his eyes light up when Eli asked for a fist bump.

According to
Jackson’s mom, Uncle Eli was his hero. Jackson’s friends thought it
was so cool his uncle played professional hockey, and since they
were gearing up for another season of their favorite winter sport,
Jackson had serious bragging rights on the playground.

“Hey,” Caroline
said, wrapping her arm around her uncle’s waist, “where’s Jamie?
You always bring Jamie to Sunday dinner!”

Her brother
elbowed her in the ribs and said out the side of his mouth, “Sssh,
you’re gonna get in trouble for bein’ rude, dummy.”

Eli tried to
keep a straight face, but he couldn’t. Their interactions always
reminded Eli of him and his sister at their age. Eli stroked
Caroline’s hair when she turned into his side. “It’s okay. This is
my friend Belinda.”

“Hi,” Jackson
said, accepting Belinda’s outstretched hand.

He didn’t make
eye contact with Belinda for long, but Eli appreciated his effort.
Eli set his hand in the middle of Caroline’s back. “Aren’t you
gonna shake Belinda’s hand, honey?” Eli asked.

“I don’t want
to. I want Jamie!”

Caroline
usually shuffled Jamie up to her playroom as soon as they arrived.
Caroline loved to show off the new additions to her ever-growing
toy collection. Jamie had a way with kids that Eli envied. He was
close with his niece and nephew, but he didn’t have Jamie’s touch
with little people. Apparently Belinda didn’t either. According to
Ava, Belinda wanted to have a family, but he couldn’t imagine her
as a mother. She was all business. He hated to characterize her as
cold, but her awkward interactions with the kids made it feel that
way.

“Why don’t we
head inside so you can meet the rest of the family?” Eli said.

Belinda glanced
back at his SUV. She was probably plotting her escape already.
“Sure, sounds good.” Belinda followed the kids into the house.

Eli set his
hand on the small of her back. “The adults are much easier to get
along with.” Just because her first meeting with the kids hadn’t
gone well didn’t mean the rest of the day would be a disaster.

“I’m sure it’ll
be fine,” Belinda said, offering him a tight smile.

Eli knew she
was questioning why she’d pushed so hard to meet his family. He
couldn’t blame her. He would feel the same way in her position.
Everyone loved Jamie, and although none of the adults would dare
mention her name, she would be in every awkward silence as his
family looked for ways to relate to the new lady in his life.

His people were
blue jeans and cowboy boots, cold beers and Sunday football.
Belinda was high heels and fancy cars, designer suits and manicured
fingernails. Why hadn’t he noticed the differences sooner? Had he
been blind or was he hoping she’d be able to slip seamlessly from
evening wear to worn jeans and cowboy boots and throw her hair up
in a ponytail… the way Jamie did. He knew comparing them was wrong,
but he couldn’t help himself. Jamie would always be the standard by
which he judged all other women.

When they got
inside, Eli shook hands with his brother-in-law, Adam. ““Hey,
y’all, I’d like you to meet a friend of mine, Belinda Masters.
Belinda, this is my brother-in-law, Adam, and my sister, Casey.” He
waited for them to greet her before he moved on to his parents.
“And this is my mama, Jill, and my dad, Glenn.”

“It’s so nice
to meet you,” Belinda said, smiling as she passed his mother the
flowers. “You have a lovely home, Mrs. Rea.”

“Thank you.”
Jill admired the flowers. “They’re lovely. But we don’t stand on
ceremony around here. It’s Jill and Glenn.”

“Okay.” Belinda
twisted the diamond ring on her right hand. “Can I help with
anything?”

“Everything’s
almost ready.” Jill lifted her head when Eli leaned in to kiss her
cheek. “Eli, I think your daddy wanted you to have a look at
something outside. Why don’t you guys head on out there? You have
time before dinner.”

“Is that your
not-so-subtle way of trying to get rid of me, Mama?” Eli asked.

“Casey and I
want to get to know your friend better without you hovering,” she
said, patting Belinda’s forearm. “Y’all go on ahead. We’ll call you
when we’re ready to eat.”

Eli felt guilty
leaving Belinda alone, but if their relationship was going to work,
she had to get along with his family. “We’ll be back in a bit,
okay?”

Belinda smiled.
“Sure, take your time.”

***

As soon as Eli
returned to wash up for dinner, he felt the tension. “Um, is there
a problem?”

“Belinda’s not
feeling all that well,” Jill said, sliding on an oven mitt. “You
could have told me she doesn’t eat meat, son.”

Casey rolled
her eyes. “Apparently even the sight of it makes her nauseous.” She
rubbed her mid-section. “She has a sensitive stomach.”

Eli pulled on
his sister’s ponytail hard enough to earn an elbow in his ribs. “Is
that any way to treat a friend of mine?”

“I hope that’s
all she is,” Casey muttered.

“That’ll be
enough, young lady,” Jill said, giving her the
look
.

Casey reached
for a piece of the prime rib. “I’m just sayin’ she rubbed me the
wrong way.”

“Why’s that?”
The tightening in his stomach told Eli he really didn’t want to
know.

“She had the
nerve to tell us she’d been trying to talk you into buying a new
Maserati. ‘Only a couple hundred grand,’ she said. If she likes it
so much, why the hell doesn’t she buy it?”

That was the
worst thing she could have said to Eli’s family. Material things
didn’t impress them. His parents constantly reminded him he
wouldn’t make millions of dollars a year playing hockey forever.
They thought he should invest wisely so he would have money when he
needed it, and he’d listened to their advice. He didn’t live a
lavish lifestyle, and he sure as hell didn’t feel the need to
impress a woman with an expensive car.

“Where is she?”
he asked.

“She’s out on
the porch,” Casey said, popping a piece of fresh bread into her
mouth. “She said she needed some air.”

Eli nodded and
headed to the front door. He saw Belinda leaning against the
railing and let the screen door bang shut behind him.

“Hi,” she
said.

“Hi. You
okay?”

She gripped the
wood banister and stared out over the freshly cut grass.
“Fine.”

“I’m sorry. I
should’ve told my mama you don’t eat meat.”

“It’s okay.”
She looked at him out of the corner of her eye. “They hate me,
don’t they?”

“No!” Eli hated
that she’d sensed that. His family was warm and loving to everyone.
He couldn’t imagine why they treated Belinda any differently. His
mama routinely brought home strangers from church or invited
temporary ranch hands to break bread with them. She always said
everyone was welcome at their table, so why didn’t that apply to
Belinda?