This is the seventeenth part in a series, so if you have not done so already, you might want to read Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, Part VIII, Part IX, Part X, Part XI, Part XII, Part XIII, Part XIV, Part XV, and Part XVI before continuing.
As Owen pulled into his parents’ driveway, I knew I had hit the jackpot. The house was a massive, three-story Victorian with huge windows through which we could see a giant flat-screen TV in the living room, and beyond it, a chandelier hanging over a dining room table with a painting hanging on the wall behind it.
“You grew up here?”
“Yeah,” he said casually. As if this was normal. Then he turned to me. “You’re not nervous, are you?”
“No,” I said, but there was a slight squeak in my voice that betrayed the lie.
He smiled and squeezed my hand. “They’re gonna love you. Trust me.”
The first one to greet us as we walked in the door was the dog, tail wagging as soon as she saw Owen. When she noticed me, she came right up and stuck her nose up my skirt. We both laughed as I gently pushed her away and gave her a pat on the head as Owen led the way back to the kitchen where his mom was making dinner.
She was a short, mousy-looking woman, about my height, with dark red hair that fell just past her shoulders. Owen made the introductions and we both said “hi” and smiled politely as we looked each other up and down. Honestly, I can’t say I was very impressed with what I saw. She wore a flower-print top that made her look frumpy. Below that were jeans with an elastic waist and gym shoes. She wasn’t even wearing any makeup!
She didn’t seem that impressed with me, either. I wondered if I had overdressed with my sundress, strappy sandals, and pearls. I’ve heard that trying to dress to impress can backfire if you overdo it, but I never believed that.
Owen asked if I wanted anything to drink, and I made small talk with his mom while he poured water for each of us. I don’t cook, but I still asked if there was anything I could do help just to be polite. Fortunately she declined and encouraged us to make ourselves comfortable in the living room while we waited for the rest of Owen’s family to arrive.
I kept taking more and more sips of my water as I reminded myself that this was all part of the plan. Everything was moving in the right direction.
Owen’s brother, Chad, was the next to arrive, followed shortly by their sister, Glenda, the oldest of the three.
Chad was pretty much what I expected, but Glenda took me completely by surprise. Her dark hair was cropped close to her head in a pixie cut and she was dressed in all black. Black, baggy T-shirt, black, baggy jeans, and black steel-toed boots. Like her mom, she also wore no makeup.
She spent a long minute saying hi to the dog. Owen just waited for her to notice us, so I followed his lead. Eventually she looked up and said hi to Owen, who introduced me.
“So, you’re the new girlfriend, huh?”
“I am,” I said with a smile. “And I think I’m going to be here for a while.” I didn’t say, So you’d better get used to it, out loud. I just thought it really hard.
Glenda rolled her eyes and headed to the kitchen.
Well, at least was over with.
To be continued…