Chapter 13

13

N oah held Jessa’s hand as she stepped out of his truck at his parents’ house. They didn’t live too far from Noah’s place, but Jessa imagined most of the houses weren’t too far from town.

“Thank you for doing this,” Noah said, as they walked up to the front door.

“It’ll be fun.”

Or so she hoped.

She had never been someone to meet the parents of a person she dated. She hadn’t really ever had a serious relationship since she never stuck around long enough to find out if it would work. So this was a new step for her, despite already meeting them briefly. But it was as Megan had said. Maybe she’ll realize they aren’t right for each other and meeting his family might put that to the test.

He opened the front door and stepped inside, his hand still clasped in hers.

“They’re here!” Noah’s niece Emma yelled before she launched herself at Noah.

He dropped Jessa’s hand and immediately picked up the little girl, tossing her in the air before grabbing her ankles and dangling her above the ground as he walked toward the kitchen.

Jessa giggled as the little girl laughed hysterically, clearly loving the attention of her uncle. Noah threw her a wink just before the rest of the family came into view. A large farmhouse table was set up in the middle of a dining room with an enormous picture window that overlooked a large backyard and forest at the edge of the lawn.

“Hi, Jessa. It’s nice to see you again,” Karen said. “Noah, take her coat. Where are your manners?”

Noah set Emma down on her feet before stepping over to Jessa and helping her take her coat off. Then he disappeared back near the front door to hang both of their coats up on the rack.

Jessa tugged the sleeves of her dress into her hands before wrapping her arms around herself. “It’s nice to see you again, Mrs. Blake.”

“Oh please. Call me Karen. And you’ve met James and Jackson.”

Noah’s dad and brother waved at her from where they stood in the dining room.

Noah reappeared and set his hand at the small of Jessa’s back. He gestured toward another person sitting at the table.

“This is my brother Ethan.”

Ethan smiled brightly and waved. “How ya doing?”

Jessa couldn’t help smiling back. His smile was infectious, and she immediately knew she’d like him. “I’m well. Thank you.”

Noah then pointed at another man, who looked more serious as he moved around the kitchen. “This is my brother Miles. And his daughter Emma.”

“Hi!” Emma yelled and waved her hand excitedly.

Jessa giggled and waved back.

Miles smiled and nodded his head “hello” before turning back to the food he was prepping.

“Foods up,” Miles said.

“This isn’t your kitchen, man. You don’t need to be all technical,” Ethan said.

“Old habits.” Miles shrugged.

Jessa watched as the Blake men all carried dishes of food to the table while Karen got Emma situated. Jessa stepped forward to see if there were any dishes she could help with, but they had a routine, and soon the table was filled and they were all sitting down.

Noah smiled and pulled out a chair for her. Jessa stepped forward timidly and took a seat, thanking him as he pushed her chair in and sat down beside her. Jackson sat on her other side and gave her a friendly smile.

“So, Jessa, what kind of work do you do?” Karen asked.

All eyes swung to her, and she blushed as she pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. “Oh, I, uh… work in HR.”

“Do you enjoy it?”

“Yes. The company I work for is pretty flexible. They don’t require us to be in-office, so I work remotely from wherever I want.”

“That sounds amazing,” James said. Then he gave Jessa a wink before turning his gaze to Noah. “Noah, how are the slopes?”

“Good. Nothing new to report.”

“Hey, hey, hey. You know the rules. No work talk,” Karen said. “Now, Jessa?—”

Jackson interrupted. “Hey Emma, how’s school going?”

Emma laughed. “It’s good. I’m learning to read.”

“Whoa. That’s so cool!” Jackson said with an impressed look on his face.

Jessa smiled as she watched the interaction. Karen frowned.

“Jessa,” she started, but was then interrupted by Ethan.

“I think I should take a group snowshoeing. What do you think, Miles?”

“Uh, sure?” Miles said. Ethan blinked repeatedly at Miles before he sighed and set down his fork. “That sounds amazing, Ethan. Would you like me to prepare snacks?”

“That would be great. Thank you.”

“Hey! What’s with all of you and work talk? You know the rules,” Karen said.

Jessa pulled her lip between her teeth, trying not to smile. Noah squeezed her thigh beneath the table before eating the steak Miles had prepared. Jessa followed his lead.

Jackson snorted before digging into his own food. Even Miles cracked a smile.

“Now, as I was saying, Jessa?—”

“Grandma, they don’t want you to talk to Jessa,” Emma said. Then she looked at Ethan. “You’re supposed to ask me about my friends now, Uncle Ethan.”

The table fell silent, and Jessa looked around among the group of men. Ethan chortled, interrupting the silence and soon everyone, but Karen, was laughing. She flung her hands in the air and sat back in her seat, glaring at each of her sons before turning her glare to her husband.

James held his hands in the air while laughing. “Don’t look at me.”

“Come on, Mom. We didn’t want you to give her the third degree, so we were trying to help,” Jackson said before taking a bite of his steak and chewing slowly with a large grin on his face. “By the way, this is delicious, Miles.”

Miles smiled brightly and took a bite of his own steak. “Thank you.”

“Yes, it is, Daddy. Super yummy,” Emma said. She stabbed a piece of steak with her fork and slathered it in a pile of ketchup on her plate before chewing it noisily.

“Thank you, Peanut.”

“I don’t give people the third degree,” Karen said.

Jackson snorted. “We know you mean well, Mom. But for an outsider, it feels like an interrogation.”

While the group went back and forth ribbing their mom, both Noah and Jessa finished their meals. Noah rested his hand on her thigh again and heat spread through her. This was supposed to be a night they made some sexy memories, but now they were seated with his family.

But she didn’t mind it. She didn’t have a large family and had never experienced a dinner of this magnitude. The dynamic was interesting, to say the least.

Sadness at her childhood seized her. She loved her parents and enjoyed traveling with them, but now she wondered how much she had missed out on while growing up. She was never normal. Her best friends were her parents until she met Megan. She rarely got interaction with other children. Did it set her back?

Noah gave her thigh a squeeze, and she met his concerned eyes.

“You okay?” he whispered.

She did her best to muster a smile and nodded.

He tipped his head toward the front door. “Let’s get going.”

Noah stood up from the table, and she followed suit, picking up her plate and his. She made her way toward the kitchen, but Karen immediately stopped her.

“Honey, you don’t need to take the dishes to the kitchen. You’re our guest. Let me.”

“I don’t mind,” Jessa said.

Karen smiled. “I appreciate it, but I insist.”

Karen took the dishes from Jessa and carried them to the kitchen and quickly returned. Jessa turned toward Miles, where he still sat at the table.

“Thank you so much for dinner. It was fantastic. Best meal I’ve had in a while.”

He smiled softly and blushed. “You’re welcome.”

Noah bumped her shoulder with his. “You know, Miles is the chef at the resort. He made those nachos you love.”

Jessa’s eyes widened. “You made the nachos?”

Confusion crossed Miles’s face. “Um… yes?”

“Can you teach me how to make that masterpiece?”

Miles’s face screwed up. “You want me to teach you to make… nachos?”

Jessa nodded emphatically, and Noah chuckled beside her.

“You should have seen the way Jessa and Megan put down those nachos. It was impressive. Megan ordered them again when we were hanging out, and I swear she’s a bottomless pit,” Jackson said before scooping a bite of his baked potato into his mouth.

“Who’s Megan?” Karen asked.

Jackson’s eyes widened as if he had just committed a cardinal sin. “Um… she’s just Jessa’s friend.”

“Oh, that’s right. I met her in the lobby. Are you dating her?”

Noah clapped Jackson on the back before heading toward the door, tugging Jessa with him. “Well, fam, it’s been fun, but we need to get going. Thanks for dinner, Miles. Amazing as always. Pleasure seeing everyone.”

Jessa waved, following Noah. “It was great seeing everyone. Thank you for having me.”

“I hope to see you again soon,” Karen said. She walked to the door with them and waved goodbye, and Noah booked it to his truck with Jessa.

Before the front door had time to close, Karen’s voice carried outside. “Are you seeing Megan? Maybe we should invite her over for dinner. I’d love to meet her.”

The door clicked shut. Noah and Jessa burst out laughing.

“Poor Jackson,” Noah said.

“Think we should save him?” Jessa asked.

Noah went around to the passenger side of his truck with Jessa, but before he opened the door, he pressed her up against it and caged her in with his arms. Warmth immediately flooded through her body, and the cold air suddenly didn’t feel so cold.

“If we go back in there, we’ll be there for several more hours,” Noah said, his warm breath caressing her face.

She swallowed hard. “I see. So what are we going to do now instead?”

“Would you like to come back to my place?”

“Very much,” she said softly.

He dipped his head and lightly brushed a kiss over her lips. His hand settled on her waist and his fingers immediately trailed the panty line beneath the fabric of her dress.

“Is this what I think it is?” His voice came out low and quiet.

She swallowed hard. “Mm-hmm.”

He stepped back and cleared his throat. “Let’s get going before I throw you on the hood of my truck and do dirty things to you in front of my parents’ house.”