32. Daniel

32

DANIEL

E mily was nervous, I could see it in her eyes the moment her parents walked through my front door. They’d been nothing but callous to her since they’d arrived, and the fact that her sister hadn’t even responded to the invitation had crushed her. I sat next to her as dinner progressed, my staff serving us the delicious menu the cook had prepared for us.

Emily’s mother sat next to her, her father on her mother’s left. My father sat to my right, my mother to his right, and Nick and Ginny joined us too, seated across from Grace and Michael. Benjamin had declined the invitation, having already made plans for the evening. Everyone who was important to us was here except Evelyn, though I understood maybe she was a bit embarrassed to see me again, given the stunt she'd pulled.

“So, you're an entrepreneur?” My dad asked Emily’s father. “And you’ve been building your business for more than a decade and only just started turning a decent profit?”

I clenched my jaw at my father’s obvious attempt to incite a reaction out of Emily’s father. I was thankful the man was an even-tempered person. He shrugged and had a bite of his steak, chewing carefully before responding.

“Starting from scratch is quite difficult without investors to help you get off the ground, but we managed.” Mrs. Kline smiled politely at my mother who had a dirty look on her face. She hadn’t said a single nice thing today, and I hoped for Emily’s sake that she would hold her tongue. I knew my mother could be very verbal when she disagreed with something.

“Dad, I think it’s honorable that Mr. Kline worked so hard to get where he is today. Not everyone is born with a silver spoon in their mouth.” I nodded at Tom, and though he looked apprehensive, he nodded back. I wanted him to understand I didn’t think of myself or my family as better than him, despite the ostentatious display my parents put on. They’d overdressed for the occasion, making the casual clothes Emily’s parents were wearing look like rags.

Nick chimed in, speaking with his mouth full. “Yeah, I built my company from the ground up, though I did have investors during the process. What you did takes guts.” It was pleasant hearing Nick back me up.

Dad’s eyebrows rose and he shrugged one shoulder. “To each his own.” He looked thoughtful and then continued. “Have you ever been to Sanibel Island? I heard it’s beautiful this time of year. And after a big storm, you can find conch shells just littering the beach.” He narrowed his eyes at Tom, and I could have kicked him. The people my father associated with prided themselves in one-upping each other in everything—homes, cars, vacations.

“Dad, I hardly think this is the time to?—”

“No, it’s okay, Dan.” Emily interrupted me and smiled at her father. “We actually like to camp. We don’t do fancy condo vacations, so we spend a lot of our time in the great outdoors. There is a national forest just south of where we live, and the hiking is amazing there.”

“Of all the…” Mom scoffed. “How do you sleep outdoors? The bugs have to be dreadful. And aren’t there creatures out there? Snakes, wolves, that sort of thing.” Her face screwed up into a disgusted grimace, exactly as I knew it would. My parents had no clue what roughing it meant, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they thought Emily’s family was a pack of hobos just because they enjoyed tent camping.

“Oh, you get used to being a little dirty. Being in touch with Mother Nature is refreshing. Disconnecting from technology and society every now and then is very beneficial to your health.” Nancy smiled, and Ginny chimed in.

“Oh, I love camping. I used to do it as a kid, but Nick here hates bugs.” She chuckled. I could tell she was trying to bridge the gap, and before the situation got any more tense, I decided to start the real conversation. Mom and Dad had tried to separate me from Emily from the instant they knew I was interested in her, and telling them we were expecting would upset them.

I cleared my throat and wiped my mouth, dropping my napkin to the table in front of me. With a nod of reassurance from Emily, I stood and everyone looked in my direction. “I just wanted to say thank you all so much for joining us today for dinner. I know that from the beginning, all of you have had your reservations about this relationship.” I eyed Michael, who still had a scowl on his face.

“Well, dear, I—” Mom started, but I cut her off.

“Let me finish.” I pursed my lips, discouraging her interruption, then I continued. “As I was saying, we are grateful that you are in our lives. I hoped that this dinner would help us all get to know each other better. So let me start by addressing Mr. and Mrs. Kline. Tom and Nancy, I love your daughter very much.” I reached out to Emily, hoping she’d join me, and she did. She stood next to me and wrapped her arm around my waist, leaning in as I held her to my side.

“We have something very special to tell you all, and I hope you are as thrilled about this as I am. Mr. and Mrs. Kline, you already know this, and I can’t fault Em for telling her mother first.” I smiled at Nancy and watched her expression sour. She frowned and glanced at my mother. I continued regardless of her reaction. “Emily is expecting. We are going to have not one, but two babies.”

Bracing myself for the responses, I looked around at the angsty faces. Michael’s face remained in a deep scowl, but Grace offered a soft smile and a, “Congratulations, Dan. I’m really happy for you.”

“Ooh! More babies!” Ginny squealed. She got out of her seat and walked around the table to hug Emily, and I watched as Mom and Dad’s angry expressions faded as they watched their daughter-in-law accept the woman they had tried for so long to keep me away from.

“Twins?” Nancy said, standing. “Emily? You didn’t say twins.” Nancy hugged her daughter, and I gave them a minute as my parents and brother sat stoic, not reacting at all. Tom patted Nancy’s back and his head dropped. I wasn’t sure if he was upset or just taking it all in. Emily and Ginny discussed being pregnant for a moment, and I stood back, waiting. When Emily took her seat and everyone was quiet again, I decided now was the time to make my move.

“Emily,” I said, turning to her. She looked up at me, confused. “I know you weren’t expecting this, but I couldn’t think of a better time to do this right here, with the people we love most surrounding us.” I dropped to one knee and pulled out the ring I had stashed in my pocket earlier today. She covered her mouth, tears instantly welling up in her eyes.

“When I met you, I thought you were quite possibly the most beautiful woman I’d ever met. I had no idea how smart and funny and caring you were too. I fell in love with your sass and attitude. And I want nothing more than to ensure that every day for the rest of your life, every single one of your dreams comes true. Will you be my wife?”

I held out the ring, and she sobbed, laughing and nodding her head. She wrapped her arms around me and squeezed me in a tight hug. I didn’t care that my mother rolled her eyes or that my father gave a scowl. Emily was the only thing in the world that mattered to me at that moment. And when I stood up and Nick was there to shake my hand, I knew everything would be okay.

“Congratulations, Danny. I think Emily is going to fit in just fine.” He squeezed my hand hard then threw an arm around me and patted me on the back before facing Emily. “I want to apologize to both of you for the way I’ve acted before today. I just watch out for my brother, that’s all. I think that you two will be very happy together.”

“Thanks, Nick. I appreciate that. I think we’ll do just fine,” I told him as he walked back to his seat. As he sat, Emily and I took our seats too, but there was little reaction from the rest of the table. Emily didn’t seem to care. She was starry-eyed and smiling, so I started a discussion about wedding dates and baby names that was mostly carried on by Grace, Ginny, and Emily. My parents and Tom and Nancy remained silent until Grace excused herself, offering a hug before she left. Everyone took that as their cue to finish the meal and leave.

While Mom used the toilet and Dad waited on her, Emily and I escorted her parents to the door. Nancy was the first to speak, addressing Emily directly. It was tense for me, so I could only imagine how Emily felt as we hovered in the doorway.

“Emily, I’ve always known you were such a strong woman. You are going to be an excellent mother." She hugged Emily, then offered her arms to me too. “Dan, thank you for loving our little girl. I’m sorry that we didn’t fully trust Emily’s choice, and I apologize for any hurt feelings.” When she let me go and stood back, she said, “We just wanted what was best for Emily, and I can see now that she is very happy with you.”

Tom still had a glower on his face, but he shook my hand. All he said was, “If you hurt my daughter, I own three shotguns and a membership to the ammunition store.” I suspected that was his small-town way of telling me he was watching how I treated Emily, and I chuckled, but he didn’t laugh.

“Sir, you have nothing to worry about. Emily is my queen. I will worship the ground she walks on every day for the rest of my life.” I held her to my side, and she blew her father a kiss as he walked away. When they were out of earshot, I asked Emily, “Was he joking?”

She snickered and nodded. “Dads are protective, Dan. It’s just his way of saying he approves and he wants you to be careful with me.” Her hand splayed across my chest, and we noticed movement behind us. Michael approached with a calm expression for the first time today. The way he stood told me he felt defeated, as if I’d finally won this battle and he was waving his white flag.

“Mike…” I reached out my hand to one of my oldest friends, and he took it.

“I have to admit, Dan, I really thought this was a bad idea.” He turned to Emily and said, “No hard feelings?” He thrust out his hand to her, and she shook it.

“None at all. I apologize for the rude way my sister meddled in all of this.” She tucked into my side as Michael continued.

“You can, obviously, have your job back. How can I tell Dan his fiancée can’t be his personal assistant? You two clearly love each other very much. I’m truly sorry for getting in the way of that. I hope you are very happy together.” He stepped out the door, and Emily smirked at me.

I was confused about the smirk until she said, “Thanks, Mike. And by the way, I’m not giving back the severance bonus.”

Michael chuckled and called over his shoulder, “I’ll make sure the CEO knows he has to cook the books.”

We both laughed as he walked away, and Nick and Ginny joined us near the door. I fully believed that without Nick coming to his senses and apologizing in front of everyone, my parents would have caused a scene. And the way Ginny handled herself was perfect. I owed them both.

“Guys, thank you so much for coming. I really appreciate the way you stood up for us.” I hugged each of them, and so did Emily.

“I can’t wait to swap baby stories with you, Ginny,” Emily said as she squeezed Ginny. I could tell they would get along great, and our kids would be best friends as cousins growing up together.

“It’s so great to meet you, Emily. Dan told me about you, and I just knew you would be perfect for him. I’m so happy you are getting married.” Ginny grabbed Nick’s hand and pulled him out the door.

“Brunch next week? Then golf?” Nick called as she dragged him away.

“Wouldn’t miss it!”

Nick and Ginny were driving away before Dad and Mom joined us on the front stoop. I hoped they would be civil, but they pleasantly surprised me by being compassionate. The opposite of how I thought they’d respond.

“Daniel, Emily, we both want you to know we fully support your marriage and these sweet babies.” Mom spoke softly, eating every word she’d said for the past few months. “I had my reservations and I was wrong, and it takes a big person to admit when they’re wrong. So I’m sorry that I didn’t admit this sooner.” Even in her apology, she had to make herself look better than everyone else, but I accepted it.

“Thanks, Mom.”

“Son, all I can say is I’m proud of you for standing by your guns. You’ll be an excellent father.” Dad nodded at Emily and said, “Welcome to the family, Ms. Kline. I’m sure we’ll be seeing a lot of you now. I hope Daniel remembers everything I’ve taught him.”

“Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs. It was so nice to meet you.” Emily sighed happily, and Mom and Dad excused themselves without much else to say.

We stood there on the stoop for a few more minutes, and I could tell something was still bothering Emily. I jostled her a bit and guided her into the house. She walked slowly, dragging her feet, and I asked, “What’s wrong, babe?”

“I wish Evelyn had come to dinner. I think she’s still really upset with me.” She plopped onto the couch in my den, and I sat next to her.

“Don’t worry, Em. She will come around. We’ll make sure of it, okay?” I kissed her, and she leaned on my chest. I couldn’t wait to move on with our lives now. The past few months had been a rollercoaster, but I was ready for some normalcy, and I knew Emily was too. Life with her was just starting, and I couldn’t wait for every last second of it.