“No, thank you, Henry. I’m good.”
He nodded. “Just flag me down if that changes.”
I leaned back in my chair, taking in the view. There was nothing like the Cedar Ridge mountains. It didn’t matter what amazing sights I saw in my travels; nothing compared to this. There was a calmness about the range, an unparalleled peace.
“Nice surprise, you being on time.”
And my father could ruin that serenity in a second.
I looked up at him, my mother and brother in tow. “Good to see you, too.”
A muscle in Gabe’s cheek ticked, and I knew he was annoyed that I’d made it to our little family gathering.
My mom maneuvered around my father and bent to kiss my cheek. “You’re looking handsome today.”
I was surprised she hadn’t remarked on the circles under my eyes. Ones there because I’d tossed and turned all night reliving that damned kiss with Grae. It would take time to burn her out of my system and memory, and having her play the dutiful girlfriend wouldn’t help. Yet, I wasn’t bailing on our bargain. There was too much at stake.
“Thanks, Mom. You look beautiful.” The truth was, she looked exhausted, but I couldn’t say that. I stood and pulled out the chair next to me.
She took it and patted my hand. “Such a gentleman.”
Gabe grumbled something under his breath that I couldn’t make out.
“I’m so sorry I’m late,” a high-pitched voice called.
I fought the urge to groan as Lena bounded up to our table.
Gabe’s fiancée beamed at us, but the smile was as fake as her tan. “My appointment at the spa ran late. Baby,” she cooed, kissing Gabe’s cheek. “I missed you.”
Gabe’s arm encircled her waist in a proprietary hold. “I keep telling you that you need to keep a better eye on the time.”
She pouted. “I know, but I wanted to make sure I was looking my best for our lunch.”
Dad chuckled as he took the seat next to Mom. “Can’t complain about that, Gabe.”
“I guess not.”
Lena hurried to take the chair next to me before Gabe could pull one out for her. She fluttered her eyelashes in my direction. “How are you settling in, Caden?”
“Fine.”
She laughed. “So verbose.”
Gabe took the last remaining seat. “You know my brother doesn’t have much of a vocabulary.”
Mom frowned at him. “That’s not very nice, Gabriel.”
Gabe waved her off. “Caden knows I’m kidding.”
My brother could slit my throat and still say he was kidding.
Thankfully, Henry approached at that moment to take all our orders. When he finished, Dad leaned back in his chair. “I just had a meeting with Erika about the gala.”
I bit the inside of my cheek. Dad would try to suck all the vitality out of an event that was supposed to be life-giving. He’d turn it into a stuffy affair that was just a bunch of rich people showing off their wealth with extravagant outfits and vehicles.
Mom beamed at him. “She always does such a lovely job.”
“She needs to step it up this year if Lewis will be here. We need to be number one on thatLuxury Travellist. And Clive Jones will be here, as well.”
