Susan Mallery - Saying 'Yes!' to the Boss

Dev squeezed her fingers in reassurance. At least that’s what she thought it was. That or he was expecting her to bolt and he was doing his best to keep her in place.

Noelle led him through the living room, into the kitchen, where her mother stood chopping vegetables for a salad.

“Mom, this is Devlin Hunter,” Noelle said, then swallowed. “Dev, my mother. Jane Stevenson.”

“Mrs. Stevenson,” Dev said easily and offered her mother his right hand.

Noelle’s mother looked up. Her eyes widened slightly in shock, then she smiled and shook hands with him. “Nice to meet you, Dev. Welcome. Please call me Jane. I hope you like chicken and burgers.”

“Who doesn’t?” he asked easily.

Her mother glanced at Noelle. “Your father is in the yard. Go on and introduce Dev. Then you can come back and help me with the rest of the food.”

Noelle nodded and walked Dev through the kitchen and laundry room, then out into the backyard.

Her father stood by a large barbecue. He had on a ridiculous chef’s hat and an apron that said in bold green letters, “I’m Irish. Kiss the cook.”

“That doesn’t apply to you,” she murmured in Dev’s ear.

“Good to know. I have to draw a line somewhere.”

That made her laugh, so for a second she forgot to be terrified as she introduced Dev to her father.

“Daddy, this is Devlin Hunter. Dev, my father, Robert Stevenson.”

Dev released her hand and nodded at her father. “Sir.”

Her dad raised his eyebrows. “I like the sir part, but Bob is fine. Unless you’d like to call me Sir Bob.”

Dev grinned. “Is it important to you?”

“I can live without it.”

There was a large shriek from the edge of the pool. Noelle turned and saw eight or ten teenaged girls either in the pool or lying around it.

“My sisters,” she said with a sigh. “And some of their friends. I’ll bore you with them later.”

“Good idea,” her father told her. “Don’t frighten him off just yet. Let’s lull him into a false sense of security and then we’ll let the girls loose.” He glanced at Dev. “Want a beer?”

Dev’s surprise was obvious. Her father laughed.

“Yes, I can be a pastor and still drink beer.”

“Good to know. Whatever you’re having.”

Her father held up his can.

“I’ll get it,” Noelle said and hurried back inside the house.

She found her mother still making salad, but as soon as she entered the kitchen, her mother turned on her.

“You said you were dating a guy from work, Noelle. I thought you mean someone stocking shelves or something. He’s the president of the company.”

Her heart sank. Were they going to be found out so quickly.

“I know, but he’s—”

Her mother cut her off with a quick wave of her head. “I’m not complaining. He seems very nice and obviously he’s smart. He’s also well-off. I’m impressed.” Her mother laughed. “Oh, my. I sound like the mother in Pride and Prejudice, when she got so excited about someone having an income of four thousand a year.”

“He’s older,” Noelle said tentatively, not sure she was hearing correctly. Did her mother actually approve ? “There’s ten years between us.”

“I know. Maybe with one of your sisters I’d worry, but you’ve always been sensible and mature. I’m sure that comes from being the oldest. He won’t bore you like the boys your age.” She grinned again, then lowered her voice. “Don’t tell your father I said so, but he’s very good-looking.”

Noelle laughed. “Yes, he is,” she said as she looked out the window and saw Dev standing in conversation with her father. “Sexy, even.”

“Definitely sexy.”

She’d just been saying the words, but as she watched him laugh, she noticed the shape of his mouth and how broad his shoulders were. He wore yet another Hawaiian shirt tucked into khaki shorts, and his lean muscles were clearly displayed.

He was good-looking, she thought in surprise as she felt a faint tingle. And funny and charming and smart and pretty much everything she’d ever wanted. But not for her. Their’s was a marriage of convenience. She was carrying Jimmy’s baby. Having a relationship with his brother was wrong on so many levels. It wasn’t to be, she thought wistfully. Not ever.

Despite the large crowd of teenagers, everyone sat down together to eat. Instead of a table, they sprawled on the lawn in the shade of an old tree, even Noelle’s parents.

Dev found himself surrounded by her sisters and on the receiving end of some serious grilling.

“How long have you and Noelle been going out?” one of the sisters asked. They were all blond-haired, blue-eyed California types and there was no way he could tell them apart.

“Four months,” he said easily, remembering when Jimmy had first gone out with Noelle.

“Do you like how she kisses?” asked the one who was obviously the youngest.

“Tiffany,” Jane said in a warning voice to her daughter.

“It’s a legitimate question,” she said, then sighed. “Fine, what do you like about her? She’s bossy. Did she tell you that? She’s always getting on me to do my homework or clean up my mess in the bathroom.” She inched closer, then spoke in a whisper. “She goes crazy when I leave the sink dirty. Honestly, who really cares about that stuff?”

“I can hear you,” her mother said from across the lawn.

Tiffany sighed. “Fine.”

Dev glanced up and saw Noelle watching him. He winked at her and was pleased when she blushed and smiled.

“You like own the company, right?” one of the other sisters asked.

“It’s been in my family for many years,” Dev told her. “I inherited it from my father.”

“He’s rich,” she whispered to the sister sitting next to her. “Cool.”

Jane groaned. “Obviously I’ve failed miserably with these girls. I apologize, Dev.”

“No need.”

Compared to how he’d screwed up things with Jimmy, she’d been brilliant.

The questions continued, some easy, some more difficult, until the meal was finished. After everyone had tossed their paper plates into the big trash can by the garage, Noelle and her mother went into the kitchen for a couple of minutes, then returned with huge flats of fresh strawberries. Her father stood and faced everyone.

“It’s Sunday,” he said.

There was a collective groan from Noelle’s sisters, although their guests looked more expectant than unhappy. Dev wondered what significance the day of the week held.

Bob glanced at him. “On Sunday, we all talk about something unexpected that happened in our week and how it has changed us for the better. We’ll let you go later so you can see how it’s done.”

Dev looked at Noelle, who mouthed an apology. From her stricken expression he could tell she felt bad for not warning him about this.

He was sure he could come up with something. Noelle could win the prize for unexpected news, but he doubted she would be sharing information about her pregnancy or their engagement. So what would she say?

Bob cleared his throat. “I’ll go first.” He glanced at his wife, who—with Noelle—was slicing ripe strawberries into bowls and setting them out on the table.

“Jane came to me and told me she wanted to take a job outside the church office this week. At first I was angry. I thought she was turning her back on our responsibilities to our community.” He smiled slightly. “As I thought about the situation more, I realized my anger didn’t come from that at all. Jane has never walked away from anything that needed doing. So why was I so upset?”

He paused. “Eventually I realized I was upset because I would miss seeing her all the time. I’ve spent our marriage with the luxury of always being with the woman I love. I know being apart for a few hours a day is something I can endure, but knowing she won’t be there makes me appreciate the time we do have together.”