Repair Me (Kin #1)(48)
Author: Jennifer Foor

She rolled her eyes and finally spit. “Okay, so maybe I went a little crazy yesterday. It’s not like I regret doing it. Don’t they look hot?”

“You were already hot.”

“It still hurts.”

I pulled her into my arms. “How about we go and do somethin’ fun?”

“Like what? It isn’t like you live in a big city.”

“You’re right, I don’t. I was thinkin’ I’d go with you to meet your parents. Shayne can drive me home. We’ll meet up with them later for dinner and leave from there.”

It was wrong to assume that she’d be okay with me meeting her parents, but after the Ashley fiasco, I wanted her to know that I was serious about us being a real couple. “Where did you say I could get the best phone service?”

I pointed. “Outside, on the porch. Why?”

She walked out of the bathroom and started getting dressed in more of my sister’s clothes. “I’m going to call my parents.”

Sky walked outside, while I got dressed. Thinking about meeting someone’s parents was a little weird to me. I hadn’t done it in a long time. With Ash, it was easy; I’d known her parents since we were in grade school.

When Sky came back into the apartment, she was all smiles. “My dad said he would love to meet the guy who has taken his daughter hostage for the weekend. They want you to come there for dinner.”

Then it really hit me.

“Shit! What if they don’t like me?”

“They like everyone.”

I shook my head and wondered why I’d been so quick to offer this idea to her. Clearly, I was losing my mind. “I ain’t like the guys you bring home to meet your parents. Look at me.” I motioned to the tattoos.

“I think you look sexy as hell.” She approached me, but I pulled away. I felt nauseous thinking about meeting her dad, and him telling her that she wasn’t allowed to see me anymore. They knew she was spending the night with me. There was no way that they would be alright about it.

“Can you be serious? Dad’s don’t like sexy, Sky.”

She laughed at me. “Why are you freaking out? I told my dad all about you.”

“What?” I paced around the small area, thinking about him answering the door with a shotgun in his hand. “I can’t go with you.”

When I finally sat down beside her, she slid next to me and hugged me. “Please come with me, Ford. I want them to see how much of a great guy you are. If you really want to have a relationship with me, you’re going to have to meet them.”

“They won’t like me. I can’t offer you what those college graduates can. No man would want me dating their daughter.” They probably loved her ex.

“I’ll make you a deal.” She stood up and looked down at me. “If you come meet my parents today. I will drive here next weekend and stay with you, whether you want to attend the party or not.”

I raised one brow and asked, “And if I don’t go?”

She put her hands on her hips. “I won’t come see you next week.” The look on her face was stern and I knew she was trying to manipulate me.

“One dinner. If I want to leave, I can at any time.”

She reached over and hugged me. “They’re going to love you.”

I didn’t want to go, but knew she was giving me no choice. I wanted to be with Sky, and meeting her parents was what I had to do to make it happen.

After calling my cousin, and making sure I had a ride home, Sky and I got ready to head to her parent’s house. I think she knew I was worried, but she didn’t get how nervous I was. I needed a cigarette, bad.

When we walked out to the car, I grabbed my smokes and lit one up. Sky started shaking her head. “I’m not going to kiss you.”

“I’ll brush my teeth.” I winked when she shook her head in disappointment.

While running back up to clean my mouth, I got an idea that would stop her bossy butt from forcing me to do things. I climbed in the car next to her and cleared my throat before giving it to her straight up. “You know, if I’m miserable, I can leave, right?”

“No! You have to stay.”

“I could always tell your parents what you had pierced last night.” I laughed at myself, knowing I had her right where I wanted her.

She looked at me instead of the road. “You wouldn’t!”

“Why not?”

With a smile on her face, she pulled over and looked right at me. “Because if you leave before dinner is over, I will never sleep with you again.”

She looked so serious. I couldn’t tell if she was bluffing, but being raised around a bunch of rednecks, I decided to call her on it. “You can’t resist me.”

“We’ll see about that.”

Okay, maybe my plan wasn’t going as well as I expected. “Yeah, we will.”

Chapter 21

Skylar

It was funny to me that someone like Ford could get nervous. He was acting weird, that’s for sure. He changed his shirt four times and went into the bathroom applying, taking off, and reapplying shaving cream on his face. Then, after he’d shaved some of his stubble, but not all, he decided that his hair was too long and that he’d need to wear a hat. Once that was decided, he then couldn’t pick one to wear, so I had to do it for him.

By the time we made it to the car, he had on a pair of khaki shorts, a button up shirt with a navy blue t-shirt underneath and a baseball hat that matched, which he ended up wearing backwards. I thought he looked great, but he still complained about not being good enough.

Since he obviously had never been to my house, I decided it would be best if I drove. We lived about an hour away from each other. Ford lived in the lower part of Maryland near Virginia. It was also the main route to get to the beach, so we got stuck in a little bit of traffic on the way back to my house. I didn’t mind, since it meant that we were alone, but Ford was more anxious than I’d ever seen him. He tapped on the dashboard, changed the station a million times, and talked more than a normal man was capable of.

In the one hour and fourteen minute drive, he’d discussed the first fifteen years of his life, in detail. I talked about my early years, when he took a second to breathe and listen. He also smoked three cigarettes, with the window down all the way. I stopped and got him a pack of gum, then sprayed him with a bottle of car freshener to make sure he didn’t smell of smoke.

When I pulled up in the driveway of my parent’s house, Ford got even worse. “There is no way I’m goin’ in there. Look at your house. Why didn’t you warn me? My God, why are you drivin’ that piece of shit car around, when there are two BMW’s in the driveway?”