I Adore You // Braeden Lemasters

Chapter 26: Only Friend

"So my family is going out to dinner this weekend. My brother got this big promotion so my parents want to celebrate. Would you want to come?" Braeden asked from across the table, sipping on the smoothie Natalie had just made him.

"Wow, I haven't met your parents yet..." She said nervously. "What do you think? I wouldn't wanna impose."

Braeden laughed, choking on his smoothie. "First off, they invited you. Two," he said, while holding up four fingers, "they will love you. And C, I love you. And it would mean a lot to me. So yes, you should come."

Natalie was laughing hysterically at Braeden's silliness.

"Alright," she said calming down. "Ugh, I'm just nervous."

"Don't be. My parents are awesome. There's nothing to worry about." Braeden flashed his gorgeous smile. "I can't wait for you guys to meet each other. I'm excited,"

This warmed Natalie's heart, and she could see this meant a lot to him. The weekend rolled around, and Natalie was more nervous than she'd been in a long time. She was meeting Braeden and his family straight after work. Between school, staying up studying, and balancing her work schedule, Natalie had been exhausted lately. She saw less of Aubrey and Hailey, and not much of anyone. Even Braeden she only saw some evenings after class.

Traffic from San Fernando back to Santa Clarita was awful. What was usually a 20 minute drive was quickly turning into a 45 minute drive. Natalie grew anxious. She knew she was going to be late for dinner. She called Braeden from the I-5 to let him know. There was some hesitancy in his voice for just a moment, but he was understanding.

Once she peeled into the parking lot, she rushed toward the front door of the restaurant. Her eyes went frantically left and right, searching for Braeden. She spotted him, standing up and waving a hand at her. She found the table and immediately his family introduced themselves, Braeden's mom greeting her with a hug.

"I'm so sorry I'm late. I came here straight from work and my shift ran over and traffic on the I-5 was —"

Michelle immediately placed a hand on her arm and reassured her it was okay.

"We've only been here maybe five minutes, it's not a big deal at all. Don't worry!" She laughed.

Still, Natalie felt flustered and embarrassed. Today was supposed to celebrate Austin and already she felt the attention was on her, which she loathed.

Natalie flashed her an apologetic look and then shifted her gaze to Austin. "Well congratulations on your promotion, Austin."

Braeden's hand found her back, and gently pulled her toward him. Natalie tried to take a deep breath and calm down. She had been excited but nervous to meet his family. She wanted them to like her. Now, she was afraid they already had a negative impression of her.

Later that night, she walked into her apartment, hung her jacket up and slid off her shoes. Aubrey sat in the living room, playing with her hair. She was silent.

Natalie eyed her and entered the living room.

"Everything okay?" She asked hesitantly.

Aubrey let out a deep sigh. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have made that 'prude' comment. It was hurtful and mean."

Natalie smirked. "It's okay. I forgive you."

They hugged for a moment. Natalie headed off to bed, exhausted after an eventful day.