I stood in the shower, waiting for him. The hot water cascading down my head, relaxing my body. It was frightening to me that not too long ago, Jared was basically a one night stand from my past, someone I was so infatuated with, and now I found myself wondering how I could ever live without him. I sure as hell could not imagine him not being a part of my life, but could I handle all that comes with loving him?
He stepped in behind me, spinning me and pressing his lips to mine. I felt love, and affection as his hand caressed my face, leaving a trail of sparks in its wake.
Part of me felt so happy, like I was on top of the world, yet my heart was constricting and it felt as if there was no oxygen left in my lungs. "Ready for tomorrow?" He inquired, releasing me and squeezing some of the shampoo into his palm. He worked it into his long, luscious hair.
"I'm excited to see my family." I said, watching his every move. "It's been too long since my last visit."
He stayed quiet, cleaning his body while I stood under the shower head to rewet my hair. Surprising me, I closed my eyes when his long fingers massaged some of the citrus scented shampoo into my scalp, working the lather throughout my long hair. It was really sweet of him and definitely a first for me.
It wasn't until I turned the water off and we stepped out, that he spoke again. "So, tomorrow will be a big day. I really hope they like me."
"What? You're concerned about them not liking you? I was worried about you not liking them!"
"Noah, I'm sure I'll love them! But you can't control how someone's parents feel about you. I know I'm crazy, but would they get my kind of crazy? How would their opinion affect our relationship? If my mother didn't like you, it would be difficult for me."
"I get what you're saying, but my parents are very laid back." I assured him. "You would literally have to do something really awful for them not to like you." He leaned against the tile and watched me dry off.
I slid a shirt over my head and gave him a quick kiss. "Stop worrying."
After putting on a pair of panties and brushing my teeth, I climbed into bed next to him. His arm instantly wrapped around my waist, pulling me against his chest. "This feels right, doesn't it?" He asked, yawning.
"It does to me." Surprisingly, he didn't say another word and my mind drifted through the crazy events of the day. Eventually, my eyes began to close and I dozed off.
The next morning Jared had breakfast delivered to our room and even served me in bed. I was pleasantly surprised by the gesture and the return of his sweet personality.
A few hours later, we drove up to my family's home. Getting out of the car, I stared up at the house that I grew up in. It was the house of my mother's dreams. She always wanted a two story home with a massive kitchen and after a few renovations, my father made sure she finally had it. Being away so long made me realize how much I changed, but home never did.
Jared took my hand and we walked up to the front door. "Mom." I called out opening the door and stepping inside.
My father was the first to appear. In his usual dad attire, a flannel and pair of jeans, he never changed either. "There's my girl." His big, strong arms wrapped around me as he gave me a loving hug.
"Dad, it's so good to see you. I've missed you so much." He hugged me tight, lifting my feet from the floor. Giggling wildly, I introduced him to Jared. "Daddy, this is Jared. Jared this is my father, Jake."
"Nice to meet you. Your home is beautiful." I could hear Jared continuing to talk to my father while I walked away to find my mother. I found her finishing up some laundry in her bedroom.
"Boo!" I shouted, peeking around the door and watching her gasp as she raised her hand to her chest. "I've missed you so much." I pushed the door open and sat next to her on the end of her bed.
"Jennifer Marie Evans, I swear!" She sighed and giggled. "You scared me to death! What are you doing here? We're supposed to be meeting you for lunch today." She reached over to brush the hair from my shoulder. "Just wasn't expecting you to come here. Oh! Wait, is Jared with you?"
"Yes, he's downstairs."
She tossed aside the remaining clothing left in the basket and stood up. "You left him alone with your dad? Brave girl, let's get down there before he really embarrasses you and breaks out the baby photos." She waited for me to exit and turned off the light and pulled the door closed behind us.
When we got to the bottom of the stairs, my mother grinned. "Jared, I'm Jaylyn, we spoke on the phone and I have to say, you are more handsome in person than you are in the photos. I'm so excited to meet you and I'm a huge fan of your music." Really? She was? I knew she knew of them, but had no idea she enjoyed their music.
"That's so sweet and you could easily pass for Jennifer's older sister."
I watched my mother become putty in his hands within seconds. I've seen him do it before, to women of all ages, but with my normally hard core mother, it was like magic. Her eyes lit up and she was grinning from ear to ear. "You are so full of shit! I'm old enough to be your mother, silly boy."
"Very much like my mother, you certainly don't look it and by the way, I love that all of your names start with J." He winked at me as he continued a conversation with my mom.
"You noticed. Jennifer has a brother named Jason that lives in Hawaii, and a sister, Jasmin in North Carolina, but we rarely see them, so you can imagine how fantastic it is that Jennifer lives as close as she does." She looked at me and back at Jared. "I'm sorry, would you like something to drink?"
"No, I'm fine." He shook his head no.
"I do." I took my mom by the arm and pulled her with me to the kitchen. "Dad, why don't you show Jared your vinyl collection." I glanced over to Jared. "My father has a room upstairs that Jas, Jason and I were never allowed in as children. It contains all of his vinyl records, hundreds of them. You should check it out."
They were talking amongst themselves as they walked toward the stairs. Mom and I entered the kitchen. "Handsome isn't he? I can see you looking at him like you do Luke."
"Baby, let's get one thing straight, he is better looking than Luke and I never thought I'd say that." She opened the refrigerator and took out a few bottles of water. "So, is it serious Jennifer?"
I glanced down at the hardwood floor, tapping my fingernails on the granite countertop. "I mean, he's here to meet you guys, but it's not like we are talking marriage or anything." I've always been close to my parents, especially mom. I have always told her everything and this thing with Nic was no different. "There's a lot you don't know. He was with Nicole when she visited me."
"Nicole?! Is that what happened when she flew to London?" She raised her voice and narrowed her eyes in anger.
"Shhhh!" I frowned. "This isn't the time or place, and he and I have already been over this. Nic and I are no longer friends."
"Well, I'm glad you finally realized what a whore she is, but sorry that it took this to show you. All of Vegas knows it and if you guys hang around here long enough, he will know it too."
"He already does. We've had issues and a very rocky start to this relationship, but I'm hoping he learned from it."
"I'm not sure I like the sound of that. You always were a risk taker Jennifer. Jasmin was the calm, easy one, but you..." She chuckled, "you were the daredevil. Be careful my little rebel, it hurts to have your heart broken."
"I've forgiven him."
She picked up the bottles of water, but stopped and leaned in closer, "The stupid neither forgive nor forget; the naive forgive and forget, but the wise forgive and do not forget... remember this, that's my advice." She winked, "And if that doesn't work, daddy can always take care of him."
