Chapter Seventeen

Macy had talked me into dressing up for dinner with Kody.

Bullied me into it, is more like it.

I wore a white wrap around dress. It was a nice cotton material and it looked good on me. Since my hair wouldn't curl, I straightened it, wearing it straight back. Macy had done my makeup, making my eyelashes look twice as long as they were and covering up the dark circles under my eyes.

Even though the restaurant was within walking distance, Macy insisted on dropping me off. On the way there she scolded me for getting her boyfriend drunk in the middle of the day.

When I reached the restaurant, the host led me to a back table where Kody was already sitting.

He looked fucking good.

Lately I had only been seeing him in comfort clothes and though he managed to pull them off, when he made an effort the result was...

Wow.

He wore a beige long sleeved shirt. It was ironed perfectly and tucked into a pair of striped grey trousers. His almost white hair was still delicately messy, covering most of his forehead, but carefully styled so it didn't cover his eyes.

And his eyes were on me.

I felt my face flush as he studied me, his gaze noticeably trailing down my figure before returning to my face.

I nervously ran a hand over my hair, making sure every strand was in place.

By the time I made it to the table, I was beyond nervous. I wished I could have a drink.

Damn past Ezra for depending on alcohol to get out of awkward situations.

"You look good, Lewis." Kody said pulling a chair out for me.

I smiled nicely, taking the seat. "Ditto." I said in a voice that was just a bit too high.

He sat across from me. He was drinking clear liquid from a glass. Either it was water or straight vodka.

I assumed water.

A waiter hustled over, taking my drink order and bringing us a basket of breadsticks. He then took our orders.

I ordered meatloaf and mashed potatoes while Kody got a steak with a baked potato and Mac and cheese.

When the waiter left, I grabbed one of the breadsticks, nibbling on it.

"So, I wanted to talk to you about thanksgiving." He said, his eyes trained on my lips.

I cleared my throat. "Okay, what about it?"

This wasn't how I expected him to start this conversation off.

"If you don't have any plans, I think you should spend thanksgiving with me and my family."

I froze, lowering my delicious breadstick. My heart rate spiked as I began to panic all over.

I obviously didn't do a great job of hiding my emotions because Kody noticed. He frowned. "I told you my dad would want to meet you."

He had said that. "I was thinking something like this. A nice casual dinner, in public. Where he can't strangle me."

He laughed. "He's not going to strangle you. Just think about it, no pressure."

I nodded, letting his request go in one ear and out the other. There was no way I was going to do that. However, I took that as my opening to question him. "You never told me about your family." I said, picking my breadstick back up and nibbling away.

He shrugged, leaning back. "Nothing special. You already met Rory. I have a younger brother as well, he's a sophomore."

I pictured another perfect blonde Vincent with dazzling white teeth and blue eyes.

"My dad owns a construction company. They build all over America, but they're based in Winterbrook."

He paused looking at his watch before continuing. "My mom died when I was five. I don't like to talk about it."

And that was enough to keep me from grilling him. I definitely didn't want to talk about my parents or their deaths. I could respect if he didn't either. "Tell me about your siblings. Rory seems...eccentric."

He laughed. "What she is, is a handful. She's stubborn and too headstrong for her own good. She doesn't have the best common sense either but she's alright."

I smiled, you could see how much he loved her, even if he was downplaying it.

"What about your brother?"

His eyes brightened, "His name is Aiden. He's actually a genius."

I laughed, grabbing another breadstick. I wanted to know all about this family. My child's future family.

Aunt Rory, the eccentric.

Uncle Aiden, the genius.

Kody continued. "He's taking all AP classes and talking about going to Columbia."

I laughed. "So nothing like you then?"

He didn't seem offended. "He has my temper. Actually, his temper is worse than mine. Me and Rory use to rile him up all the time when he was little but now..."

"You're lucky." I said before I could stop myself. Because he was lucky. He had a family, even though they might have not been as perfect as I had originally thought. He had memories and bonds and love.

"I know." He said. His fingers traced a pattern on my hand that was resting on the table. "What about you?"

I leaned back, breaking our contact. I knew this was coming. I was prepared.

"I'm an only child, as you know. My parents died when I was seven. I also don't like talking about it."

He nodded.

I told him the story of how I bounced from group home to group home never making any connections, never forming any bonds.

When the waiter showed up with our food, I was nearly drooling.

I had one thing checked off of my to do list.

Kody kept me entertained with stories about Rory and Aiden. It made me want to get to know them.

When I began to relax again, his hand went back to mine as he spoke. Whenever he got too into his stories, he would touch me carelessly.

At least for him it was careless, because every time he did, it would send a rush of heat straight to my core.

Eventually, he moved his chair next to mine, pulling out his phone and showing me pictures of his siblings. His dad. And every time his skin brushed mine I had to hold my breath to keep from blushing.

When I was looking closely at a picture, he grabbed a piece of my hair, lightly tugging on it.

I was done.

"I have to go to the bathroom." I said suddenly, dropping his phone and standing up quickly.

He smirked. "Okay, I'll be here."

I nodded, spinning on my heel and heading to the bathroom before I said something stupid.

The bathroom was down a dark long hallway and the walk gave me time to clear my mind.

What the hell was I doing? This was so irresponsible.

That stupid talk with Jamie had clouded my vision and now I was reading into things. Feeling things that weren't really there

Either that or these stupid pregnancy hormones were fucking with me.

I washed my hands, because I didn't have anything else to do. The cold water calmed me down. I just needed to get out of here.

I could just make an excuse. I could say Macy needed me. Or Stella. Whatever was handy.

Just dip.

That was a plan. Dip.

I quickly dried off my hands, shaking my nerves off.

I just couldn't let him talk me into staying.

With a nod, I snatched the door open.

Kody stood on the other side.