Strawberry Wine (Strawberry Inn Book #2)

Chapter 27

CODY

Hayes was going on and on in the backseat about the syllabus that he just received from his first fire science class, but all of my focus was on the woman sitting next to me in the front seat. This shouldn’t seem like such a big deal, we were just going to my family's home to have dinner there, but she was nervous. Not to say that I wasn’t a bit nervous either, but that was nothing compared to the tension I could feel coming off of Blair.

She had no reason to be nervous or worried, but this wasn’t something I could make better for her. We weren’t living through normal circumstances by any stretch of the imagination and this dinner was a pretty large step. After Angela’s bridal shower, my mom was pretty much harassing me to bring Hayes and Blair over for dinner. She always liked Blair a lot and I’m pretty sure she was over the moon happy that we were giving our relationship another shot. Dad probably didn’t care one way or another. Not in a rude way, but he was my dad and he wasn’t the most emotional person out there. If I was happy, he was going to be happy.

I pulled into the spot in front of the house that I had informally claimed as mine since moving back home. I knew that Blair needed a moment and thought it would be best if Hayes wasn’t around for it so I turned around to him in the backseat, “Hayes, why don’t you take the platter of rolls inside for your grandma while I talk to your mom.”

“Yeah, sure.” He reached in front to take the rolls from Blair and inched his way out of the car. He was still recovering from his injuries so movement was slower than usual. I needed to look into getting a larger vehicle anyway, he was nearing eighteen and was way too big to be in the backseat of my sedan as is.

Once Hayes exited the car, I heard Blair let out a long, drawn-out breath, “Thanks, Cody. I just need a minute.”

“Take your time, sweetheart,” I replied while gently rubbing her shoulder closest to me. “Do you want to talk about what is going on in that mind of yours?”

“I feel so stupid.” I think she intended for me to say something to her, but I wanted her to have the floor and share her feelings, so I stayed silent and let her continue. “There has never been any bad blood between your parents. I’ve seen them more times than I can count since we have been divorced, but this dinner just seems so monumental.”

“The same thing has been going through my mind.”

“It has?” She says, seemingly surprised. “Why do you seem so calm then?”

“I think I’m used to being in high-stress situations and not letting my outside match my inside. Plus, this isn’t introducing you to my parents for the first time. I know they love you already. We’re just back together and now we’re doing things like we used to.”

“It isn’t entirely the same as it used to be. The last time we consistently had dinner with your parents we were still in high school.”

“I guess you’re right. It is just a formality, Blair. I’m here and I’m not going anywhere. They aren’t going to badger you with questions or anything. It is just dinner with people who you’ve known your entire life.”

I squeeze her hand and even though she smiles back at me I can tell those nerves are still there. Knowing my mom, she’s probably getting anxious herself since we haven’t come in yet. I get out of the car and then open the door for Blair. I sneak a kiss on her cheek and then take her hand once again so she can feel me as we walk through the door. Thankfully my mom isn’t standing in the foyer when we enter, but I can hear all the voices coming from the kitchen. Hayes seems to have started his story about his fire science class again, who knew he’d be the perfect buffer?