Family Dinner

One text sent me into a panic. Kaylee was on her way. This was happening. Kaylee was on her way here, to my house. The parents were overjoyed of course. Even Paige was happy, but I was keeping an eye on her. Who knew what she had planned.

The week had flown past in a blur. I think I spent more time studying than I ever did, but it wasn’t because I was in dire need of a last-minute cram to pass exams. The schoolwork kept my mind off other things… like Kaylee and what she was up to. I didn’t see her all too much this week. The few times I managed to see her in passing, she had a book or papers she was frantically looking over. I wasn’t the only one giving her a wide berth. Her teammates and friends were leaving her in peace as well. At least we had some time on Friday after her game to touch base. Sadly, it wasn’t just the two of us. Ellie, Sarah, Zoe, and Abby all tagged along to grab shakes with us in their victory celebration. Kaylee had dropped me off with a reminder to have everything packed before dinner since we were leaving Sunday afternoon.

I was in the kitchen helping with dinner when the doorbell rang. My heart instantly tried to escape through my mouth as I rushed towards the door. Unfortunately, the goblin got there first, the door open as she spoke to Kaylee. Slowing, I hid my rush to get over as best I could. In the few seconds I had to approach the two, I took a quick look at Kaylee. Her flannel shirt was open halfway, revealing a tight black shirt underneath. The dark jeans hugged her hips and legs as she stepped in out of the snow. Paige gave her a pat-down, knocking the snow off her as she took her jacket. Kaylee’s hair was pulled back in a low ponytail, the blue streaks mixing in with the blond. As always, she took my breath away.

“Hey,” I managed lamely. I suppose I should be thankful my voice worked at all.

“Hey,” she said with a smile. With a confident stride, she closed the distance and gave me a short kiss. Behind her, Paige returned from hanging up her jacket. She was also carrying a dish of something. I quickly separated with Kaylee after seeing her staring at us. I shot her a dirty look.

“Don’t stop on my account.”

Kaylee laughed and placed a hand on my chest. “Thanks for inviting me. After this week, I need a night to just relax and catch my breath.”

Beside her, Paige gave me a pointed look. “You certainly came to the right place then. Knowing Scott, he’ll make you sleep in the guest room because he’s too afraid you’ll give him cooties or something.”

I was about to say something when Kaylee snorted, trying to hold back laughter. “That does sound like something he’d do.” The look she gave me let me know she was kidding.

My jaw hung low as I stared at her. “Hey!” Kaylee was supposed to be on my side. Already, Paige was working her black magic to turn her against me.

Paige slid in close, grabbing Kaylee by the arm and leading her down the hall after shoving the dish at my chest. “If he bores you too much, let me know. I know a few guys who could come over.”

I followed after them, glaring at my sister as she led Kaylee towards the kitchen. Glancing down at the dish, I found it was cheesecake. “I’ll keep that in mind,” I heard her say. Staring at the back of her, I wondered if she was serious or not. Surely she wasn’t serious… right?

“Kaylee! Welcome. Dinner is just about ready,” Mom said as she carefully arranged the vegetables around the roast. “Paige, I told you a thousand times to set the table.”

Sighing, my sister released Kaylee and plodded off to do what she was told.

“Thanks for having me over. I brought cheesecake.”

“Your mom makes the best cheesecake!” my sister said, returning with plates.

“It’s actually my dad. He’s the culinary genius in the family.”

“Why don’t you take a seat here? I’ll help Paige,” I said gesturing to a chair before finding an empty spot on the table for the dessert. Mom brought out the roast while I grabbed cups and silverware. Dad joined us just as we were setting down.

“Nice to see you again, Kaylee. It feels like it’s been a while since you were last over.”

She nodded politely. “I think Elisabeth was still around.”

Mom gave me a sharp look. “I didn’t realize how rude my son had become. I expected better considering how often he has gone over to your house.”

“That’s mostly my fault. I keep inviting him over. How is Elisabeth doing? I haven’t talked to her in forever.”

“She seems to be enjoying herself.”

Kaylee gave a warm smile. “I bet. She still with, uh… What was his name?”

“Tae-suk,” Paige answered quickly. “Yep. Over three years now.”

“Good for her.”

“Have you seen him lately?” Paige made a show of fanning herself. “I love my sister, but that guy is way too good for her.”

Kaylee laughed. “Impossible. Elisabeth has always been gorgeous. She had perfect style and had that ice queen routine down to perfection.” Paige had already dug out her phone. Bringing up one of the many pictures the couple posted regularly, she showed it to Kaylee. “Oh. Oh wow.”

“Right?!”

“They look perfect together.”

“Super jealous,” Paige said, looking at the picture with a sigh. “What I wouldn’t give for one night—”

“Don’t you have your own boyfriend?”

Putting her phone away, Paige pursed her lips. “I guess. He’s kinda lame though. Reminds me a lot of Scott.”

“Paige,” Dad said in his usual warning. She rolled her eyes in her typical response. Kaylee smiled at me, showing she wasn’t in agreement with my sister.

“I hear this season is going well for your team,” Dad said, moving the conversation away from talk of boys.

Most of dinner was like this. Everyone but me seemed at ease navigating conversation as easy as breathing. For me, I barely said a word the entire time. There was a reason why I never invited Kaylee over. My family was boring, and I knew it. My parents were basically government accountants and had the humor and personalities to match. Paige was the only one with any memorable personality, and that didn’t expand much beyond being a horny goblin. I kept glancing over at Kaylee, wondering if she was just laughing because it was polite, or if she was enjoying herself. Every time our eyes met, she would give me that special smile of hers, the one that twisted my tongue and caused my heart to hammer against my chest.

“That cheesecake is better than restaurants we’ve been too,” Dad said, patting his belly.

“I’m sure Dad would love to hear that,” Kaylee said. “I’ll have to tone it down though or it’ll go straight to his ego.”

“I take it he likes to cook?” Mom asked as she started clearing dishes.

“I can help,” Kaylee said, starting to get up. Mom waved her off. “He loves to cook,” she said, sitting back down. “When I go to college, he wants to open a restaurant. Said it will keep him busy with Mom traveling all the time.”

“If his cooking is anything close to that cheesecake, I’ll be a regular for sure,” Dad said as he went to help Mom.

Mom sighed heavily. “I should have married a man who could cook. Remind me why I married you again?”

“You were wooed by my commanding knowledge of taxation law. Remember I got you that $77 rebate when we were dating instead of you owing?”

She pursed her lips. “That made me weak in the knees? I made a terrible mistake. I want a redo.”

Giggling, Kaylee seemed like she was enjoying herself. For me, this was a bit out of character for my parents. They were usually a lot more reserved. Were they acting right now? I knew why they got married. Mom was three months pregnant with Elisabeth. The details were a bit fuzzy since they didn’t talk about it much, but I always got the sense it wasn’t planned. They obviously cared a lot about each other, but I’d always wondered how the two met. Both were always so tight-lipped about the past. I suppose that made sense in some ways. I’d only learned Dad was my biological father a few years back. I wondered if there was more to their story than a simple, ‘Met and slowly fell in love over time’ story they always told. It certainly wouldn’t be the first time they kept something a secret.

While they cleaned up, Kaylee and I went to the living room where Paige followed. I tried shooing her away, but she ignored me. Of course Paige stole the remote before I could grab it. We watched Dawn Jackson’s new comedy special, which was hilarious as usual. The best part wasn’t the comedian, but Kaylee. Instead of simply sitting on the couch next to me, she cuddled against me. She smelled so good, her perfume reminding me of flowers. By the end, I was lying long ways on the couch, Kaylee between my legs as she rested her head against my chest. She held my arms against her, and I could feel the swell of her breasts against my arm. The last twenty minutes were pure torture as I did every trick in the book to keep myself from getting an erection. I caught Paige looking at us more than a few times. She seemed to enjoy watching my torment.

Once the show was over, I knew it was time. It wasn’t exactly late, but Kaylee and I needed to get up somewhat early so we could go back to her place before leaving for the airport.