Chapter Twenty-Five: For Love's Sake-6

I flashed a small, apologetic smile and lowered my voice even though I wanted to yell quite soundly into Luke's ear. "What do you mean he's coming over? Where? And what are we putting together? Dinner? What are we going to feed your father? Stir-fry?" "Actually, that's not a bad idea," Luke replied, sounding not the least fazed. "We could do an asian cuisine kind of theme and we know how to make stir-fry. We'll have to stop by the grocery but I think I've got everything we need at my condo." I kneaded my temples, closing my eyes briefly and secretly praying that Luke was just being an actual rascal and pulling my leg. "Luke, we're not making some stir-fry for your father. These kinds of things need some preparation—and a hell lot more courage than I've summoned today since meeting him. Why don't we just take him out to some nice restaurant?" "I honestly can't remember the last time I sat down and had home-made dinner with my father," Luke said a little wistfully. "Besides, I want you to be comfortable and being in some stuffy restaurant where you're served course after course isn't my idea of casual comfort. We'll invite Peggy and Terrence to join us so it's even more casual." "And you're Dad's going to be okay with all that?" I asked, still not completely sold. "He's known those two for years, especially Peggy," Luke said. "And my Dad's still mostly human so I don't think he's going to flip out being invited to our humble little dinner." I didn't want to be in some stuffy restaurant either in a perfectly pressed dress and not a hair out of place with a line of servers waiting and watching for our every bite. And maybe this was the best way to get real with Charles Hedenby. Knowing my options were limited, I agreed, hoping to God we knew what we were doing. *** For the remaining two hours of my shift, I was working while scrolling through several recipes in my head to narrow down ones I knew how to make in a somewhat decent and edible manner. Promptly at the end of our workday, Luke and I drove to my apartment to pack me an overnight bag (because he insisted that I needed to dress for dinner and that since it could wrap up late, I might need to stay the night. Sure.) and then stopped at the grocery to pick up a few items. We got the rice cooker going and we chopped up all our ingredients. We were doing stir-fry, some chicken satay and some tender beef strips sprinkled with sesame seeds. It wasn't one specific asian cuisine but we knew what we liked and that we could actually cook so we went with those. He went to shower first and get dressed while I finished the stir fry and when he was done, I assigned him the chicken skewers (because he felt grilling seemed simple enough) and went to shower quickly. I was in a dark pair of skinny jeans, a comfy burgundy sweater and cream-colored flats. Since I had no time to style my hair, I wrapped it up in a bun, letting some shorter tendrils hang down in loose waves around my face. I had some powder on, a swipe of mascara and some tinted lip balm that doubled as blush. It was the best I could do and since Luke beamed at me and pulled me in for a quick hard kiss when I showed back up in the kitchen, I figured I looked presentable enough. We were setting the table when Terrence arrived with Peggy and they both smiled and said everything smelled delicious. Just a few minutes behind them was Charles, still dressed in his suit and looking as dignified as he did several hours ago. "Did Darcy drive you here?" Peggy asked him without preamble. "You should've invited him up." "He was going to visit his sister for a few hours and take her out for dinner," he answered, surprising me with the size of his smile when Peggy came up to him and thrust a bottle of beer in his hand. "Terrence can drive you back so loosen up and have a drink," she said, glancing at me over her shoulder and giving me a wink. "Max might like you better when you're not too starched up." Charles Hedenby, who looked like he only preferred bespoke-everything, grinned like a boy and took a swig of the beer. "I think I like him just fine," I said, forcing a smile before slowly turning toward the stove just as Luke did. Under the pretense (well, we were actually doing it) of scooping the food into serving bowls, I leaned slightly toward Luke and murmured in a low, hushed voice, "I think Peggy has superpowers." Luke grinned. "My Dad's been pretty in love with her for a while now. She's the only one who can switch him off and on like that." My mouth must've dropped open because Luke laughed and planted a small kiss on the tip of my nose. "She wouldn't have him—at least not yet. It's been ten years now, I think, and he's still waiting." I snuck a glance at the pair over my shoulder and true enough, Charles was talking to Peggy with a sparkle in his eyes. I was yet to see the smile leave his face. Peggy was just being her usual sweet self but there was definitely some heightened color on her cheeks. "And how do you feel about this?" I asked Luke. "I'd love for Peggy to take him out of his misery—it might make him easier to get along with," he said with a shrug. "Peggy's already family to me. Her marrying Dad will just be a bonus that I think will make him and everyone else around him very happy." "Hmm. I didn't expect that at all—the two of them, I mean," I said, still trying to wrap my head around the idea. Luke laughed. "So don't go worrying anymore that Dad will think you're not good enough. I saw it in your face today. I think he knows what really matters when you want to be with someone." And since that little discovery, whatever barrier I felt had been present since I met the man this morning disappeared. Yes, he was Charles Hedenby to the world—distinguished and influential just as his son was—but in summary, he was just a man who loved his kid and who understood something about being with somebody. We had a very casual dinner with some positive reviews on the food and a lot of easy conversation around the table. It became very easy to see that father and son had great respect for each other. Luke wanted to please Charles and Charles wanted to encourage Luke but they weren't really straightforward about it and that was probably not going to change anytime soon. Peggy was fond of the both of them, of course, and whether she was aware of it or not, it seemed pretty obvious to me that she felt something for Charles. I didn't judge because the nearly endless loop that Luke and I were caught in for a little while there could've easily spun into a decade. It was just right at ten when our guests decided to head out.