Page 101 of In Good Company

“Lucy, you didn’t tell us you had a boyfriend,” she comments. She raises an eyebrow and stares at me expectantly.

A blush creeps over my cheeks as I feel like a teenager just caught in a lie.

My eyes dart to Cal. “Boyfriend?” I ask, my voice hopeful. I have no idea why he’s here or how he ended up palling around with my parents in their kitchen, but I let my heart hope it means that he’s mine again…that he’s forgiven me.

“Yes,boyfriend,” Cal confirms with a sly smile. “It seems you forgot to mention me to your parents.” There isn’t any bitterness in his tone at all. It almost sounds like he’s teasing me.

“My mistake,” I whisper with a smile. I look at my parents at the table. “Mom and Dad, meet my boyfriend, Cal.” Butterflies take flight in my stomach at introducing him that way.

Cal squeezes my hand, as if he’s telling me he approves of the introduction.

Dad swats at the air as he adjusts his position in his chair. “We already met him when he showed up at our doorstep insisting he was your boyfriend. I about slammed the door in his face, thinking he was some weird stalker.”

I giggle at the mental picture, trying to imagine how that even played out. “I am kind of shocked you ended up letting him inside.”

Cal’s the one to speak up. “I showed him one of our cooking videos to prove I knew you. The chicken parmesan one is going viral, by the way. I’m not sure you’ve noticed. You haven’t posted in a while.”

“How do you know that?”

He lifts a shoulder in a casual shrug. “I’ve paid attention.”

Dad clears his throat again. “It took a few minutes, but he finally convinced us to let him inside. The food he promised to cook—your recipe, he tells me—was what really sold me.”

Mom sits up in her chair, leaning forward on her elbows. “Lucy, I’m amazed at how many people are watching these videos and recreating your recipes.”

I blush. I haven’t even checked any of my social media since coming back to Virginia. There were too many reminders of Cal. The videos I posted of us together were doing well, but I couldn’t bring myself to watch them or share the ones we recorded that I hadn’t posted yet.

Cal wraps his arm around me. “Wait until you taste the recipe. I’m typically terrible at cooking, but after following her instructions closely, you’ll discover just how talented she is. She makes anyone a great cook, even me.”

“Did you make it?” I ask, my eyes wandering to the four nicely plated chicken parmesans on the counter.

Cal gives me a proud smile. “I sure did. Now, let’s eat. I’ve been talking with your parents, and we have some things to discuss…”

I pull my head back, looking at him through narrowed lids. “We do?”

He nods, pointing to the kitchen table for me to take a seat. “Yes. Sit. I’ll get the food, and we’ll get started.”

Without leaving any room for discussion, he removes his arm from around me and closes the distance to the small kitchen table. He and my mom share a knowing look as he pulls the chair out from the table.

“What’s happening?” I ask as I take a seat. Everyone’s quiet and sharing looks with each other that I don’t understand.

Mom reaches across the table and grabs my hand. I hold my breath, wondering what my parents and Cal could’ve possibly been talking about. She gives me a warm smile as she squeezes my hand. “Before we say anything else—” Her eyes move from mine to Dad’s before she focuses on me once again. “—I just want you to know how much your father and I love you. We’ve asked more out of you over the years than we probably should have. And I know we probably didn’t say it enough, but we love you, and we could never thank you enough for everything you’ve given up for us.”

I swallow, my eyes beginning to sting. I didn’t know I had any more tears to cry, but something about the tenderness in her voice, paired with her words, hits home.

“I haven’t given up anything,” I manage to get out. Cal places plates in front of us before taking a seat himself. I don’t look at him, not right now. Not with the look in my mother’s eyes. “It’s you and Dad that have given up so much. I just want to help and make things easier on you.”

Mom nods, her own eyes welling over with tears. “I know, Lu. You’ve been perfect. But…you’re not the parent. We are. It isn’t your responsibility to make things easier on us, and I think, over the years, we’ve put too much pressure on you.”

I shake my head as my bottom lip trembles. Cal places his hand on my thigh, a quiet reminder that he’s here.

“No, you didn’t,” I counter. They’ve had a lot on their plate over the years. I just tried helping where I could.

“We’ve asked too much of you, Lucy. And that’s our fault,” Dad speaks up. “But that stops now.”

I shift my body to look at him.

He pauses to cut into the chicken parmesan and take a bite. His eyes close for a moment. When they open again, he immediately focuses on me. “Lucy, this is incredible.”

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