Page 54 of Someday You Learn

“I know you have questions, Dad.”

“You’re damn right I do.” He picks up his wine glass and takes a sip as he leans back in his chair, his large belly protruding over the waistband of his pants.

“And we will answer them. But do you think you can chill a bit since you just got here?”

His response is a grunt.

“How hungry are you, Robert?” Parker asks from the kitchen as he starts plating the pasta carbonara. My mouth is salivating from the smell of it alone.

My dad pats his stomach. “Don’t give me too much, son. I’m trying to watch my figure.”

Parker chuckles and plates three helpings of the pasta and garlic bread. He brings them to the table, settling into the chair next to me.

“This smells amazing, babe,” I say, catching his eye.

Hesmiles over at me before reaching for his glass of wine. “Thank you.” Then he holds his glass out, suggesting a toast. “To family and the beginning of a new life for all of us.”

My father raises an eyebrow before slowly reaching forward to clink his glass with ours. “To family.”

The three of us eat in silence for a few minutes, the tension simmering just beneath the surface.

“Who knew you could cook, Parker?” Dad says eventually.

Parker chuckles. “I’ll take that as a compliment, sir.”

“Sir? Don’t start treating me differently now that you’re marrying my daughter,” he admonishes. “But while we’re on the subject, I think I’m ready for an explanation.”

Parker’s gaze shifts to me, his expression encouraging me to start, like we discussed.

“Okay, Dad. Here’s how things happened.” I spend the next few minutes retelling our story to my father, emphasizing how crazy it was that the doctor he’d always spoken about with such pride was the man that ended up comforting me during a flight. We talked about how whenever Parker went out of town, he would make sure to fly to Philadelphia to see me. We fell hard and fast, and after months of long-distance, we realized we didn’t want to be apart anymore. Moving here was the obvious choice.

“But I shocked him when I showed up earlier than planned,” I explain. “When I heard you got hurt, I came down sooner than we’d discussed. That’s why Parker was so surprised to see me that day.”

“I see.” My father finishes his wine, setting the glass on the table. All three of us are finished eating, so the only thing left to do is soak up the palpable tension in the room. “I understand being wary of telling me, but here’s my issue.” He turns his gaze to Parker. “If you were serious enough about my daughter to propose, why didn’t you come to methen? At the very least, you should’ve asked me for her hand in marriage.”

Parker clears his throat. “If I could take that part back, Robert, I would. Truly.” He turns to me and places a finger under my chin, directing my gaze to his. “But we were tired of being apart. I knew if I was really going to convince her to make the move, I had to show her I was all in.”

Parker’s eyes dance all over my face, and if I didn’t know that he was acting, I’d believe every emotion his words are conveying right now. His eyes dip to my lips, and before I think better of it, I press a soft kiss to his mouth. It’s brief, just enough to sell it without giving my father a heart attack at the other end of the table.

“Well, I have to say, if I had to choose anyone for my June Bug, it would be you, Parker.”

I turn to my father as Parker wraps his arm around my shoulders. “I’m glad you feel that way, Dad,” I say, relief blooming in my chest.

“So, when’s the wedding?”

Parker coughs behind me, apparently losing his composure from before, so I jump in. “We haven’t talked about it much, Dad. It’s been a whirlwind with the move and everything.”

“I see.”

“But we did find a ring,” Parker adds, reaching for my hand. He brings it to his mouth, kissing my knuckles before extending it to Dad.

My dad assesses the ring. “It’s stunning. At least you did right by her in that respect.”

“I tried. I knew this ring belonged on her finger the second I saw it.”

“You two still have a lot to learn about each other, though.”

Parker laughs under his breath as he rises to clear our plates. “Oh believe me, we’ve been learning plenty about each other.”

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