Page 79 of Fostering Chemistry
“Right.” He gave me a wry smile. “I get asked this a lot.”
“Asked what?”
“Why I call them my grandparents rather than my parents.”
“Ah. Yes, I was wondering about that.”
“They couldn’t have biological kids of their own, so they took in a bunch of foster kids over the years. Adopted a lot of them. My oldest siblings are in their forties, and they call them mom and dad, of course. But now they have kids of their own, who all call them grandma and grandpa. By the time I joined the family, nearly everyone under thirty called them grandma and grandpa, so I did too.”
“How many siblings do you have?”
“A lot.”
“And how many of them are going to judge the girl you’re bringing with you?”
“None.” He paused. “Except maybe Cousin Dan, but who cares about him?”
“I sure don’t,” I said, and Aaron laughed. We were entering Chattanooga, and it was bigger than I expected.
Aaron drove confidently through the streets, making frequent turns. Finally, he pulled into a drive under a five-story building.He pressed a button on his sun visor, and a large door slid to the side, admitting us into an underground garage.
I blinked at the sudden darkness. All I could make out were rows of cars. Rows of very expensive looking cars. “What are we doing here?”
“We have to change.” He said that like it should’ve been obvious.
“Yeah, but I thought we’d do that in a gas station bathroom.”
He laughed. “Trust me, the condo’s much nicer.” He pulled into a marked slot and shut off the engine.
“Whose place is this?” I really didn’t want to meet any of his family while wearing my oversized sweater and leggings.
“No one’s. It’s empty.”
I froze, hardly realizing that he’d gotten out of the car until he came over and opened my door. “Your family owns an extra condo that no one ever lives at?” And something told me it was an extremely nice condo, too, judging by the exterior of the building and the cars parked down here.
“No, it belongs to the law firm. They sometimes have out-of-town guests stay here.”
I climbed out, stretching my legs while Aaron got our things from the backseat. “And who owns the law firm?”
“My grandpa and two of my brothers.”
I nearly rolled my eyes. “So, as I said, your family owns an extra condo that no one lives at.” I couldn’t imagine the expense of that. “Are only the men in your family lawyers?”
Aaron’s eyes went unfocused for a moment, as if he was running through the careers of a great number of people. Jesus, how many siblings did he have? “Practicing, yes. But my sister Katie was a lawyer. She’s a judge now.”
I stilled again, and Aaron had to tug on my arm to get me moving. He kept his hand on my arm as he guided me toward the elevator. “Your family has lawyers and judges and mayors?” The disbelief was evident in my voice.
“A former mayor,” he clarified. We stepped into the elevator, and he pressed the button for the highest floor. “Relax, they’re all really eager to meet you.”
“That’s what I’m worried about.”
As the elevator glided smoothly upward, he leaned in, his voice lowered. “If you want to worry about something, worry about how I’m not going to be able to keep my hands off you when I see you in your dress.”
My jaw dropped and my skin flushed as I gaped up at the smirk on his face. His words shocked me, but once my brain kicked back into gear, I realized he’d been trying to distract me from worrying about meeting his family.
And it worked.
“I’m, uh, looking forward to seeing you in your tux, too.” His smirk resolved into his usual smile, and just like that, I felt better.
