Page 4 of Waiting for Forever
“Caleb isn’t fond of gender reveal parties either,” Tyson said.
“That’s because he was raised right.” Of course, Dadwouldsay that. He and Mr. Hott, Caleb’s father, were close friends who both took their roles as leaders in the community seriously. Sometimes too seriously.
Dad glanced at her. “Beck Reed said the two of you went out to dinner last week.”
Tyson looked her way, eyebrows raised. “Realllllly?”
Paige fought to hide her grimace. “We did.” She wasn’t sure she had a type when it came to men she was attracted to, but whatever it was, Beck wasn’t it. She wouldn’t have accepted his invitation to a date at all, except for the fact it was her dad who’d instigated the call. He and Beck were apparently golf buddies now.
Dad must have realized the same things Paige had about her inability to secure her own dates and decided to take matters into his own hands. She’d accepted the invitation, hoping things with Beck would work out, since her dad approved of him—something that hadn’t been the case with her past relationships. Unfortunately, luck was not on her side, because dinner with Beck could only be classified as the most boring first date in the history of dating.
Paige had dated exactly four men, the relationships ranging from six months to a year before they’d petered out. Dad, of course, had found something wrong with all her boyfriends.
She figured the only reason he’d eventually warmed up to Tyson’s unorthodox relationship with Harley and Caleb was because he’d known both of them and their families their whole lives. Plus, he had Mr. Hott to commiserate with over their boysshacking up together with one wife. That probably took some of the sting out.
“Good. Glad to hear it,” Dad said. “He’s a good man, Paige. Strong work ethic and drive.”
Which apparently made him a keeper in her dad’s eyes, despite the fact the guy was equal parts arrogant and boring at dust, an unlikely yet horrible combination.
Paige smiled at Dad but didn’t respond, because there wasn’t a damn thing she could add to the Beck conversation. She wasn’t as impressed by the guy as her father was.
Apparently, Dad had reached his limit on socializing with them because he walked away without saying another word.
“Beck Reed?” Tyson said, not bothering to mask his disdain.
“You just suggested him to work on my house.”
“Yeah,” Tyson said, “but that doesn’t mean I think you should date the guy.”
“Dad set it up. Gave Beck my number, suggested he call. We went out to dinner.”
“From your tone, I can tell it didn’t go well.”
Paige shrugged. “It didn’t go poorly. There just weren’t any sparks.”
“I’m not surprised. The guy is a cocky bastard.”
“True. He spent a great deal of the date talking about his thriving company. Toward the end, it felt less like a date and more like a business pitch.”
Beck hadn’t initiated a good-night kiss at the end of the night. Which left her to wonder if he’d been equally unimpressed with their date. Part of her hoped he didn’t call again. It would make things easier if she could tell Dad that Beck was the uninterested party.
She feared if she blew the man off, she would be subjected to yet another one of Dad’s lectures on how she needed to make smart decisions or start thinking about her future. He whippedout those classics whenever she made what he considered a mistake. Like not going to law school. Like working at Sparks Barbeque. Like buying a house that was too big for her and required too much work. And now, apparently, not dating a man with a strong work ethic and drive.
Gag.
Tyson glanced across the yard. She followed his gaze, both of them watching as their Dad bent and placed his hand on Harley’s pregnant belly at her request.
“The baby’s been kicking like crazy. We’re thinking of going ahead right now and signing him to play in the NFL as a punter.” The pride in Tyson’s voice was almost tangible, but Paige was more interested in her dad’s face at the moment.
Judge George Sparks might be a stoic man with high expectations for his kids, but the way his eyes softened and he grinned as he felt his first grandson’s kick was so touching, Paige couldn’t help but smile too. While it was hard to earn her father’s approval, on the rare occasions when she did, Paige felt as if she’d scaled Mt. Everest.
“You think he’s going to break character and turn out to be one of those granddads who spoils the grandkids rotten?” Paige asked.
Tyson chuckled. “Yeah. I think he might. Jesus, that would be fun—and weird—to watch.”
Paige and Tyson sat quietly, watching the other members of their family all talking loudly, passing kids back and forth, stuffing their faces with hamburgers and hot dogs. As lunch started to wind down, Aunt Beverly and Aunt Louise carried out the massive cake, Lacy and Logan standing next to the table.
Various members of the family started calling out their guesses, whether it would be a boy or a girl. Paige had tried all week—unsuccessfully—to get her aunt to tell her the gender,but Louise, unlike her husband, TJ, was a vault when it came to secrets.
