Page 13 of Dan

CHAPTER EIGHT

“I saw you kissing the rescued princess in the gardens,” smiled Wilson. “Be careful with her, Dan. She’s vulnerable and, in some ways, very naïve.”

“I don’t think she’s as naïve as we all might think, Grandpa. She’s absolutely brilliant, and I enjoy her company.”

“Do I get to meet this mystery girl?” asked Antoine, stepping up to him in line. “I heard you found a young woman on a sinking boat. I’ll get the whole story later, but maybe introduce her to the family.” He kissed his grandson’s temple and returned to his wife. With two trays of food, Dan walked toward Finley.

“Would you mind if we join my parents and grandparents?” He looked at the tables being pushed together and realized it would be the entire family. “And a few others.”

“I don’t mind. I’d like to meet them all,” she smiled. Following him to the tables, she counted the people in her head and immediately knew who was related to whom by their common features.

“Finley, you’ve met my grandfather, Wilson. This is his wife, my grandmother, Sara. My other grandparents, Antoine and Ella; my parents Ryan and Paige; and my aunts and uncles, Gaspar and Alexandra, whom you’ve met; Joseph and Julia; Miller and Kari; Baptiste and Rose; Rafe and Savannah; Luc and Montana; Gabe and Tori; Alec and Lissa; Jean and Ro; Suzette and Sly; Cruz and Camille; Jake and Claudette; Marie and Dex; Adele and Clay; and Rachelle and Mac. That’s everyone.”

“Alright,” nodded Finley. “Wilson, Sara, Antoine, Ella, Ryan, Paige, Gaspar, Alexandra, Joseph, Julia, Miller, Kari, Baptiste, Rose, Rafe, Savannah, Luc, Montana, Gabe, Tori, Alec, Lissa, Jean, Ro, Suzette, Sly, Cruz, Camille, Jake, Claudette, Marie, Dex, Adele, Clay, Rachelle, and Mac.”

“You got that right,” smiled Dan. Everyone else had brows raised and shock on their faces as she recited the names perfectly and in order.

“Of course I did.” There were soft chuckles around the table, and Dan could only nod at her. “I’m not allowed to ask his mother, but do any of you know where I can find a sex shop to purchase something that will help me to accommodate his large penis?”

Iced tea was spewed across the room by several of the men. Dan froze, his face turning bright red.

“You’re flushed. Are you unwell?” she asked.

“No. I’m perfectly well,” he smiled.

“Finley, after dinner, why don’t I introduce you to Charlie,” said Sara, smiling at her grandson. “She writes books and has an entire line of lingerie and sex toys. I’m sure she’ll be quite helpful to you. Besides, many of the women here were in the same predicament as you.”

“Oh, I don’t find it a predicament at all,” she smiled. “I’m quite excited about what it looks like. It must be in proportion to his body.” Paige smiled at her son, then looked at Finley.

“Finley, maybe we could speak about this later. Usually, we don’t discuss things like this in front of the men. It makes them nervous.”

“I see,” she nodded. “Are you all jealous of Dan’s penis?”

“Hardly,” smirked Alec. Lissa nudged her husband’s side. Seeing the look on Dan’s face and the others, Finley knew she’d made another dramatic mistake.

“I’ve really messed this up, haven’t I?” she whispered, looking down at her hands. “I’m so sorry. I’ve embarrassed you in front of your family, haven’t I? I’m so stupid with things like this. Please forgive me. You probably think I’m nothing more than a child.” She tried to stand and leave, but Ryan reached out, touching her hand.

“You are a brilliant woman whose mind doesn’t work the way everyone else’s does. You’ve done nothing wrong. I, for one, appreciate your directness. It’s a breath of fresh air, and I think my son needs a bit of that.” Finley smiled at the handsome man, noticing his prosthetic hand. Turning to Dan, she looked up at him.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” he grinned. “You didn’t embarrass me. You just surprised me.” Turning back to Dan’s father, Finley thought for a moment, then opened her mouth again.

“May I, I mean, can I ask about your hand?” she said quietly.

“You may,” smiled Ryan. “It was cut off when I was taken by some very bad men who wanted to hurt my family. I wouldn’t give them what they wanted to know.”

“Does the prosthetic have neurostimulators connected to the brain?” she asked. Ryan smiled, nodding at her.

“Yes. In fact, my wife, Paige, and I work at G.R.I.P., our weapons and communications research facility. We develop things way beyond weapons, and this is one of the many we’ve come up with.”

“It’s very life-like,” she smiled, touching it. Ryan nodded at her, then gave a wink to his son. As they settled into their meal, it didn’t go without notice that Finley ate twice as much as everyone else at the table. She went back for seconds, then thirds. When she finished, Dan could tell she wasn’t full.

“Would you like more?” he smiled.

“I don’t want to appear rude,” she said. “But the food is delicious.”

“You can have as much as you want,” he said, taking her plate from her. “I’ll go get you some refills and bring back dessert. You enjoy my family.”

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