The Christian Bachelorette

Week 8: Meeting his family (part 1)

"My parents' are throwing us a welcome home barbeque," he states as he drives us to his house.

I glance at him and smile in appreciation. My stomach tenses the closer we get to his house. I've tried not to be nervous about meeting his family, but I know how much family is important to both of us. I just want everything to go well and for them to like me. We still have a lot of decisions to make, and his parents may not like that.

I'm pulled from my thoughts as he places a hand on my knee and squeezes it gently. "Hey, they are going to love you." I nod in response when we lock eyes, but I stay silent.

As we drive through his hometown, he describes special landmarks along the way. He tells me that we can drive around another time and take more time to look around.

"We are almost to my house," he says. "Up here is the family garage." He slows down as we approach it. "That's strange."

"What?" I question and glance at him.

"It's closed. Dad never closes early. I thought he would work late to get all the business done relatively on time while I was away."

He opens the door to his house, and we shuffle through the threshold with our bags. "I'm home!"

His mom rushes to us from another room and envelops him in a hug. "My boy! I've missed you!" She exclaims, and he hugs her back.

"I missed you too, Mom."

She releases him and turns to me. "You must be Adelaide." I nod with a smile. "Reece has told me so much about you. You can call me Evelyn. It's so good to meet you!" She steps forward and hugs me too.

"It's nice to meet you too," I smile.

"Is everyone else in the backyard?" Reece questions, and his mom nods. "Do you need any help?"

She shakes her head and pushes him towards the back of the house. "Go on and say hello to your dad. I'm perfectly capable of handling the food on my own."

Reece chuckles and wraps his arm around me before we head out to the backyard. He opens the door for us, and the smell of barbeque on the grill envelops us. His dad turns around to face us and straightens up from his previous slouched position. He smiles and waves with a spatula in his hand. "Welcome home, Son. How was the trip?"

We walk over to his dad and stand next to him. "It was good. Better than the trip up there." Reece responds and glances at me. "This is Adelaide, Dad."

He sets his spatula down and wipes his hands off on some paper towels. He reaches his hand out for me to shake, and I do. "Nice to meet you, Adelaide. You can call me Lawrence."

"You too," I smile.

The back door opens and Evelyn walks through carrying food. "I hope your sister gets here soon. The food's almost ready, right, honey?" She says and sets the food down on a picnic table.

Lawrence nods.

"Are you sure you couldn't use some help?" I ask Evelyn.

"Only if you don't offer to wash dishes later," she responds.

I grin and nod. I walk along beside her up to the house. "It's a deal." Once we are in the kitchen, she loads my arms full with containers of various foods. "Thank you for welcoming me like this, and thank you for cooking too."

"You are very welcome. We are thrilled to have you. It's been a long time since Reece has met someone so special to him," she smiles at me before grabbing the last few items.

We had out to the backyard and begin to set all of our food and other items on the table. The back door opens, and I finish setting my items on the table. "Who's she?" A woman's voice questions angrily.

I straighten up and turn around. The woman glares at me. I stand still uncomfortably and unsure of what to do.

"Riley!" Evelyn reprimands.

"She's my girlfriend. Don't treat her like that." Reece says and comes over to me. "Who's he, sister?" Reece glares at the couple.

"My boyfriend, brother." Riley responds bitterly.

The man waves awkwardly. "Hi, my name's Zion."

"This should be interesting," I hear Lawrence mutter. "Barbeque is ready! Let's eat!"

HELLO EVERYONE!

I KNOW THIS IS A SHORTER CHAPTER, BUT IT IS A VERY IMPORTANT CHAPTER.

SPEAKING OF CHAPTERS... THERE IS ONLY ONE MORE LEFT! IF I GET IT DONE BEFORE FRIDAY, THEN I WILL UPDATE SOONER.

THOUGHTS ON REECE'S FAMILY?

I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE ENJOYED READING THIS STORY AS MUCH AS I'VE ENJOYED WRITING IT.

THIS CHAPTER AND NEXT CHAPTER ARE MORE OF A SNEAK PEAK OF WHAT BOOK TWO WILL DEAL WITH.

I START SCHOOL SOON SO I'M NOT SURE HOW SOON I WILL POST AND UPDATE THE SECOND BOOK, BUT I WILL DEFINITELY LET YOU KNOW.

HAVE A WONDERFUL DAY!

LOVE, K