When Love Walked In

Chapter 23

Chapter 23

"Oh my god." What else was I suppose to say? "Oh my god." I felt a panic attack coming on. "I . . ."

"Sshhh, it's okay," Heather cooed. "Breathe." She guided me over to a chair and brought me a glass of water. "Drink." I took a small sip. "It's okay. I know that you're shocked."

"That might be a bit of an understatement," I said in a serious tone.

She laughed. "I suppose you're right."

"Oh my . . ." I said. "This was not how I wanted us to meet each other. I don't even know what to say. I can't imagine what you must think of me."

"What? What are you talking about?" Heather asked.

I didn't answer. "I think you're an amazing sweet girl with a good heart who cares deeply for my son. I couldn't ask for anything more."

My heart melted with joy at her words. "Speaking of, which, one of my son's are you dating? It can't be Tony or Cole; you would recognize them. Judging by your age, I would think Damien?"

I smiled at his name and nodded. "Yes." Then my smile faltered when I remembered. "Damien. He's here." I started to panic. "Oh . . . what am I going to say? I'm not ready to face him just yet. I thought I was but now that I'm here . . ."

"Tell him what you told me," Heather said. "Tell him he's jumping to conclusions. That none of its true. Tell him that you were hurt by his accusations."

I still felt uneasy. "I don't know . . ."

Then I heard him from somewhere in the house. "Hey, is mom back?"

One of his brothers answered back. "She's in the kitchen."

"Heather," I started to panic.

"It's okay," she said before we were no longer alone. He didn't notice me sitting there and I lowered my head, letting my hair fall forward to shield my face.

"Hey, mom, when did you get back?"

"Oh, not too long ago," she said.

He must have noticed me then, for he said, "Who's this?" He couldn't see my face. With a deep breath, I slowly lifted my head and met his shocked eyes.

Heather cleared his throat. "Damien, I think you already know Amber." He didn't answer. He only stared at me with widened eyes. I let my eyes soak up every inch of his frame. A white towel hung around his shoulders which he used to dry the small patches of hair behind his ears. A clean white shirt fit snug against his broad shoulders and chiseled abs, tightening with every movement, and a pair of loose pants hung low form his hips, fitting against the length of his long legs. His dark hair sat tousled and wet atop his head and his green eyes gleamed with shock.

"Hi." My voice cracked. I cleared my throat.

"Amber will be joining us for dinner," Heather said.

We both looked at her. "I am?" I said.

She nodded. "Of course. I must thank you for carrying those heavy groceries all the way here."

"Oh no, it was no big deal, really . . ."

"Oh, no, I insist," she said, leaving no room for discussion.

"Um, thank you." I looked at Damien. He looked conflicted; like he was trying to be mad but couldn't. He refused to meet my eye. I didn't know what to say or how to present myself to him. "Damien, I . . ."

He walked away before I could finish. Of course, I expected no less. Heather gave me a comforting pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry. Everything will work out." She started busying herself with pots and pans.

"I hope so," I said to myself.

______________________________________________________________________________

About an hour later, Heather was just finishing up cooking dinner. "Alright, now it's time to set the table."

"Oh, I can do that," I offered. I grabbed some silverware and plates from the cupboard Heather directed me to and carefully made my way to their dining room. It was small but decent. The walls were painted a simple pearl color with tinted beige furniture to match. A long dining table with eight placements. I set a plate down on each placement mat, fork on the left, knife and spoon on the right. On my way into the dining room, I noticed some framed pictures up in the hall. Some old and others more recent. Baby pictures, high school graduations, family portraits. Some not even professional shots; blurry in the corners. In one standard frame was a shot of all the Beliena brothers together in the back of a pickup truck. They were all laughing hard about something with their mouths open wide and eyes squeezed shut. In another was a picture of Taylor and Suzy with their arms wrapped around each other in a sisterly hug, huge grins on their faces. They each wore gorgeous dresses, Taylor's an emerald green and Suzy's a sapphire blue; a fancy wedding, with Suzy and Taylor as bridesmaids. There was another photo tucked behind but just as my fingertips grazed the edge of the frame, the sound of the door startled me and I stepped back.

"Hey, I'm home—" He cut off mid-sentence upon seeing me. He had light brown hair and big hazel eyes that were clouded in confusion, and he was carrying a white box. He looked like he wanted to say something but was interrupted by the door pushing into his side.

"Why are you just standing here—?" Taylor broke off when she saw me. "Amber!" Her cheeks were blushed red from the cold, a scarf wrapped around her neck. "What are you doing here?"

Heather came from the kitchen. "I invited her for dinner."

Taylor looked between the two of us. "You two know each other?"

"We just met," I explained.

"You're just in time for dinner," Heather smiled. "Suzy, can you come help me in the kitchen?"

Suzy squeezed herself into the small hall and unzipped her coat. "Hi Amber."

"Hey." She hung her jacket on the coat hanger and kicked off her boots. Taylor followed suit, but the third person continued to stare. "Dan, are you going to move or not?" she asked impatiently.

He quickly snapped out of his confusion and moved to the side to let them through. He tried balancing the box in his hand while simultaneously unbuttoning his coat. "I can that for you," I offered.

He looked at me for a few seconds before slowly handing it over. I watched him unbutton each mahogany button on his coat before hanging it. He then knelt down to untie his boots. He mumbled something I couldn't hear.

I bent down. "I'm sorry?"

He looked up at me. "I asked if you like apple pie." He cracked a smile on his face.

"Um, I don't hate it . . .?"

He nodded and stood up. I handed the box back to him. "Good enough."

Hello my lovely people! It has been too long and I'm so glad I was able to finally upload something. It's short but I've been slowly getting myself together and it's going to take some time so please bear with me. Thank you to everyone who has been continuously supporting When Love Walked In. It means the world to me because it really makes the strive to continue all the more worthwhile so thank you so much! I hope you guys liked this chapter and please vote, comment, let me know what you think, and if you haven't already voted, please do so. Thanks again! <3