Henry had asked his parents to meet him at the restaurant half an hour earlier than the others. He wanted to tell them about Fiona in person to gauge their reaction. Tonight was the first test to see if he and Fiona could behave as only friends with others around. She was still determined not to tell her family, and if this didn't go well, then there was no hope of that happening.
Henry knew the Stevens family well enough to understand why she wanted to keep their relationship quiet for the time being, and he didn't take it personally. If their nickname were anything to go by, the teasing would be relentless.
He noticed Kate and Lee at a large table in the back as soon as he entered, and he couldn't help the smile that lit his face at the sight of them. He was fortunate to have them in his life.
When Kate saw him, she stood up and held open her arms in greeting. There was no doubt that she was happy to see him.
"Henry!" she greeted as she hugged him tight before turning him over to Lee.
"Son!" Lee said as he also hugged him.
"Thanks for meeting me early," he said as he joined them, sitting at the table.
"Of course, who all is coming this evening?" Kate asked.
"It's gotten a little out of hand," Henry admitted. It was only supposed to be Fiona and his parents, but the phone tree had been activated, and they had a total of ten for dinner.
"Phone tree?" Lee asked with an amused grin.
"Yes, at last count, we're a party of ten. The three of us, Fiona, Kellan, Charlie, Laura, Davis, Lily, and Finn. With everyone being on the east coast, they thought it would be nice to see each other while they had the chance."
"Oh, Lily and Finn," Kate said as she grabbed Henry's arm. "Wonderful! I haven't seen them in almost a year! Are they bringing the kids?" Spoken like a true grandmother. Lily had three girls that ranged from sixteen to eleven.
"I don't think so," Henry frowned. They hadn't said they were. If they did, that would make three more.
Kate smiled at someone who had approached the table, and Henry looked up in time to see Bebe reach his side.
"Henry!" Fiona's roommate greeted him. Henry took in her dress shirt and slacks with an apron and realized that she was their waitress. Well, that added another challenge to the evening, and the thought amused him.
"Bebe," he greeted with a smile. "These are my parents, Kate and Lee Mercer. Mom and Dad, this is my friend Bebe."
Bebe blushed as she said the words. "I'm so sorry about the other night!" Bebe said in a hushed whisper, but she wasn't so quiet that Kate's ears didn't perk up. It had Henry second-guessing himself with sharing the news of him and Fiona. He loved his mother, but she was close to Lily and Charlie, who were close to the Stevens.
"That's all right." Henry's smile grew tense. He was no longer amused.
"I'm sorry I wasn't awake when you left," Bebe apologized, making matters a heck of a lot worse.
Kate leaned forward to grab Bebe's attention. "Bebe, is that short for something?"
"No, it's just Bebe." Bebe smiled as Kate pulled her into the chair next to her.
Henry took a deep breath and rubbed his face. Kate was off on the third degree. She had obviously added two plus two and came up with five.
"Can I talk to you alone, Dad?" Henry leaned in and asked softly.
"Sure," Lee said, standing and walking towards another table a few yards away. "I take it your mother has the wrong end of the stick?" Lee looked lovingly at his wife.
"Yes, and her eagerness has made me rethink my decision to tell her what's going on." Henry made his stance wide as he crossed his arms and watched his mother.
"What's going on?" Lee asked with a frown.
"I'm in love," Henry smiled as he thought of Fiona.
"But not with Bebe?" Lee grinned. It was funny in a way. Whether Fiona would find it funny was another matter.
"No, with Fiona" Henry took a deep breath watching Lee nod his acceptance at the news. "But she wants to keep it quiet for now."
"It was only a matter of time before it happened. She's always been a determined girl, and she's been in love with you since the day you met." Lee wasn't concerned with her reasons for keeping it quiet, and Henry was thankful for that because it sounded odd no matter how he explained it.
They both watched Charlie and Kellan arrive, and Kate immediately started introducing them to Bebe while shooting covert looks over at Henry and Lee. Lee watched his wife through narrowed eyes, thinking about Henry's concerns about telling her the truth.
"I'm telling you only because if something happens to me, someone will have to tell Fiona." Henry swallowed hard at the thought.
"I get it, Henry." And he did because he had been there. "But I don't like keeping things from your mother."
"That's fair. I'll leave the decision to tell Mom up to you, but please let her know if you decide to tell her that we are keeping it to ourselves for now." Henry watched as Lily and Finn showed up with a lot of fanfare. They were famous faces, and everyone took note when they entered the restaurant.
Lily Baxter, who he called sister but was his cousin, was a famous actress and singer, and Finn Baxter was a famous actor. They had met on one of television's top dramas over fifteen years earlier, and their girls were not with them.
Finn saw Lee and Henry standing off to the side and joined them along with Kellan. Meanwhile, Bebe departed the table, and Kate, Lily, and Charlie put their heads together in a huddle.
"Is that your girlfriend, Henry?"Kellan asked.
"Nope," Henry shook his head.
All four of them nodded as they watched the women talk. "That's awkward," Finn said to no one in particular.
"Yep," Henry agreed, and it would get more awkward when Fiona arrived.
Henry was the only active SEAL in the bunch, but they were all SEALs. Kellan and Lee had served together but were still in good shape even though they were well into their sixties. Finn had served under Lee but had been honorably discharged when he had lost his leg in his accident. He was now in his late forties but was still in excellent shape because of his chosen career of acting.
Last to arrive at the party were Laura, Davis, and Fiona.
Fiona and Henry's eyes connected across the dining room, and Henry was lost. She looked beautiful. She was wearing a light blue dress, and her blond hair was in a high ponytail.
He couldn't take his eyes off of her.
"It's Fiona," Finn noted, and Kellan nodded his agreement.
"Son, if you and Fiona hope to keep this quiet, you're going to have to do better in hiding your feelings," Lee whispered.
"We're keeping it quiet?" Kellan asked, looking at Henry.
"Her choice, not mine." Henry frowned. Once again, he realized that it made him uncomfortable to say.
They watched as Fiona said hello to the women at the table then moved to greet Henry and the others. She gave them all kisses on the cheek, as was the family custom, and Henry noted Kate immediately pulled Laura to the side to fill her in on the latest development.
There could be no telling Kate, not as long as Fiona wanted to keep it quiet. It disheartened Henry because he wanted to share the news with both of his parents.
"What's wrong, Henry?" Fiona asked as they all started to move back toward the table and the others.
Henry shook his head as he held out a chair for her near her uncle on the opposite end of the table from where he was sitting with his parents. It hurt him to do, but what choice did he have if he honored her request.
*******
Fiona watched Henry. Something was off, and she wasn't sure what. Henry had greeted her like he always had, which she had expected, but he seemed almost sad, and she didn't expect that.
Bebe came rushing toward her with a grin. "Fiona! You know Laura Wren and Lily and Finn Baxter!" she said in a hushed whisper.
"Laura is my aunt, and Lily is Henry's sister," Fiona explained with a frown. "What are you doing here. I thought you had the night off?" It was the only reason Fiona hadn't been concerned when Henry had mentioned the restaurant.
"I did, but a shift came up, and I need the money for textbooks. Isn't that Kellan Hillard, and isn't he supposed to be your prof next quarter?" Bebe was eyeing him. "He's a fox for an older man. I could go for him."
"His wife is sitting right next to him," Fiona said dryly.
Bebe shrugged, then started to work the table taking everyone's drink order.
Dinner was going well, and Fiona noticed everyone being extra pleasant to Bebe, which she thought was nice considering they didn't know she was Fiona's roommate.
Bebe was talking and laughing as if she was an old friend of everyone, and Henry was speaking in a low voice to Lee and Finn, who were sitting next to him. Fiona desperately wanted to know what they were talking about.
Fiona was halfway through the main course when her phone buzzed, and she looked down to see a text. The entire table looked down, which meant it was a family text with Henry's family tacked on.
Henry's got a girl! The text exclaimed.
The sender was Charlie, and Fiona looked around the table as everyone pocketed the phones, trying to play it cool. Fiona's eyes jumped to Henry, who was saying something to Lee while refusing to look at her.
Bebe left, and Charlie leaned across the table. "She is so sweet!" Charlie said to Henry as she patted his hand. "We are so happy you found yourself a girl." She shot a covert look at Fiona to see how she was taking the news.
Fiona's mouth was suddenly dry as she reached for her water. "Henry had a girlfriend?" she calmly asked, even though she felt anything but calm.
"Yes, Bebe! Didn't you know? I saw you talking to her earlier." Kate frowned, not wanting to upset Fiona.
"I didn't know. Bebe is my roommate." Fiona looked across the table at Henry.
Henry sent a forced smile at her in return. "She was telling Kate that she was sorry she wasn't awake the other morning to say goodbye when I left." He raised an eyebrow, asking Fiona without words if she wanted him to explain the truth of the matter.
"You're Bebe's roommate, and you didn't know Henry was in the house?" Kate asked, confused.
"Of course she knew!" Bebe said as she rejoined them at the table at the exact wrong moment. "He snuck in through Fiona's window. The entire thing was so romantic! Even the neighbors were helping, and I heard that Mrs. Hallaway made him muffins before he left."
There was complete silence at the table as everyone looked at Henry and Fiona.
Henry's girl is Fiona! Finry had happened! Davis texted as he shoveled another bite of food in his mouth. Everyone turned to look at him.
"What! I do not agree with Henoa at all!" Davis shook his head.
"Wait, you snuck in Fiona's window? Why?" Laura asked with a look of total confusion.
"Why does any man sneak in through a girl's window?" Finn asked in amusement.
"Could it have something to do with that odd-looking girl at the bar who keeps staring at us?" Lee asked, leaning back in his chair.
Fiona closed her eyes. This was not going as planned.
"Excuse me!" Henry said as he stood, throwing his napkin down in frustration before walking to the bar where Dixie sat, watching them
Fiona's phone exploded.
"Majority calls it!" Davis said. "Finry wins."