Graduating (Covenant College Book 5) (12 page)

“Just take a deep breath.”

If the front door of Aric’s home was any indication, I was about to walk into a palace. All rational thought had fled, and I was starting to panic. Nope, I’d passed panic the second we pulled into the driveway. I was bordering on catatonic now. Give me a psychopath trying to kill me? I’m fine. I even thrive under the pressure. This was a whole other scenario.

Whoa! Why do I feel light-headed?

Aric’s hands were on my shoulders and he was shaking me. “Breathe!”

I opened my mouth, gulping in huge gasps of air. Once my equilibrium reset, I turned to find Aric watching me with a mixture of amusement and concern. “Are you going to be a spazz for the next two weeks? Or, is this going to be a temporary thing?”

“I’m not being a spazz,” I said.

“Okay,” Aric said, reaching for the doorknob. “I stand corrected. You’re acting perfectly normal.”

Aric led me into the house. Actually, to be precise, he led me into the foyer of the house. It was so big, you could fit the entire house I’d grown up in within the cavernous four walls. The floors were marble, the decorations beautiful, but the atmosphere was cold. This room was clearly for show.

“Wow.”

“It’s just a house, Zoe,” he said, dropping our bags on the floor and linking his fingers through mine. “Are you ready?”

I glanced down at our bags. “Are you just going to leave those there?”

“For now.”

“Doesn’t that throw off the ambiance of the room?”

Aric smirked. “It will be fine.”

I let him lead me through the room, inadvertently tripping over the edge of the rug as I shuffled my feet. Aric caught me before I hit the floor. “Yeah, you’re not spazzing at all.”

“Just … just … just don’t leave me alone with these people,” I hissed.

“These people are my parents.”

“I’m not joking.”

“I got it,” Aric said. “I can’t wait to explain to my parents why you’re going to the bathroom with me. That’s a kink fetish I never thought I’d share with them.”

I frowned. “Don’t say things like that in front of them. They’ll think I’m a slut.”

“Oh, baby, I already told them that in the email I sent last week.” His grin was lazy, but he rubbed his hand over my shoulder in a comforting manner. “My dad is really excited to meet you now.”

I scowled.

“My mom, however, she’s worried you have herpes.”

I smacked him on the arm, my hand throbbing as it met his solid flesh. “I’m going home.”

“I drove,” Aric pointed out. “You’re stuck here. You might as well just suck it up. I didn’t make a fuss when I met your parents, and your dad wanted to stand guard with a shotgun.”

“That’s different,” I protested.

“How?”

“Because that was fun for me,” I said.

“Ah, good to know.” Aric said, pulling me through the house again. “I promise, everything is going to be fine.”

I wanted to believe him, the hammering in my chest was so loud, though, it was drowning out every other thought in my head. The Winters’ house was a labyrinth, and after five turns, I knew I could never find my way out of this place again. Maybe that was their plan? I’d be trapped here forever, and I would become one of those cautionary tales that would forever haunt young women when they were about to meet their boyfriend’s parents.

The room Aric ultimately dragged me to was bright … and different. This room was warm and cozy. It was still huge, but a fire was roaring in the corner, candles were burning on various tables, and almost every wall in the room was covered with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves.

The woman sitting on the couch in the center of the room was small. Her hair was long and black, her eyes dark and emotive. She resembled Aric … kind of. She was too small, though. Aric practically dwarfed her.

“Well, the prodigal son returns,” she said, getting to her feet and wrapping her arms around Aric’s solid middle. “I’d almost forgotten what you looked like.”

Aric hugged the tiny woman back, genuine affection rolling off of him. “Hi, Mom.”

I hopped from one foot to the other beside him, not sure how to proceed. Once she was done hugging her son, she turned to me. “You must be Zoe. I can’t tell you how nice it is to meet you.”

I extended my hand nervously. “You, too, Mrs. Winters.”

“Call me Helen,” she said, grasping my hand firmly. “Mrs. Winters is far too stodgy.”

“Helen.”

“Zoe is nervous,” Aric said. “She stopped breathing on the front porch.”

His charm comes and goes. “He’s exaggerating.”

Helen smacked him playfully on the arm before moving closer to me. “I think he likes being in control, dear,” she said. “He’s used to you calling the shots. This makes him feel like he’s in charge. It’s a man thing.”

Aric rolled his eyes. “That is a lie.”

“Whatever, dear,” she said, leading me over to the couch and settling me into the open spot next to her. “Why don’t you get Zoe and me a drink? You know, make yourself useful.”

I already liked this woman.

Aric did as instructed, returning a few minutes later with some sort of liquor over ice for his mother and a beer for me.

“You didn’t ask her what she wanted,” Helen said. “You just assumed she wanted a beer.”

“I’ve seen her drink,” Aric said. “She’s not picky.”

“Do you want something else, dear? I think my son has forgotten his manners.”

“This is fine,” I said. “He’s right, I’m easy.” Crap. That came out wrong. Maybe she didn’t notice.

Aric’s sly smile told me he had. I shot him a dark look.

“So, Zoe, why don’t you tell me a little about yourself,” Helen said. “I only know what Aric has told us.”

“Which is?”

“He says that you’re smart and driven,” Helen said.

Well, that wasn’t so bad.

“He also says you’re bossy, mouthy, and refuse to listen.”

Yup. I was going to have to kill him.

“I didn’t say she was mouthy,” Aric said. “I said she was sassy.”

“Is there a difference?” I challenged.

“I love your sassy mouth,” Aric said, clearly sensing he was on the edge of a dangerous precipice.

“Why don’t you shut your mouth and let me get to know Zoe,” Helen suggested. “I think you’re just going to keep sticking your foot in your mouth if you don’t take a breather.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Aric said, saluting.

Helen shook her head. “He has a weird sense of humor,” she said. “He’s been this way since he was a child.”

“I bet he was a cute kid,” I said.

“He had his moments,” Helen said. “What were you like as a child?”

That was a hard question to answer. “I don’t know,” I said. “I came from a really small town. I mean, really small. There weren’t a lot of options, so I just kind of decided to be popular and hung around with those kids.”

“They weren’t friends, though?”

“I didn’t dislike them,” I said. “I just never really connected with them.”

“And now?”

“I have close friends,” I said. “Things are different now.”

“And how are you liking your time at Covenant College?” Helen asked, her question pointed. Aric had told me his parents were aware of not only who I was, but what I was, too.

“It’s interesting,” I said. “I like parts of it. Others? Let’s just say I’m looking forward to graduating in the spring.”

“And what happens then?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“That doesn’t seem like a smart way to approach your life.”

I jumped when another voice joined the party, glancing up to see Aric’s older clone swagger into the room. He was tall, like his son. His hair was jet black and shot through with gray at the temples, which gave him a distinguished look. He was dressed in a suit, his tie loosened around his neck.

He gave me a brief and cursory look, but instead of heading in our direction, he moved straight toward the bar. “I see you two made it in good time. I actually thought I would beat you here.”

“Dad,” Aric said, leaning back in his chair. “Merry Christmas.”

“James, why don’t you come over here and meet Zoe,” Helen suggested. “You know, act like a gracious host.”

“I’m getting a drink,” James said gruffly. “I’ll be over there in a minute. She doesn’t look like she’s going anywhere.”

Aric’s eyes were full of reassurance when I met them, but I was suddenly unsure again. His mother had been welcoming, putting me at ease. His father was the exact opposite.

When he was done at the bar, James Winters sat down in the open chair at the edge of the rug and stretched his long legs out in front of him. “So, this is her?”

Helen frowned, shooting her husband a harsh look. “Her name is Zoe,” she said.

“Zoe Lake,” James said. “I’m well aware of her name. I’ve had occasion to clean up a few messes associated with it.”

Well, I immediately didn’t like him. “Yeah, thanks for that,” I said. “You’ve been a tremendous help. I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t vanquished the sphinx your son fought off.” I knew my tone was sharp, but he was purposely trying to rankle me – and it was working.

“Did you forget the part where I also made sure that no one found out you’d actually killed your roommate?”

“Dad,” Aric warned.

“I’d already done the heavy lifting, how much work was possibly left for you?”

James raised an eyebrow. “Well, I see the tales of your mouth weren’t exaggerated.”

“I can’t for the life of me understand why people say all politicians are dicks.”

Aric made a sound in the back of his throat. When I risked a glance in his direction, I was relieved to find his shoulders were shaking with silent laughter.

James pursed his lips. “You’re not scared of me, are you?”

“Why would I be scared of you?”

“You are dating my son,” James pointed out. “Most girls would be nervous walking into this situation.”

“Well, I’m not most girls.”

Aric lifted an eyebrow in challenge, but he wisely remained silent.

“I figured you were different from most girls the minute my son first mentioned you,” James said. “It would take someone … special … to catch his interest. He’s got the Winters’ genes, after all, and women are just drawn to Winters men. Just ask my wife.”

Helen rolled her eyes as she sipped from her drink. “It’s true. I was drawn to him the minute I saw him. It was like magic. He used a cheesy pickup line on me, and I dumped a drink over his head. It was love at first sight.”

I stifled a giggle.

“Yes, but I did make an impression,” James said, a warm smile washing over his face.

“Yes,” Helen said. “Two years later, I finally agreed to go out with you. It was quite the impression.”

“Who won in the end?”

“I think I did, dear,” Helen said.

James blew out a sigh, but the exasperated look he shot his wife was also full of love. It softened his features. “So, Zoe, I understand you’ve managed to find more mischief this year.”

“It seems to find me,” I countered.

“That does seem to be your lot in life,” James said. “What are you going to do about it?”

“I don’t know what to do about it,” I admitted. “The cops are watching my every move. I’m betting they’ve got someone parked outside of your house right now.”

“I saw them when I pulled in,” James said. “I wouldn’t worry about them. They look like the B-Team. The A-Team will be off for the holidays.”

“We have no idea who the students were,” I said. “No one is giving us any information. I tried to talk to Professor Blake about it, but he’s feigning ignorance, too. It’s like all the information has disappeared into a big, black hole.”

Aric leaned forward in his chair, his face suddenly colored with rage. “You did what?”

I stilled. Had I forgot to mention that to him? Uh-oh. “Yeah. It was right after the blizzard. I had an hour to burn.”

Aric was on his feet. “You went to Blake’s office alone?”

I made a face, embarrassed he was acting this way in front of his parents. “It’s not like you were going to go with me,” I said. “I was only there for like twenty minutes.”

“That’s not the point!”

“Calm down, Aric,” Helen said. “The girl is obviously fine.”

“Butt out, Mom,” Aric said. “You have no idea what you’re talking about. You weren’t there. You didn’t … see.”

“If I’m not mistaken, son, she’s the one who handled the situation at the library last year,” James said. “Wasn’t she the one who not only saved you, but healed you as well?”

“Healed him? Why did he need healing?” Now Helen was upset.

“It was nothing, Mom,” Aric said. “I just got … .”

“Whipped by a sociopath,” I muttered.

“You were whipped?”

I immediately regretted my words. “It was my fault,” I said. “Everything that happened was because of me. Aric was just trying to protect me. I’m the one who broke into Blake’s office and stole all his files. I’m also the one who stole the resurrection stone from the Alpha Chi house. It was my roommates and me who destroyed the stone. Everything that happened falls on me.”