Just because she was mad didn’t mean she wanted her family to make him feel bad. She hooked her hand at his arm and they went the rest of the way to the table, where her brothers stood and, after a poke from their mother, her father did as well.
Asa sent out so much charm PJ had to school her features. She gripped his arm a little tighter to keep from stroking his beard or kissing his neck. The man was lethal.
His hair had been drawn away from his face, exposing all that feral, masculine beauty. He wore a dark shirt with a tie that brought out the amber in his brown eyes. He was dressed appropriately for a meet-the-parents dinner. He cleaned up really well, while still being himself.
She introduced him to the siblings he hadn’t met yet before they turned to her parents. “This is my mother, Lenore Colman, and my father, Howard Colman. Mom, Dad, this is Asa Barrons.”
There was handshaking, though her father was cooler than usual; whether it was about Asa or the situation already existing with PJ leaving the company, she didn’t know. And cared about less as each day passed.
“I think we should get a few bottles of wine for the table,” Julie said as their server came over with bread once they’d all sat.
“I’ll have a scotch and soda,” her father said before Julie had finished her order.
PJ was sorry she hadn’t taken Asa up on his offer to get a drink before they showed up because before they were finished with appetizers her father had consumed his fourth scotch.
As it was, she kept herself to one glass of wine because she didn’t know what he might do. Which was disturbing as well as annoying and embarrassing.
Asa, though, kept it together. He asked Lenore about what she did, her hobbies and activities.
“We keep telling her she should run a party planning business.” PJ smiled at her mother. “When you’re invited over to Lenore’s for a meal you always say yes, because it’s going to be really good and she gives presents.”
Julie laughed, putting her head on their mother’s shoulder. “She does. When PJ and I had dinner with her recently she gave us each a silver frame with a picture of our grandmother in it.”
“I was just asking PJ about that photograph a few days ago.”
Of course, he’d been in her bed at the time and saw it on her dresser, but no one needed to hear that detail.
Her mother blushed as they kept talking about what everyone had been up to.
Finally, the most exasperated Lenore had ever been in public toward their father, she said, “Howard, you’re awfully quiet tonight. I was just telling Penelope how much we’ve been admiring her work. From the pictures and articles Shawn sent over last week, remember?”
Her father grunted but said nothing. Asa’s body language radiated anger though he kept a civil tongue and continued to talk with her siblings.
“Penelope tells me you’re gifted with machines.” Lenore shifted, her body language seemingly relaxed, though they all watched Howard somewhat warily as he ordered another drink.
“Excuse me a moment.” Jay got up, dropping his napkin on his seat before walking off.
PJ never found it hard to talk about Asa’s work. He never bragged on himself, so she had no problem doing it with her family. “He’s pretty amazing. Sometimes these cars come in and they’re a total mess. Half the original parts are totally destroyed because it was stored in a barn for sixty years or whatever. And then he shapes the metal and their shop machines new parts and when they’re done it’s totally art.”
Asa squeezed her hand and she blushed. “Sorry, she asked you, I know. I got a little excited to brag on you.”
He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it. “It’s nice to be bragged on.” He turned to Lenore and they talked about restoration, and then transmissions when Shawn jumped in and Jay returned.
It wasn’t too long after they’d finished eating when Asa excused himself along with Shawn and Jay.
“You know they’re all going outside to look at Asa’s BMW, right?” PJ said to Julie.
“Probably. Dad, you should go out there too,” Julie said.
Howard curled his lip. “Why would I do that? I got enough of Penelope’s boyfriend for one night.”
“Howard!” Lenore sent him a stony glare, but he was too drunk to heed the warning on his wife’s face.
“What? She quits her job and shacks up with this creature. She’s an embarrassment to this family to come here with that at her side. This whole thing began when he came into the picture. Am I the only one who can see the connection?”
“Maybe it’s hard to see clearly from the bottom of a tumbler of whiskey. I quit my job because I wanted to do something with my place at Colman and you didn’t want to even listen to my ideas. Asa had nothing to do with that. Also, I live in my own apartment, so we’re not shacking up. But even if I was living with him he still wouldn’t have been connected to why I left Colman.”
“You keep telling yourself that, Penelope. You don’t seem to mind failing at things.”
Everything just sort of froze for long moments as the pain of that sliced through her, tearing at her heart.
Her mother’s face darkened with anger and Julie’s eyes widened.
It was by will alone that she was able to stand without shaking on her wobbly knees. PJ grabbed her purse, pulling money from her wallet and tossing it at her father. “That covers our meal and the wine and tip. And on that loving, positive note, I’m going to leave.”
“Penelope, wait.” Her mother headed after her, along with Julie.
PJ paused at the front doors because she didn’t want to carry all the drama out to Asa, but she did not want to have this scene in a restaurant waiting area either. She shook her head at her mother. “No. I’ve had enough for one night. I’m not going to stay to be insulted and listen to all that stuff about Asa.”
“He’s drunk. He doesn’t know how to deal with you growing up and doing things on your own. You used to seek his approval; he misses that.”
“And yet he continues to toss away any opportunity to give me even the smallest bit of his approval. This isn’t about me growing up and him being a daddy who can’t let go of his princess. Remember his comments about how I love failure? He ought to know. I’ve wasted years of my life begging for his approval. I’ve now accepted that will never happen. I’m done.” It hurt for PJ to say those things, but she meant them, and once they’d been spoken, she had no choice but to hear.
“He doesn’t know what he’s saying.”
“Mom, no. I love you, but please stop. I appreciate that you wanted to meet Asa, but please don’t ask me to pretend I believe that.” PJ hugged her mother. “He knows what he was saying. For a long time I thought it was my imagination that he felt that way. But he’s been up-front about it all my life, so that’s on me.”
Her mother shook her head. “No. Penelope, he loves you.”
“I don’t need that kind of love.” She hugged her mom once more and then her sister.
Julie kissed her cheek. “Call me tomorrow. I mean it.”
“Okay. Drive safe. Love you both.”
When she walked out, she nearly bumped into Asa, who was walking back across the street with Jay and Shawn.
He totally had been showing off his car. That made her feel a little better.
“What’s going on?” Jay stopped her.
“I’m going now.” She hugged Jay and thanked him quietly for being so welcoming to Asa and for the way he’d gone to ask the bartender to water down their father’s drinks earlier.
“What happened in there?” Shawn asked.
“Too much scotch and ego.” She hugged Shawn, relieved Asa hadn’t asked anything yet. “I’m sure Julie can give you the rundown.”
Asa said his good-byes to her brothers and put an arm around her shoulders as they went to the car.
Chapter Twenty-one