I note she sidesteps the boyfriend comment and my shoulders relax slightly before I shake my head slightly. What the f*ck do I care if she gets a boyfriend, she’s only here because my dad decided to put a damn ring on it.
Tessa’s POV
The SUV slows before turning into a driveway that has two large iron gates that swing open automatically as we approach.
We head up the long, sweeping paved driveway toward what has to be the biggest house I have ever seen. OK, we didn’t have a lot of money in our family, but my dad’s life insurance paid off a chunk of the two-bed house Mum and I lived in and she worked hard to pay the mortgage that was left, so it’s not like we were living in squalor.
This thing in front of us though? It has three stories and would probably fit our little home inside it at least four times over.
The driver slows to a stop outside of the huge oak front doors, opening his door and sliding out before heading to the back and opening the door for my mother. Hmm seems he did hear me, and took note, good job too, my mum worked her ass off to raise me, no one is going to disrespect her in front of me.
I open the door on my side of the car and slide out, walking to the back of the vehicle and opening the trunk without waiting for an invitation. My laptop and all my possessions are in my case, I am not letting Mr Hunky but moody pants slam it down and break anything.
I feel him before he comes into view, standing beside me as he lifts my mother’s case and sets it on the ground before shutting the trunk again.
‘Oh I can take it dear’ my mother fusses, hurrying over to our driver and trying to take her case as he lifts it up again.
‘No bother Ma-am’ he replies, speaking for the first time since we met him, and I swear my knees go weak as his soft chocolate coated voice drawls out. Dear God, how can someone so grumpy look and sound like that?
My mum pats his cheek affectionately, which seems to shock the man as he stills in surprise for a split second. ‘Well aren’t you just the sweetest’ Mum coos, smiling up at him. Is she just completely oblivious to the man’s don’t touch me vibe or is this like a mum thing and grumpy men have no effect on her?
Leading the way, the driver marches up to the front door, Mum behind him and me bringing up the rear, dragging my heavy case behind me.
The man doesn’t even bother to knock, just opens the door and walks straight in as my mouth falls open in shock. What the heck?
Once inside, our driver places Mum’s case on the floor before grunting something I don’t hear and disappearing.
‘He’s gone to get Henry’ Mum says excitedly as she clasps her hands together, looking around us.
‘Love!’ a deep voice booms before a huge, muscular man strides toward us, his arms opened wide as my mother literally runs to him, wrapping her own arms around his neck as he sweeps her off her feet and spins her.
‘Too long’ he grumbles huskily, kissing my mother as I pretend to be extremely interested in a vase on the table beside me, ‘you should never travel without me again, I just can’t bear it.’
My mum is giggling like a sixteen year old, and I risk a peek at them, thankful that this new man who I assume is Henry, has finally put my mother down again.
‘Oh you’ Mum giggles, touching his face affectionately, ‘I was gone for three days, you make it sound like i’ve been missing for weeks.’
Henry chuckles, the sound rich and deep, ‘that was three days more than I wanted, it felt like an eternity’ he replies, ‘I’ve missed you my love.’
Mum looks up at him like he’s her entire world, ‘I missed you too’ she murmurs.
Awkwardly, I clear my throat loudly, making them both jump as two sets of eyes swing toward me.
‘Oh my God! Tessa!’ Mum shrieks, releasing her new husband and rushing back to me, grabbing my hand quickly before she drags me forward. ‘Henry, this is my daughter Tessa, Tessa this is Henry . . my husband’ she adds with another giggle as Henry smiles at her lovingly.
Turning his gaze back to me, Henry extends his hand, engulfing my own as he shakes it firmly. ‘Tessa’ he says loudly, ‘a pleasure to meet you finally, your Mum has told me all about you.’
I nod, wincing slightly at the strength of his hold on me, he must realise as he relaxes his grip immediately, looking a little embarrassed.
‘Sorry, I forget how strong I am sometimes’ he mutters.
‘Yeah, sorry about Dad, he has no idea how to curb his cave man’ comes a voice from the side of us and I turn toward a flight of stairs and have to blink in shock as our driver is standing halfway up the steps, smiling at us widely.
‘Dad?’ I ask weakly.
‘Yeah, Dad’ comes a second, identical voice from behind me making me scream out loud. Spinning around I find our driver is also leaning against the doorframe of the room he disappeared into earlier.
My head swivels back and forth between the two men who I now notice are dressed differently.
‘Ahhh Tessa,’ Henry calls, drawing my attention back to him, which is a good thing because I think my jaw might still be on the floor somewhere. ‘Please meet my twin sons, Caleb’ he points to the man who picked us up from the airport, ‘and Gage’ he indicates the second man who winks at me, smiling widely.
OK, so they might look alike, but identical twin number two definitely doesn’t have the personality of twin number one. As I absorb the fact I have two stepbrothers, I feel my face burn red in embarassment. Oh God, I called him a driver, I complained about him not opening the door of the car for us . . I peek over at Caleb who has finally removed his sunglasses giving me a clear view of his piercing blue eyes that are studying me. The barest hint of a smirk crawls across his face when he catches me looking at him and I quickly allow my hair to fall forward to block my face.
A hand lands on my arm, and I jump, turning around to find twin two next to me, ‘come on little sis’ he grins, tugging at my wrist, ‘I’ll show you to your room, it’s right across from my old room’ he adds with that mischievous wink again.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.