She went up on her toes and pressed her lips to his, holding them there until the loud growling of her stomach interrupted the moment. She felt his lips curve into a smile against hers, and she pulled back.
“I’m hungry,” she said.
“I can see that.” He laughed, brushing the hair away from her face.
Leah turned and grabbed their plates, and Danny grabbed his coffee and hers, following her out to the table.
They sat down and immediately dug into the food, and Danny shook his head as he chewed. “You’re spoiling the shit out of me with this,” he said, nodding toward his plate.
“You could make this, you know. It’s not hard.”
“You’re overestimating my culinary abilities.”
“You put cars back together!” she laughed. “I’m pretty sure you could make an omelet.”
He grinned, taking another bite. “So what time should I pick you up tonight?”
“Pick me up?”
“Well, yeah. I have to go home first. I’m not gonna meet your dad in my walk-of-shame clothes.”
“No, I know you have to go home,” she said with a laugh, “but you’d have to pass my dad’s house to come up here to get me.”
“So?”
“So you’ll be driving an extra twenty minutes to turn back around and do another twenty back down.”
“Okay.”
“Okay, so that’s a ridiculous waste of time and gas. You don’t have to do that.”
Danny put his fork down on the table and leaned toward her. “Leah?”
“Yeah?”
“What time should I pick you up tonight?”
She stared at him for a second before she conceded with a sigh. “Five thirty.”
Danny smiled, taking his elbows off the table as he picked up his fork. “There. Now, was that so hard?”
As Leah and Danny walked up her father’s driveway, she bit the corner of her lip, glancing over at him. She couldn’t understand how he could be so calm; her stomach rolled incessantly the entire drive to her father’s, and now that they were nearing his front door, she felt like she might be sick.
Danny noticed her looking at him, and he gave her a tiny smile, squeezing her hand as they walked up the steps. They stopped in front of the door, and Leah looked up at him.
“Last chance to back out,” she said, and he smiled.
“I’m all in,” he said, placing a reassuring hand on the small of her back, and she took a deep breath before she turned and opened the front door.
The sounds of talking and laughing instantly greeted them, immediately followed by the smell of Sarah’s lasagna.
Here we go, she thought just as her brother’s voice boomed through the house.
“Oh, you’ve got to be fucking kidding me! Somebody paid this ref off!”
She flinched and shook her head, looking up at Danny.
“Does he have a swear jar?” he asked.
Before she could answer, Sarah and Alexis came out of the kitchen.
“Hey guys!” Sarah said excitedly, taking the bottle of wine out of Leah’s hands. “Danny, I’m so glad you decided to come.” She went up on her toes and kissed his cheek, and he smiled his dimpled smile at her.
“Here, let me take that,” she said, reaching for the dessert box with the Giovanni’s logo scrawled across the top. “Whatever’s in here needs to be hidden before my brother sees it.”
She turned and walked back toward the kitchen, and Alexis stepped forward, holding out her hand. “Hi, Danny. I’m Alexis, Chris’s wife.”
Danny took her hand and leaned down, planting a kiss on her cheek. “Nice to meet you,” he said, and she blushed slightly.
Leah removed her coat and Danny followed suit. As Leah reached for it, Alexis intercepted it. “No, let me take those. You guys go inside. Danny, the boys are all drinking beer. Do you want one? Or a glass of wine?”
“A beer would be great, thanks,” he said, handing her his coat. Alexis smiled with a nod, turning toward Leah to take her coat. She made eye contact with her, raising one eyebrow before she continued toward the hall closet.
Leah turned to Danny, looking up at him as she took a breath. “Ready?”
He nodded. “If you are.”
She forced a smile and turned to walk toward the family room. Goddamn him, he was still the epitome of calm and collected. Meanwhile, her pulse was rushing in her ears as they approached the room.
As they reached the doorway, three heads turned to look at them simultaneously. Her father was sitting in his usual place in the recliner, and her brother was laid out across the couch, one hand behind his head. Kyle was on the love seat, one arm draped across the back and the other holding a bottle of beer on his knee.
“Hey, look who’s here!” Chris said, swinging his legs over the couch as he sat up, and her father shifted in his chair, gripping the sides as he pushed himself up to stand.
He walked toward them, glancing at Danny before he brought his eyes to Leah. “Princess,” he said, reaching out to give her a hug. He ran his hand up and down her back as he whispered, “Relax,” in her ear.
She nodded, taking a deep breath before he released her.
Chris and Danny were already shaking hands; her brother looked amiable enough, but Leah knew him well enough to see that he was assessing Danny as he looked at him.
“Danny, this is my dad.”
Danny smiled, extending his hand. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Marino.”
Leah watched her father carefully as he reached forward and clasped Danny’s hand, and she exhaled in relief when she saw that Danny was meeting her father’s gaze. For as long as she could remember, her father had always said that he never trusted the intentions of a man who couldn’t look him in the eye when they shook hands.
“Good to meet you, Danny.”
“Here you go,” Alexis said from behind them, and Leah turned to see her handing Danny a beer.
“Where’s mine?” Chris said, and Alexis shrugged.
“My guess would be in the fridge.”
Danny pressed his lips together and looked down, only allowing himself to laugh when everyone else did.
Her father turned and walked back to the recliner. “Have a seat, Danny.”
He took a few steps into the room, and Leah was about to follow just as Alexis said, “Hey, Leah? Sarah said she needs you in the kitchen.”
She glanced at Alexis before she turned to Danny, biting her lip.
“Beat it, mother hen,” Chris said casually, and she shot him a dirty look before turning her eyes to Danny.
“You okay in here?” she mouthed, and he nodded encouragingly.
“He’ll be fine,” Alexis said softly, wrapping her arm around Leah and guiding her to the kitchen.
As soon as they entered, Sarah handed her a glass of wine.
“Thanks,” she said, taking a long sip as she leaned up against the counter.
Alexis held up her hands. “Okay, I’m just gonna say it. Gor…geous,” she said, making it sound like two separate words.
“You should see him shirtless,” Sarah said, smirking at Leah over her wine glass before taking a sip.
“No way,” Alexis said as she fanned herself. “I couldn’t handle it. Pregnancy hormones are a force to be reckoned with.”
“I hate both of you,” Leah said, blushing crimson, and the girls laughed.
The three of them continued working on dinner, and at one point, Christopher came into the kitchen to get another round of beers. As he turned from the fridge, he made eye contact with Leah, and she raised her brow at him. He smiled softly before he winked, and then he made his way back out to the family room.
At that small token of approval, Leah felt some of the tension leave her shoulders, and she smiled to herself as she chopped up the vegetables for the salad.
A little while later, Alexis and Leah were dishing out the lasagna while Sarah called the boys in for dinner. Kyle came through the kitchen first, kissing Sarah’s temple before he continued through to the dining room.
The sound of laughing caught her attention, and Leah turned as Chris and Danny entered the kitchen together. Chris smirked at her, tousling her hair roughly as he passed, and she swatted at him, jerking out of his reach. Before she could fix it, Danny came over to her, running his hands through her hair and detangling it.