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that.
    She squeezed me tight, arms around my neck, and kissed my cheek, breathing out some tension. We had always gotten along well, even at our first meeting. I was always a big hit with parents; the word “lawyer” worked wonders.
    “How was your flight?” Deb asked, leaning back to look up at my face, her arms dropping off my shoulders and resting on my chest. She was comfortable standing there in the circle of my arms. I was as much her kid as either Barbara or Joe, and that had been making me happy since I met her five, almost six years ago. I had lost my own mother when I was fifteen, so she was the only one I had. 
    “I had ‘the guy’ sitting next to me, you know, that ‘guy’, the one who wants to chat.”
    “On the redeye.” She was annoyed for me. “My goodness, why didn’t he just let you get some sleep?”
    “I know why,” Joe grumbled.
    “Shhh,” I shushed him.
    “Oh honey, you didn’t tell him you were a lawyer, did you?”
    “That’s not the reason, Mother,” Joe snapped irritably.
    “It was,” I lied, smiling suddenly, leaning to kiss her cheek. “I think he overheard me on the phone before we boarded.”
    “How rude,” she continued.
    “I’m never letting you fly alone again,” Joe muttered.
    I ignored the love of my life in favor of his mother. “You look great by the way.”
    “Guys hitting on you—what the hell, you wear a ring, for crissakes!”
    “And I really love the haircut,” I continued.
    “Finally!” she almost shouted. “Somebody noticed.”
    “You got a haircut?” Barbara asked, sounding shocked.
    Deb’s exasperated snort made everyone laugh as she gave me a last squeeze before releasing me to her husband, who came up behind her to hug me as well. I liked that my boyfriend’s father didn’t just shake my hand; it was nice that he had to hug me too.
    “How are you, Marcus?” he asked when he let me go and looked up at my face. “You took the redeye out, huh? Tired?”
    I groaned. “Yes, sir, but just get some coffee and food in me, and I’ll be ready to go.”
    “Good.” He smiled before he stepped sideways so Joe’s sister Barbara could hug me.
    I lifted Barbara Locke off her feet and crushed her against me.
    “God, Marcus,” she giggled as I put her down, her hands on my face. “Why can’t I find one like you?”
    “Oh sweetie, don’t worry. There’s the perfect guy out there just waiting for ya.”
    And there was. Barbara was smart and funny and classically beautiful with big blue eyes and high cheekbones and full lips. If I were straight, she would have been mine. But as it was, her brother was the one I pined for.
    “Suck-up,” Joe said under his breath.
    “Joseph,” Barbara snapped at him as she stepped back beside her mother. 
    “Did you guys at least give him a snack this morning?” I asked his sister.
    “No, so that’s why he’s like this. He needs food, and coffee too.”
    “Marcus, honey, let me introduce you to Ellen—”
    “Wait,” Joe snapped, reaching for me.
    I grasped the questing hand, wrapping mine around it, noticing as always the warmth and the strength of his grip. This was not a man who sat in an office all day. He worked with his hands and he worked hard. As the owner and operator of Bumpy Road Limited, he could have taken a less physical role in his company, but he considered himself and everyone he employed to be part of the same team. He stocked shelves, talked to vendors, and called on accounts. He did every job in his company equally, which was why, I was certain, he was so beloved.
    I squatted down beside the bench, hand on his knee as I looked up into his gorgeous clear blue eyes.
    They were the first things I had ever noticed about him. They were pale, almost opaque cerulean with flecks of India ink in them. I had been out drinking, had turned to head back to the table from the bar—there to buy the last round—and he had suddenly been in front of me, and I was swallowed up in his gaze.
    I