My Shifter Boss

Chapter 9

Lucy dozed on the plane ride home while Maryann and Nathan discussed business. Nathan had some good ideas about how to handle Marissa, but Lucy had tuned them out soon after boarding. She was on vacation, as far as she was concerned; that bi*ch was not going to dominate her thoughts the entire trip.

Lucy’s main concern was her father. So many questions ran through her head. What would he say about her mother being elected Head? Would he be willing to move without argument, as her mother claimed? What about Nathan? Would he like him? Approve of him? She shook her head. They were bringing a lot of baggage home with them, and she hoped her dad was able and willing to cope with it all.

At the airport, Nathan had to rouse her from sleep with a gentle shake of her shoulder. She stretched and smiled at him, then rose to collect her things from the overhead compartment. Nathan still had her hand and looked at his own; he’d collected her bag for her. He’s such a gentleman, Lucy thought as she pecked him on the cheek. He stepped back to let her go first, and they slowly made their way down the aisle and off the plane behind her mother.

Lucy’s father, Frank, was waiting out front. He rushed forward and enveloped both women in his huge arms. “My girls are finally home! I’ve missed you!” He planted a kiss on Lucy’s forehead and a lingering one on his wife’s lips. He stepped back and greeted Nathan with a handshake. “You must be Nathan. Maryann has told me about you. Of course, this one has been tight-lipped.” He nudged his daughter playfully.

“So, are you embarrassed of me?” Nathan teased

Wide-eyed, Lucy shook her head. “Of course not. I just knew you’d be coming with us on this trip so why tell Dad when he’d get to know you first hand.”

“Nice cover, sweetheart,” Frank said. “Come on, everybody. I’m parked just over there.”

The ride to their home was filled with chatter, though nothing important was brought up. Frank shared the gossip about the people in town, and Maryann filled him in on the Marissa debacle. Lucy raised an eyebrow at her mother, who shook her head.

“What are we doing for dinner tonight?” she asked her husband. She knew he loved to grill for big groups and would love the opportunity to show off his culinary talents.

“I have steak and shrimp ready for the grill.” Maryann and Lucy exchanged a glance, smirking. “I thought you and Lucy could bake some potatoes and make a salad while us men work over the open flame.”

Lucy rolled her eyes at Nathan. “Manly men doing manly things.”

Nathan grinned. “I’m no slouch on the grill, sir. I’d love to help out.” He looked out the window, grateful for the opportunity to speak to Lucy’s father on his own.

Lucy leaned over and whispered to Nathan, “I think Mom is going to tell Dad after dinner so we can give her some support if she needs it. She’s going to make his favorite dessert, banana pudding.”

“I think that’s a good idea. I know I’m always more willing to listen if my stomach is full of good food.”

“Ah, something to remember.” She winked at him.

After a forty-five minute drive, they arrived at the home Lucy had grown up in. White with a green roof, the house was only one-story but wide and spacious. The front porch stretched across the entire front of the house and had two porch swings, one on each side of the green front door. Baskets with overflowing ivies hung sporadically over the rail of the porch, and tall oak trees shaded the entire front yard.

Nathan, who’d grown up in the city, looked around at the large yard, the neighbors’ houses spaced out, the inviting home, and sighed. Lucy looked at him questioningly. He looked down at her and wrapped an arm around her.

“This place is beautiful. I’ve always lived in apartments, except for the year I spent as a gypsy. I’d love to live in a place like this.”

“I didn’t know you spent a year as a gypsy,” Lucy said, surprised.

“Yeah. Left the city and crossed the Midwest, lived on the beach in California for a bit, rambled across the south, made it up to Montana at one point, and finally landed back where I started.”

Lucy sighed with envy. “Sounds absolutely amazing.”

“It was the best time of my life.”

She nudged him. “So far.”

He looked back at her, grinned, and squeezed her shoulders. “So far.”

They grabbed the bags and followed Lucy’s parents into the house. Frank had taken his wife’s hand as they walked, smiling down at her. Lucy had been envious of her parents’ love and relationship her whole life, thinking that would never be possible for her. She looked at Nathan, and felt the love she saw in her mother’s eyes when she looked at her father. I found it, she thought.

*****

The grill was hot, almost ready for the steaks and shrimp. Frank had marinated the steaks all day, and the shrimp he’d wrapped in tinfoil with butter and various herbs from their garden. The spices smelled heavenly. He and Nathan drank beers and chatted amiably as they waited for the grill to heat.

“How long have you been seeing my daughter?”

“Not as long as I wish,” Nathan answered, much to Frank’s surprise. “Speaking of Lucy, I’d like to talk to you about something.”

Frank sighed. He knew what was coming, and he didn’t like it. Lucy was his only daughter. He watched as Nathan fished a box out of his loose shorts; when he saw the ring box, he sighed again.

“Frank, I’m in love with your daughter and I want to marry her.” He glanced over his shoulder to make sure Lucy and Maryann were still in the house. He opened the ring box to show Frank the ring.

Frank whistled in admiration. The ring was unique, like his daughter. A simple band of platinum with a round-cut diamond. Smaller diamonds were set into the band on each side of the diamond, and the platinum was shaped around the diamond in such a way that it looked like a flower.