The Tick-Tock Between You and Me by Kristy Tate

Author:Kristy Tate [Tate, Kristy]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-05-08T22:00:00+00:00

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“There are some things you need to know about my family,” Darby told Chad as they drove past the gatehouse toward the highway. “And we probably need to establish some ground rules.”

“Ground rules?” Chad asked with a smirk.

Darby nodded. “I’ve tried throwing my…friends into my family without warning or rules and it’s always ended badly. Forewarned is forearmed.”

“I need to be armed?” He glanced at the road. “Where are we going? I thought your sister is in town?”

“She is, but your car is at the school. I’m taking you there. Unless you don’t think you’re well enough to drive?”

“Is there some reason you don’t want me to meet your sister?”

Darby blew out a breath. “I love all of my family—even crazy Uncle Bob, but you have to understand…”

“What? They can’t be all that bad.”

“Well, there’s a ton of them.”

He nodded slowly.

“It’s best to take them on one at a time…slowly, step by step. It’s like when you have an allergy, but you don’t know what is causing your itch, so you eliminate all foods and slowly reintroduce each one trying to gauge which one gives you a reaction.”

“You’re seriously comparing your family to an allergen?”

Darby nodded slowly. “It’s a fair comparison.”

Chad whistled through his teeth.

“Look, you have one sister.” Darby placed her hand on her chest. “I have four sisters and almost as many brothers. Plus, I have six nephews and two nieces. And we all have dogs. So many dogs. It’s like a fur fest when we’re all together.”

“Are you all together a lot?”

Darby nodded. “We have dinner at our house every Sunday.” She swallowed. “But since Benjamin—”

“Brit-Boy?” Chad put in.

“I’ve been skipping out.”

“And why is that?”

She cleared her throat. “They got the wrong idea about him.”

Chad didn’t say anything.

“I probably gave them the wrong idea about him,” she clarified. “Because I had the wrong idea about him.” She bit her lip and tightened her grip on the steering wheel, hating herself for being so wrong, for loving him so fast…could the same thing be said about Chad? What had she been doing? Was she setting herself for another heartbreak?

“Your family still doesn’t know you broke up with him?”

“Can you not mention Benjamin when you meet them?”

“You still want me to be there at the wedding, right?”

Darby stopped at a traffic light. “Do you think I’m embarrassed about you? That I would ever choose Benjamin over you? It’s not that.”

“You can go,” Chad said.

“What?”

He motioned at the light. “It’s green.”

“Oh.” Relief whooshed through her. “I’m asking a lot of you. The wedding and everything.”

“I’m happy to host your sister’s wedding. I’m flattered. And I mentioned the idea of using the ranch as a wedding venue and Cecelia loves the idea.”

“And your parents and Grandpa Bern?”

“I didn’t tell my parents—because they don’t need to know. And Grandpa Bern doesn’t care, as long as no one upsets his horses.”

“Your dad and stepmother…”

“Intend to sell the ranch as soon as Grandpa dies.”

“But that could be years away!”

“And I hope it is.”

She reached over and squeezed his knee.

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