Once inside, they were led to a table where her entire family waited. She and Asa weren’t late. She’d gotten them there fifteen minutes early, even with the thing she and Asa had had at her place.

She should have known they would have been there twenty minutes early just to make her feel bad even when she hadn’t done anything wrong.

Julie grinned up at them, standing and heading over to hug her and smile at Asa. She held them in place, speaking quietly. “You’re early. Shawn and I bet Jay fifty bucks. He said you’d be ten minutes early. I said fifteen, so I win. Shawn said twenty.”

“How early were you?”

“I got here three minutes ago. Shawn and Jay only just put napkins on their laps when you two walked in, so don’t let them make you think they were here yesterday at dawn or something.”

PJ cringed inwardly. This weird family stuff must seem so strange to Asa. It was pretty embarrassing when she thought about how it must look from the outside. Then again, he’d totally kept an entire marriage from her and she was still annoyed.

Just because she was mad didn’t mean she wanted her family to make him feel bad. She hooked her hand at his arm and they went the rest of the way to the table, where her brothers stood and, after a poke from their mother, her father did as well.

Asa sent out so much charm PJ had to school her features. She gripped his arm a little tighter to keep from stroking his beard or kissing his neck. The man was lethal.

His hair had been drawn away from his face, exposing all that feral, masculine beauty. He wore a dark shirt with a tie that brought out the amber in his brown eyes. He was dressed appropriately for a meet-the-parents dinner. He cleaned up really well, while still being himself.

She introduced him to the siblings he hadn’t met yet before they turned to her parents. “This is my mother, Lenore Colman, and my father, Howard Colman. Mom, Dad, this is Asa Barrons.”

There was handshaking, though her father was cooler than usual; whether it was about Asa or the situation already existing with PJ leaving the company, she didn’t know. And cared about less as each day passed.

“I think we should get a few bottles of wine for the table,” Julie said as their server came over with bread once they’d all sat.

“I’ll have a scotch and soda,” her father said before Julie had finished her order.

PJ was sorry she hadn’t taken Asa up on his offer to get a drink before they showed up because before they were finished with appetizers her father had consumed his fourth scotch.

As it was, she kept herself to one glass of wine because she didn’t know what he might do. Which was disturbing as well as annoying and embarrassing.

Asa, though, kept it together. He asked Lenore about what she did, her hobbies and activities.

“We keep telling her she should run a party planning business.” PJ smiled at her mother. “When you’re invited over to Lenore’s for a meal you always say yes, because it’s going to be really good and she gives presents.”

Julie laughed, putting her head on their mother’s shoulder. “She does. When PJ and I had dinner with her recently she gave us each a silver frame with a picture of our grandmother in it.”

“I was just asking PJ about that photograph a few days ago.”

Of course, he’d been in her bed at the time and saw it on her dresser, but no one needed to hear that detail.

Her mother blushed as they kept talking about what everyone had been up to.

Finally, the most exasperated Lenore had ever been in public toward their father, she said, “Howard, you’re awfully quiet tonight. I was just telling Penelope how much we’ve been admiring her work. From the pictures and articles Shawn sent over last week, remember?”

Her father grunted but said nothing. Asa’s body language radiated anger though he kept a civil tongue and continued to talk with her siblings.

“Penelope tells me you’re gifted with machines.” Lenore shifted, her body language seemingly relaxed, though they all watched Howard somewhat warily as he ordered another drink.

“Excuse me a moment.” Jay got up, dropping his napkin on his seat before walking off.

PJ never found it hard to talk about Asa’s work. He never bragged on himself, so she had no problem doing it with her family. “He’s pretty amazing. Sometimes these cars come in and they’re a total mess. Half the original parts are totally destroyed because it was stored in a barn for sixty years or whatever. And then he shapes the metal and their shop machines new parts and when they’re done it’s totally art.”

Asa squeezed her hand and she blushed. “Sorry, she asked you, I know. I got a little excited to brag on you.”

He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it. “It’s nice to be bragged on.” He turned to Lenore and they talked about restoration, and then transmissions when Shawn jumped in and Jay returned.

It wasn’t too long after they’d finished eating when Asa excused himself along with Shawn and Jay.

“You know they’re all going outside to look at Asa’s BMW, right?” PJ said to Julie.

“Probably. Dad, you should go out there too,” Julie said.

Howard curled his lip. “Why would I do that? I got enough of Penelope’s boyfriend for one night.”

“Howard!” Lenore sent him a stony glare, but he was too drunk to heed the warning on his wife’s face.

“What? She quits her job and shacks up with this creature. She’s an embarrassment to this family to come here with that at her side. This whole thing began when he came into the picture. Am I the only one who can see the connection?”