Drop Dead.

Oliver’s attitude didn’t improve even a month and a half later. It was impossible to face him and not want to yell at him to get off his period. Of course, Tom took the liberty of doing so and it earned him a few jabs to the shoulder. And they weren’t exactly love-taps either. Melanie seemed to take no notice of a change in her boyfriend’s attitude, so I left it alone and didn’t bring it up.

David surprised me with dinner on a Wednesday evening after I’d gotten off work. He’d walked to the cafe and opted to drive. He had made reservations for the two of us.

“I don’t have anything proper to wear,” I argued, but the blush on my cheeks didn’t validate my argument. He smiled and opened up the back door of my SUV, revealing Melanie’s dark red cocktail dress that she wore that night to the pizza parlor. “David.”

“Come on. I have a proposition I’d like to run by you,” he pushed, sending me a million-watt smile. My heart melted and my eyes flickered between David, standing there with a hopeful grin on his face and the dress in my backseat. Sighing, I agreed and David let me get changed in the back of the SUV as he drove to the restaurant.

It was a mission and a half to try and undress then redress myself without flashing anything vital to David in the front seat. Once or twice I fell between the backseat and the back of the driver’s seat and almost got permanently stuck. Luckily I managed to wedge myself out without any injury. By the time I was finished strapping on Mel’s silver heels, David was opening the back door and offering his hand. Smiling, I took it and stepped out of the SUV.

He laced our fingers together as we walked through the front door and gave his name to the hostess, an older woman with way too much purple lipstick. She grabbed two menus and spun on her heel, led us to a table in the back. It was a dimly-lit place, not too formal but not quite casual either. David sat across from me, never breaking the contact between our hands as they rested on the table beside the salt and pepper shakers.

Our waiter came over and took our drink orders, then left us alone to decide what we wanted. I ordered a simple pasta dish and David went for the sirloin. Once the waiter had left us again, David joined our free hands and held them tightly in the middle of the table.

“So,” he started. He fidgeted a little and it brought a smile to my face, as well as an excited bubble to my stomach. He was nervous about something. “We’ve been dating for a few months now and I think – well, if you want to, that is...I’m not going to force you to do anything you don’t want to – ” I cut him off by placing a hand over his mouth, ceasing his rambling. I was smiling, so he knew I wasn’t getting irritated by his anxious stammering.

“What do yeh want to ask me, David?” I asked him simply, slowly pulling my hand from his face. I rejoined our hands in the middle of the table and he sighed.

“I was thinking that you could meet my family. In Ireland,” he finally forced out. Everything stopped, including my heart and breathing. If a guy asked you to meet his parents, it meant he was serious, didn’t it? There was no doubt in my mind that I was serious about David.

Well then, with that thought, why was I hesitating?

“You can bring Melanie and Oliver, too,” he added, noting my hesitation. I would definitely need the emotional support Melanie provided and, at times, Oliver did as well, but at the moment he was being a prat. However, I left his attitude out of the equation and nodded my head.

“I’d love to, David,” I answered, smiling brightly to show him that I wasn’t unsure about meeting his family. He grinned and, perfect timing, our food arrived.

As we ate, David filled me in on his family and assured me that they would adore me. He reminded me as we were leaving to tell Melanie and Oliver of the trip as well.

The pair were huddled up on the couch when I walked in. Luckily, I had no disturbing images and I asked to speak to both of them in the kitchen. My hands clasped in front of me, I sighed and looked them both in the eye.

“David wants me to meet his family,” I told them, trying as hard as I could to keep my voice steady to hide my anxiety. The shock hadn’t completely settled in, but I knew it would as soon as I was on that plane bound for Ireland.

“Really?” Melanie exclaimed. She abandoned Oliver’s side to wrap me in a hug. “Char, that’s great news! It means ‘e’s serious about yeh! Yeh serious about ‘im, right?”

I nodded happily, letting the smile take over my face. “Of course. But um, I kind of want yeh to to go.” My gaze flickered to Oliver, who seemed to be shocked to stone, then back to Melanie. “Yeh know, for emotional support.”

“Char, of course we’ll go. Right Olleh?” she said, turning her head to her boyfriend. He looked up and his eyes bounced between my curious eyes and Melanie’s pleading ones. Finally, he nodded.

“Yeah, sure.” Somehow I didn’t think he was so sure about this and I just prayed that he’d be on his best behavior while we were visiting the Murphies.