Learning Curve

Wednesday April 2nd

Scottie

“Just so you know,” Finn says as he stops right outside a pretty brownstone that makes my knees shake even harder than they already were.

Meeting the family is a huge milestone in any relationship, but meeting the family your boyfriend just found out he had in a house bigger than Pretty Woman’s Blue Banana is on a whole other level.

“My family has now tripled in size.”

“Tripled?” I question incredulously, doing the quick math in my head. “How has it tripled? There were five of you before and five more now, that stands to reason that it would have doubled. The math isn’t mathing.”

He smiles. “You know what, you’re right.” I sigh a deep breath of relief, but he cuts it off to continue, “There are five new siblings, but they’re all married, and they all have kids. So, it’s not really tripled. More like quintupled.”

“Finn Hayes, you are not helping!” I whisper-yell.

He winks and takes my hand to lead us up the stairs. “Relax, babe. It’s going to be all good.”

He seems confident, but that doesn’t mean I believe him.

The door swings open before Finn even has a chance to knock, and a young teenage boy with bright-blue eyes and a stylish mohawk answers. “Yo, Finn. You’re late.” His eyes move over to me, and immediately, a small smile etches on his mouth. “And you’ve brought a friend,” he states and says friend as if there’s a far bigger meaning to the word.

Finn just claps him on the shoulder. “I did bring a friend. My girlfriend, Scottie.”

“Hi, Scottie,” the teenager says and holds out his hand. “It is my greatest pleasure to meet you.” He makes a show of taking my hand in his and kissing the top of it.

Finn shoves him away from me with a laugh. “Okay, Hawk, that’s enough flirting with my girl.”

His name strikes me as completely odd, but somehow, it also fits the handsome teen like a glove.

Finn takes my hand again and walks us into the house, and he doesn’t stop until we’re in the dining room that’s overflowing with people and bursting at the seams with chatter and laughter. Holy hell, he wasn’t lying. It’s a miracle everyone is able to fit in here.

“Finn’s here, Grandma!” a teenage girl with brown hair shouts, and a woman with silver-gray hair, and who looks to be in her seventies, peeks in from the kitchen to smile at us.

“Hi, Finn!” she greets.

“Hi, Aunt Wendy.”

“Would you like to introduce us to your friend?” she asks and steps into the dining room as she’s wiping her hands on her apron.

“Yeah, Finn, why don’t you introduce us to your friend?” a handsome man questions with a wry grin. Hawk is now standing beside him, and their resemblance is so uncanny I would gamble a million dollars that they’re father and son.

My eyes scan the room, and a sense of relief settles in my chest when I spot Jack, Travis, and Willow. Finn’s sister immediately comes over and wraps me up in a big hug.

“I’m so happy you’re here,” she says, and I don’t have to pretend that I feel the same.

“Me too.”

“Everyone,” Finn announces loud enough to draw the attention of every pair of eyes in the room. “This is my girlfriend, Scottie. Scottie, this is…everyone.”

It’s dumb that my heart still zings whenever I hear him say girlfriend, but I can’t help it. I’m proud to be Finn Hayes’s girlfriend. Happy. Elated. Grateful. Sometimes I feel like we’ve been to hell and back and it’s a miracle we managed to find our way back to each other. And sometimes I think it’s no miracle at all because we’re meant to be.

Everyone in the room starts to head our way to formally introduce themselves. I meet Finn’s mom Helen, and she wraps me up in the kind of warm hug that only a mother can give, and Wendy Winslow’s hug is just as warm.

I meet Remy Winslow and his wife Maria and their daughters Carmen and Izzy.

I meet Flynn Winslow and his wife Daisy and their twin sons Roman and Ryder.

I meet Jude Winslow and his wife Sophie and their daughter Meadow. I also find out that I was right about Hawk being Jude’s son.

I meet Winnie and her husband Wes and their son Wes Jr. I’m also introduced to their daughter Lexi Winslow and offer a secret smile in her direction.

And I say hello to Professor Ty Winslow and meet his wife Rachel and their daughter Emily.

It’s strange seeing Professor Winslow outside of the lecture hall, but it’s even stranger to see how close he and Finn have become. Though, I guess it shouldn’t be much of a surprise. Over the past two months, I’ve witnessed more text conversations and phone calls between the two of them than I can count. I knew if Ty had known about Finn, he would care, and he’s more than proven me right.

“Winslow-Hayes Family Dinner Night is officially served!” Wendy announces as she carries a massive bowl of chicken fettuccini alfredo into the dining room and sets it on the table. Helen is right behind her with an Italian salad, and Winnie is right behind her with a tray of garlic bread sticks.

Finn pulls out a chair for me to take a seat beside Willow, and he sits down on my other side beside Ty. Everyone dives into the food like they haven’t eaten in days, and the laughter and chatter don’t stop between bites.

Finn looks so damn happy that I can’t swipe the smile off my face as I watch him talk to Ty and Wes about Dickson’s football team’s prospects for next year.

“I’m impressed with Boden,” Wes says. “He’s only a sophomore and damn near won his team a championship. If he can keep his mind off my daughter, he might even live to see the NFL.”

I widen my eyes at Finn as Lexi snorts and shakes her head, and he mouths that he’ll explain how Wes knows about Blake’s crush on Lexi later.

“I’m going to remember this conversation when you’re trying to draft him,” Remy states, and Wes doesn’t even balk.

“He plays like Quinn Bailey.”

“And Quinn won you a championship,” Remy remarks.

Lexi surprises us all when she looks across the table to meet my eyes. “You know the Dickson cheerleaders are better statistically than Dickson’s football team? They’ve won more NCA Championships that any school in their division, and it all started decades ago. If you guys win this year, you’ll set a Guinness World Record.”

Finn wraps a proud arm around my shoulders. “Oh, don’t worry, Lex. My girl is ready for Daytona next week. You can get the record book ready.”

His girl. Swoon.

Lexi shakes her head, refuting him. “I don’t have any contacts at Guinness.”

I’m surprised she took him so literally, but nobody else is, and for my part, I don’t have time to dwell on it. The conversation keeps moving at a million miles per hour.

“Scottie, you’re on the cheerleading squad at Dickson?” Wendy asks and I nod.

“Yes.”

“Are you nervous for the competition?” Ty’s wife Rachel questions. “That seems like a crazy amount of pressure.”

“Oh, it is.” A nervous giggle escapes my lungs. “I’ve never been on a stage this big, but I’ve been doing competitive cheerleading my whole life, so I’m hoping it’s prepared me for this.”

“You’re going to do great, Scottie,” Finn says and presses a kiss to my cheek.

I don’t miss the way Willow and Helen watch or the smiles that spread across their faces.

“I can’t wait for the day I get to be a bridesmaid at your wedding,” Willow whispers into my ear, and I just about choke on my garlic bread.

“Slow down, girl.”

My shocked reaction doesn’t faze her in the least. “Mark my words, Scottie. You’re going to be a Hayes one day.”

I know Finn overhears that last comment, but the man doesn’t clam up. He doesn’t look like he wants to run for the hills. He just presses a kiss to my forehead and continues eating his food.

On the outside, I’m playing it cool.

But on the inside, my heart is marking ideal dates on the calendar five to six years from now and scouring the internet for the perfect wedding dress.

Which is totally insane, right?