At Your Most Beautiful, Harper Bliss [books to get back into reading .TXT] 📗

That gray head of hair. That lanky, stiff silhouette. Even though Maya had assured her they would come, Quinn hadn’t been able to shake off every doubt. But there they were.

Now that she actually saw her parents, Quinn wasn’t so sure she’d be able to hold back those tears for much longer.

“Sweetheart.” Her dad walked in with his arms outstretched.

Quinn all but ran into his embrace—once a daddy’s girl, always a daddy’s girl. Tears ran down her face as she pushed herself against her father’s solid, safe chest. She felt her mother’s hand against her back.

“What’s all this?” her dad said, gesturing at the room. “Looks like you’ve been busy.”

Quinn dried her tears. For a moment, she’d wished she could hide in her father’s arms all night long.

“Darling.” Her mother squeezed her shoulder and kissed her on the cheek. “You’re quite something, but I’ve known that forever.”

“Oh my god.” Quinn exhaled audibly. “Up until you walked in, I really wasn’t sure you’d come.”

“We’re here.” Her dad pinned his gaze on her. “Got it?”

Quinn nodded, even though she didn’t know if he meant anything else by that. But they were here and it was really all that mattered. She glanced at the door. No sign of Maya yet.

“Walk us through?” her dad asked, after he had said hello to Griff and had a glass of champagne in his hand.

Quinn steered them to the opposite side of where Maya’s portrait hung. She’d wisely save that for last.

Quinn turned the corner, her parents in her wake. They hadn’t mentioned Maya yet, but soon neither one of them would have a choice, because she had just walked in.

Quinn could feel tension crackle in the air. She heard her mother inhale sharply—as though she’d just seen a ghost.

Maybe they should have set up this confrontation somewhere else other than in this gallery, where more people were starting to arrive, but this was how things had turned out. Quinn thought everyone involved would be civilized enough not to make a scene at an occasion like this.

Maya walked straight toward them with that confident gait she had from a life of dance. She stopped in front of Quinn, a wide, undaunted smile on her face. Maya had battled so many doubts about them and to have her show up like this, tonight of all nights, unfazed in front of her parents, meant the world to Quinn. She reached for Maya and kissed her briefly on the lips.

“Congratulations,” Maya said. “I could just burst with pride.” Only then did she look sideways—did she turn her attention away from Quinn. “Bill and Brooke Hathaway.” She gave a slight shake of the head. “I guess we have a thing or two to talk about.”

Quinn watched her dad extend his hand, as if this was their formal first meeting and they hadn’t been neighbors for decades. But she couldn’t expect miracles to happen. Or maybe one had already happened. Maya had shown up unafraid to face her parents, which meant she was no longer ashamed of her and Quinn being together—of them.

“Oh, come on, Bill.” Maya took his hand but, at the same time, pulled at his arm and drew him near for a hug. “The number of steaks you’ve cooked for me on that precious grill of yours and now you’re just going to shake my hand?” Maya had a lifetime of performance experience and she obviously knew how to turn it on.

Quinn’s dad embraced Maya, stiffly at first but then he relaxed, giving in to the affections of the woman he’d known for such a long time. But Quinn’s dad was always going to be the easiest to win over. The true test would be her mother.

Once extricated from Bill’s hug, Maya turned to Quinn’s mother. “Brooke.” Did her voice just break a little? Maya cleared her throat. Maybe hugging Quinn’s dad had loosened some emotions in her. Maybe it made her think of Tommy—the next ordeal on their list. “It’s so good to see you.”

Quinn could easily tell how much Maya meant it and she could only hope her mom could feel it too. That despite the circumstances not being ideal, they could be a kind of family tonight. Quinn knew that her parents being here and socializing with Maya didn’t mean they had suddenly, as if by magic, accepted that they were together. But maybe they could just start by pretending. By getting a feel for how things would be if they spent time together in this particular constellation.

“Oh, Maya.” Her mom shook her head but then opened her arms wide for Maya. Their hug, no matter how swift, or perhaps even put-on, touched Quinn deeply.

“Say it ain’t so,” Quinn’s dad said. At first, Quinn thought he was referring to Quinn’s mom and Maya’s embrace, but then he said, “Is that Tommy?”

Maya froze. So did Quinn. She looked at the door and that was definitely Beth Robbins who had just walked in.

“On my god,” Griff squealed behind her. “Beth Robbins! I didn’t know she was coming.”

Neither did I. Quinn guessed, from the look on her face, this was a big surprise for Maya as well.

Chapter 41

What on earth were Tommy and Beth doing here? Maya didn’t get it. She had mentioned Quinn’s show to Tommy when she’d told him about having run into Quinn but she surely hadn’t invited her son and daughter-in-law. Why would she have? Moreover, Quinn’s name hadn’t come up in conversation since Beth had caught her in Maya’s bathroom.

Bill and Tommy shook hands while Quinn’s roommate was going gaga over Beth.

Maya’s brain frantically searched for answers. She exchanged a look with Quinn. “Did you know they were coming?” she whispered.

Quinn shook her head. “No idea. You?”

“None. Something’s going on.”

“Like what?” Quinn asked.

Imogen tapped Quinn on the shoulder. “Quinn, if I could just steal you for a moment, please.”

“Will you be okay?” Quinn asked Maya.

“Yes. Go do your thing,” Maya said, all the while feeling Tommy’s intense stare.

“Hey, Mom,” he