Starter Wife (The Jilted Wives Club Book 1) by Bethany Lopez (a court of thorns and roses ebook free TXT) 📕

pulled the skirt of my dress down, I looked to Luca and said, “Oh, and your parents will be here any minute.”

“What?” he asked, looking at me with disbelief just as the doorbell rang.

“Oh my God, they’re here. I wanted to make it up to you, and them, by having a nice dinner with the kids tonight.”

Luca blinked at me and said, “That’s very sweet. But you have sex hair and lipstick all over your face. Why don’t you go get cleaned up and I’ll get the door. How do I look?”

He reached down to pick up the scraps of my panties and pocketed them before running his hands through his hair and straightening his shirt.

“Perfect, thanks,” I said, already jogging out of the room so I could go upstairs to my bedroom. There was no way I was having dinner with his parents without panties on.

When I got to my room and saw myself in the mirror, I sent up a prayer of thanks I hadn’t passed my kids on the way. I quickly shut my door and locked it, then peeled the dress off as I moved toward my dresser.

I grabbed some underwear and moved to my closet, figuring it better to go with a demurer outfit than the one I’d just had sex with their son in…

I held my hand up to my mouth and stifled a laugh as the last few moments played back through my mind.

I can’t wait to tell Summer and Margo about this!

I cleaned up, changed into a black dress with big red roses, and fixed my hair and makeup before going to tell my kids Luca’s parents were here and we’d be having dinner soon. Then, as a trio, we made our way down the stairs to greet our guests.

Yes, I was using my kids as buffers, and no, I did not feel the least bit bad about it. They were a wonderful balm on my now frazzled nerves and made me steadier simply by being present.

“Thank you so much for coming,” I said as we entered the living room. “This is Stella and Silas. Kids, this is Mr. and Mrs. Russo, Luca’s parents.”

“Hi,” Silas said, moving to shake their hands.

“It’s nice to meet you,” Stella added as she followed to do the same.

Luca’s dad accepted the handshakes, but Franny pulled them each in for a hug instead.

“You are both so beautiful,” Franny cooed as she took them in.

“Thank you, ma’am,” Silas replied sweetly, causing my heart to flutter.

I glanced around the room, making sure we hadn’t knocked anything over or left any evidence of our tryst lying about.

When I saw the coast was clear, I shot what I hoped was an audacious look at Luca, who grinned back at me.

Biting my cheek to keep myself in check, I looked at the group and asked, “Can I get you all a drink?”

“I’ll help, I know what they like,” Luca offered, taking my hand and leading me out of the room.

Once we were safely in the hallway, I felt his lips on my shoulder.

“Mm, another beautiful dress,” he murmured against my skin.

I tilted my head and gave a little moan in response.

“We’d better get their drinks and not get caught up again,” I said, stepping away from him and his addictive lips.

“I can’t believe you forgot your kids were home,” Luca whispered.

A giggle escaped my lips as I said, “I know. That could have been a real disaster.”

I had a chilled chicken orzo salad in the fridge and Zuppa Toscana soup simmering on the stove. It was a simple, yet hearty meal, and although I’d agonized over whether or not the meal would be impressive enough for his parents, i.e., mother, I’d needed to keep it simple if I wanted to do all the things I’d had planned for the day.

“So, I have wine, red and white, beer, and a bourbon,” I told him as I opened my cupboard.

“Bourbon for my dad, white wine for my ma, and I think I’ll just have water.”

I glanced at him curiously over my shoulder.

“I may have hit the bourbon a little too hard last night as I spilled my guts to Damon,” he admitted sheepishly.

“Oh yeah? I’d love to hear about it.”

“And I’d love to tell you about it. Maybe later tonight? I could stay over…”

He looked so hopeful I couldn’t help but smile.

“I think that’s a great idea.”

His answering grin was happy and sexy, with a hint of promise.

We poured the drinks and carried them back to the living room, where the foursome was talking animatedly as if they’d known each other for years.

The look on Luca’s face was pure joy, and I knew I’d made the right decision in inviting his parents here to meet my kids one on one.

This is going to be the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

Thirty-Eight

Luca

“If any of you say or do anything … if you even look at Whit or her kids sideways … I will hog tie you, coat you with peanut butter, and leave you out for the wolves,” I warned all the members in my family, who were currently standing in my ma’s kitchen staring at me as if I’d lost it.

“Wow, that’s quite the visual, brother,” Vanni said with a grimace.

“Even us, Uncle Luca?” Peter asked excitedly.

“Yup, even you,” I replied. “And that isn’t a challenge.”

Peter and his brother shared looks that meant that’s exactly how they’d taken my threat and I groaned as I shot a look at Sara.

“They’ll behave,” she promised with a smile.

I shot a look at Char, who was cradling Sky to her chest.

“Ma took the baby overnight, so I am working with a full twelve hours of glorious sleep. I’m more rested than I’ve been in twelve months. You don’t have to worry about a thing on my end.”

My sister did look great, and I wasn’t really worried about anyone doing anything that would cause problems today, but it still felt necessary to threaten them with bodily harm,