Wow. Brady had really outdone himself. But she felt rude rejecting the earrings after he had gone to all the trouble of picking them out for her, and they were beautiful. “Thank you,” she finally said.
She removed the pearls she had been wearing and placed the diamonds into her ears. She took a look at them in the mirror and smiled. They did look amazing, and complemented the dress to perfection.
He kissed her on the mouth softly when he caught hold of her. “You’re going to make it difficult to keep my hands to myself.”
“I sure hope so,” she murmured.
And then she kissed him. If they hadn’t had somewhere to go, she wasn’t sure he would have let her leave the apartment again.
They exited the building through the front lobby again and she noticed a shiny black stretch limo parked in front of the building. “Seriously?” she murmured.
“It’s the only way to travel,” Brady insisted.
The driver opened the door and Brady got in first, since Liz couldn’t possibly slide over in that dress. They drove across town to pick up Victoria and Daniel, who were waiting for them outside their hotel.
Victoria screamed when she saw Liz’s dress. “I feel underdressed,” Victoria said. She was wearing a floor-length halter number that looked great on her curves, but it might have been the first time Victoria was right: she couldn’t keep up with Versace.
“You look beautiful,” Liz reassured her.
“Oh I know, but you look . . .” Victoria pondered the right word and then smiled. “You look like the fucking First Lady.”
Liz blushed. “Can the First Lady wear strapless dresses?”
“You could. Right, Brady?” Victoria asked.
He smiled, that same adoring look in his eyes. “You can wear whatever you want.”
They all piled into the limo and then drove back into the center of the city. The driver dropped them off in front of a convention center, where they were quickly escorted toward a banquet hall. Brady placed his hand on Liz’s shoulder and pulled her aside.
“Mind if I talk to you before we go inside?” he asked.
“Oh, sure,” Liz said hesitantly.
“Y’all can just head in and get drinks. We’ll only be a minute,” Brady told Victoria and Daniel.
“See you inside,” Victoria said with a smile. Liz heard her say something about finding the bar.
“What’s up?” she asked nervously.
“More surprises. I hope you’re okay with this one.” She arched her eyebrow and waited for him to elaborate. “Well, I don’t mean to spring this on you, but my parents will be here tonight.”
Liz swallowed nervously. “Your parents?”
“Yeah. Nothing formal. I just thought it would be nice to reintroduce y’all before we enter the banquet.”
“Oh. Well, okay,” she said, as if she had a choice.
“Don’t worry.” He kissed her forehead. “They’re going to love you.”
Liz nodded nervously and tried to straighten out her wrinkle-free dress. If they were going to pick a night to play meet the parents, at least she knew she looked fabulous.
Brady led her around a corner and into a smaller, nearly empty parlor. Her palms sweated, and she took a deep breath to try to calm herself. Brady squeezed her hand for reassurance and she plastered on a smile.
“Ah, there you are, sweetie,” Brady’s mother said, walking up and giving him a kiss on his cheek. “Your father was just wondering when you’d be in. Liz.” She gave Liz a warm hug. “So nice to see you again.”
“You too, Mrs. Maxwell,” Liz said with a cheery smile.
“Oh, honey, please call me Marilyn.”
“Of course.”
“And I’m Jeff,” Brady’s father said, coming forward and extending his hand. Ever the politician. She shook his hand and felt herself relaxing. “We met at the restaurant in Chapel Hill, correct?”
“Yes, sir,” she responded.
“I love that place,” he said cordially. “We should all go back when we’re home again.”
“I think so too,” Brady said, wrapping his arm loosely around Liz’s waist.
“Then it’s settled,” Marilyn said. “We’ll get together later this spring.”
“Liz is graduating from UNC this May, so maybe around then,” Brady suggested casually.
“Oh, that sounds lovely. I spent so many years there teaching chemistry. My first love,” Marilyn said.
“Second,” Jeff corrected, kissing his wife softly on the forehead.
“Well, of course, but I think I loved chemistry first.” She shrugged unapologetically.
Liz just stared at them in awe. They were totally adorable and in love. She hoped that she would be like them one day.
“Let’s not keep everyone waiting,” Jeff said, ushering them to a side door.
They walked into the banquet hall and found it full of people dressed to the nines in formal wear. Tables were set up around the room for dinner, which was about to be served, and a dance floor took up a large portion of the front of the room.
“What’s this for, anyway?” Liz asked.
Brady shrugged. “Just a state dinner. We have them all the time.”
“Is the president going to show up?”
“Probably not. Usually the money goes to a charity. I believe this one is for children’s literacy.”
“A cause we can all get behind.”
“Indeed,” he said, motioning for her to follow his parents to a table. Victoria and Daniel were already seated at the designated spot.
Introductions were made and then everyone sat down for dinner. A couple appeared to fill the last two vacant spots and they seemed to be good friends of Brady’s parents. Brady filled Liz in that the man was one of the senators from Massachusetts.
Dinner came and went with no problems or pauses in conversation. Brady’s parents were expert conversationalists and kept the company entertained the whole night. At one point, Victoria insisted on switching spots with Liz so that she could speak to Marilyn about Johns Hopkins. She was working in genetics, but Marilyn had worked nearly thirty years in chemistry and knew faculty all over the country. Daniel weighed in at one point and soon the table was full of science speak that made Liz’s eyes glaze over.
Once dessert was cleared and it was clear that they weren’t going to pull Victoria and Daniel away from Brady’s mother anytime soon, Brady stood and offered her his hand. “Dance?”