Chapter Seventeen

"Today is the day," Vince stated with trepidation. "I have to pick my mother and father up at the airport."

He stretched out on the bed and Grace snuggled deeper into his embrace as she glanced at the clock. "You being here is having a very bad effect on my workout routine," she mused, realizing it was already six o'clock and she would have to get Cadence up and ready for school soon.

Vince's teeth grazed her neck and he winked. "I think I can come up with a way to get your heart rate up a bit."

Grace trembled as she swatted his arm. "Stop that!" Grace scolded. "I have things to do. Cadence has to go to school and I have to run the booth."

"I guess you're right," Vince conceded with a sigh. "I can't be late to pick them up or I'll never hear the end of it."

"What will your mother say when she knows you're staying here with me?" Grace wondered.

"Nothing if she knows what's good for her," Vince replied. "Besides, if I wasn't here then the monsters might get Cadence," he added with a sleepy smile.

Grace kissed him lightly and climbed out of the bed. "You've come a long way from hiding all of that from me," Vince said, his eyes roaming over her naked body. She gave him a wicked grin and then pulled on her thick cotton robe.

"That's okay," Vince growled as he rose from the bed and Grace felt her mouth go dry at the sight of him. "I remember what everything under that robe looks like."

"That's good because you won't be seeing it again for a while," Grace informed him.

Vince frowned. "And why not?"

"Because I want your mom to think I'm a decent woman so you'll have to stay at the inn while they're here."

"But we're getting married so why does it matter?" Vince asked with a pout.

"It matters to me," Grace replied.

"Fine but if that's how you feel then we're getting married this weekend."

Grace laughed. "What?"

Vince crossed his arms over his chest. "You heard me."

"Vince, a wedding can't be planned in three or four days."

"Yes it can," Vince countered. "You've already said you want to wear your grandmother's dress. I know that Mavis could get those alterations done by Sunday and would be happy to do it if you asked her. Meg could supply the food and I know that flowers are easy enough to get." Vince smiled. "You said you wanted simple and simple can be done in three or four days."

"You're serious, aren't you?" Grace gasped. "You want to marry me this weekend?"

"Of course I'm serious. You already know how I feel about you and as far as I'm concerned any time we spend waiting is time wasted."

"And you really want back in my bed, right?" Grace teased.

Vince grinned. "There's that too." He walked to her and dropped down to his knee.

Grace felt a flush cover her cheeks. "You do realize that you're still naked don't you?"

Vince winked as he took her hands in his. "That's all part of my master plan to coerce you into saying yes."

"It's quite effective," Grace admitted with a smile. Being this openly attracted to and teasing with a man was still something new to her and she was still attempting to get used to it.

Vince tilted his head. "Is that a yes?"

"That is an, 'you are absolutely crazy.'"

"Yes, I am," he replied. "Crazy in love." Vince gave her a lopsided grin and Grace covered her face with her hands.

"You are an idiot."

"I am a naked, crazy idiot who is desperately asking you to become my wife this Sunday. Why don't you give me an answer so I can stand up and get dressed. I'm freezing down here."

"If you say it's possible then I'll believe you and, of course I'll marry you this Sunday."

Vince stood up and took her in his arms. Grace felt her body heating at the knowledge that he was holding her and only her robe was separating their naked bodies. She quickly distanced herself from him. "Now put on some clothes while I go take a shower," she ordered.

"I'm not used to taking orders," Vince admitted. "I've always been the boss."

Vince's haughty gaze made her laugh. "Well get used to it, chief. You aren't in the ballroom anymore. "

"Was that a crack at my dancing past?" Vince asked with faked indignation.

"Why yes, yes it was," Grace admitted and she laughed as he lunged for her. Before he could reach her, Grace leapt out of his reach and disappeared down the hall.

***

Vince was dressed in one of his highest quality suits that he'd brought back from his trip to New York when Grace stepped into the kitchen. "Are you dressing up like that just to go pick your parents up?" she asked as he handed her a steaming cup of coffee.

"Yes," he replied. "They'll expect it."

"Should I dress up?" Grace asked with a frown as she glanced down at her jeans and t-shirt.

"No," he swatted her wet ponytail. "You look perfect."

"Good," Grace replied. "Because high heels and silk don't exactly go with grease. I'm helping with the school booth this morning." Grace didn't have to work at the garage this week because it was shut down due to the festival.

"If I wanted high heels and silk, I would have picked high heels and silk. What I want is you, just the way you are," Vince replied as he kissed her cheek. "Now I'm going to go wake Cadence up and tell her goodbye. I'll be back sometime this evening."

"I'll be at the festival," Grace said. "I'm going to work there this morning and then take Cadence back to play this afternoon. I'll be starting the baked goods and cookbook booth tomorrow."

"Good," Vince licked his lips and patted his stomach. "I have a very large sweet tooth."

"Well for a dollar fifty you can have a cookie or you can pay three dollars for a block of fudge or a brownie."

"You drive a hard bargain," Vince winked before heading toward Cadence's room.

Grace busied herself tidying up the counters with her shaking hands. In all truth she was terrified about the prospect of meeting Vince's family today. What would they think of her? She knew she probably wasn't what they had wanted for their son. According to Vince, Beverly had paraded woman after woman she had considered marriageable in front of Vince and he had turned them all down--and Vince certainly made it seem like those women were the opposite of her.

Patricia had warned her that Beverly was an uppity, two-faced harpy of a woman. She would act one way and then, without warning, do a completely one hundred and eighty degree turn and change her personality--which usually involved yelling.

Grace let out a breath and blew her bangs from her face. She was a strong, independent woman and she wouldn't let a couple of rich people from the city cause her to doubt herself. Vince was in love with her and she loved their son so surely they would see that and accept it.

***

"Honestly now! We've been in this car for nearly three hours!" Beverly exclaimed as she smoothed out her white slacks and glared at her son. "Are we going to arrive there sometime today?"

"Yes, mother. Why don't you just sit back and enjoy the scenery?" Vince asked as he fought the urge to turn the radio to full blast to drown out her constant complaining.

"I did enjoy the scenery for the first hour," Beverly informed him. "But after all this time the sight of these mountains and trees is simply becoming tedious."

"Your mother is just in a bad mood because there was a lot of turbulence on our flight and it rattled her nerves," Vincent spoke up from the back seat. "Isn't that right, Widget?" he added as he held up the little pup and allowed it to lick his nose.

"For heaven's sake, Vincent! I still can't see why you had to bring that horrid beast with you! All she is good for is peeing, pooping and chewing up my best shoes!" Beverly stated with a roll of her eyes.

"At least she does not spend her time squawking around and finding nearly everything to complain about," Vincent countered in a whisper.

"Are you honestly trying to insult me? If you're going to do so at least do it loudly enough that I can hear you properly," Beverly sniffed, glancing into the back seat.

"Next time we'll fly in first class by ourselves, Widget, and put the grumpy passenger in coach," Vincent grumbled as he cuddled the pup against him and looked out at the passing mountains.

Beverly crossed her arms over her chest as she returned her gaze to the windshield. "Oh for the love of God! I am going to be taking that horrid dog to the pound at the first available opportunity."

"Admit it mother, you're fond of the pup too," Vince teased.

"Oh yes, about as fond as I would be of an abscessed tooth. Do you know that she chewed up my brand new Gucci purse?"

"No, I did not know that," Vince replied.

Beverly sighed and looked out the window as she leaned back in her seat. "I'll meet Grace tonight?"

"That's right. She and her daughter will be at the festival."

"And this festival?" Beverly inquired. "Do they have food?"

"Yes they do, mother. I believe they even have those blooming onions which I know are your favorite."

"That's all I need to add several more inches to these thighs," Beverly mumbled but Vince could tell by the way her eyes lit up that the woman had every intention of buying a deep friend onion at her earliest convenience.

"Grace is looking forward to meeting you," Vince told her. He left out the fact that he and Grace planned on being married Sunday. He wanted to give them time to get settled in with their new surroundings before causing his mother's blood pressure to skyrocket and his father's nose to get stuck in that upward position it so often traveled in when Vince did something he didn't approve of.

"Is she really?" Beverly inquired. "I would have thought that between you and that floozy Patricia, she would be scared to death of meeting me."

"Grace isn't the kind of woman that scares easily," Vince informed her. "I think you may have met your match in her."

Beverly simply crossed her hands on her lap and sighed. "We'll have to see about that."

***

"Can I get my face painted, mommy?" Cadence exclaimed as they walking along the hundreds of booth set up under the tarps and tents. There were craft booths, face painting booths and even booths selling fresh produce and hunting supplies as well as dozens of others.

"Of course you can, gremlin," Grace replied and Cadence ran over and hopped up on the empty stool. The crowds weren't bad since it was a weeknight but Grace knew that once Friday arrived this place would be flooded by hundreds, maybe even thousands of people from Clifton and all the surrounding counties.

As Cadence told Kristin Howell, a third grade teacher from school, what she wanted on her face, Grace scanned their surroundings for Vince and his parents.

"Mr. Tall, Dark and Handsome hasn't made it back yet?" Meg asked, walking to her with Ben in tow.

Grace was wringing her hands. "No, not yet."

Meg frowned. "I know you're not nervous. You're Grace Collins, life's ass kicker extraordinaire. They are going to love you and even if they don't, who gives a crap? Ben's family still calls me the little tramp who came along and ruined their son before he could become all he could have been."

Ben grinned. "I knew it was all your fault."

Grace felt a lot of her uneasiness melting away as she listened to her friend's antics. Then all of that tension came crashing back when she heard Vince's voice calling out for her.

Grace plastered a smile on her face and turned to see her fiancé walking her way with a man who appeared to be an older version of himself only with blue eyes, and a tall rather beautiful woman in white slacks, a black blouse and a tailored red jacket. Her blond hair was stylishly swept back away from her face and her nose was in the air as if she smelled something terrible.

"Did you have a good trip?" Grace asked as Vince swooped low and laid a kiss to her brow.

He hugged her with a smile. "I contemplated shoving razor blades in my ears, does that tell you anything?" he whispered so only Meg, Grace and Ben could hear him.

"Son, are you going to introduce us?" Vincent demanded in a loud, commanding voice. Grace tilted her head when she realized that his stern demeanor was offset quite comically by the tiny pup nestled in the crook of his arm.

"Of course," Vince replied, standing straight and turning around to face his parents. "Mother, father, this is Grace, Meg and Ben," he said, pointing to each of them in turn. "You all, this is my mother Beverly and my father Vincent."

"It's very nice to finally meet you both," Grace said as she held out her hand.

"Likewise, my dear," Vincent replied warmly enough as he shook her hand.

Beverly glared at her offered hand before curling her nose and shaking it. "Oh dear!" Beverly cried disdainfully as she pulled her hand away. "I have some very good moisturizing cream that I get from France. You could stand to use some, I do believe."

Grace flushed with shame and quickly shoved her calloused hands in her pants pockets. "I probably should use more moisturizer," she mumbled.

Vince wrapped his arm tight around her and threw his mother a warning glare. Beverly sniffed and quickly looked away.

"So..." Meg's voice filled the awkward silence as she rocked back on her heels.

"Where is Cadence?" Vince asked.

"She's...coming," Grace replied with dread when she saw her daughter hopping off the stool and heading their way with her new artwork on her face. Kristen had certainly outdone herself with the zombie look. Cadence looked as if her skin was rotting, torn and oozing and she had quite intricate stitches painted on her lips.

Not exactly the first impression that Grace had been hoping for.

Vince was chuckling as Beverly turned. "Yes, I would like to meet the little girl I've heard so much about." Her eyes landed on Cadence and she screamed as she leapt backward into her husband's free arm and clutched at her heart. "Oh, dear God!" she exclaimed with horror.

Cadence tilted her head and smiled, which of course only served to exaggerate the stitches on her lips. "She's silly, mommy."

Grace was shocked when Vince began to laugh so hard that he was forced to stoop down and hold his knees to support himself. Tears streamed down his face and he seemed to have trouble catching his breath.

"You think that's amusing?!" Beverly demanded, pointing at Cadence with a trembling finger.

"No, I think that's hilarious," Vince assured her, standing slowly and rubbing at his stomach as he swiped his hand over his face. He smiled at Cadence. "Come here, sweetheart."

Cadence ran to him and jumped into his waiting arms. He kissed her hair and Beverly and Vincent shared a look as they watched Vince keep one arm around Cadence while wrapping the other around Grace's waist.

Beverly shook her head. "What on earth has happened to our son?" she whispered absently and Vincent simply shrugged.