"For what it's worth, I think you'd make a great mom. These kids adore you."
As much as it pained her, Alexis gave him a polite smile and uttered the only words she could manage. "Thank you."
The next evening, Alexis stood in her room and deliberated over her outfit for
Tyler's annual holiday performance at Gatsby's. She didn't think it counted as a date, since he'd be on stage and she'd be nursing a drink on her own. At this point, though, it was hard to pretend they weren't dating. Once constant companionship progressed to kissing and groping, then it became something else entirely. Thankfully, he seemed to understand that she needed to move at her own pace.
Alexis finally chose jeans and a plum-colored top with a deep v-neck. She glammed it up with diamond stud earrings and a silver bracelet. Alexis couldn't remember a period in her life when she spent so much time choosing clothes to wear. It felt frivolous and, more importantly, fun. When she was finally ready to go, she inspected her reflection in the mirror and was pleased with the results.
"My parents are here tonight," Tyler stated when she arrived. "They'd love to meet you."
Alexis felt her chest tighten. "They're not here for me, are they?"
He laughed. "Wow. I've given you quite the ego, haven't I?" He placed a hand on either of her shoulders and looked into her eyes. "Rest assured, Alexis, as lovely as you are, they're here to see me, their son."
Alexis wanted to melt into the floor. What was wrong with her? Naturally, they were here to enjoy their son's music.
"Having said that," he told her with an impish grin, "would it be too much to ask that you sit with them?"
Alexis hesitated. "I'm not so great with parents."
He put his arm across her shoulder and she instantly relaxed. "Hey, they're not your parents. Just meet them. If they scare you off, then sit somewhere else."
He guided Alexis to an older couple in the far corner of the room.
"Mom, Dad, this is Alexis MacAdams."
"Call me Trey," said Tyler's dad. "And this is Patty."
"Nice to meet you," Alexis said.
"MacAdams," Trey said, rubbing his grey beard. "Does your mother work for
Morris?"
"For many years," Alexis said.
"He's our lawyer," Trey said. "Did our wills and some other personal business." "Alexis is a lawyer, too," Tyler told them.
Trey smacked his knee. "Gonna give Morris a run for his money, huh? The old geezer could use some youthful competition." He laughed heartily.
"No, I don't live here," Alexis corrected him. "I've been working in London."