And now, standing in front of the home he’d grown up in, he was about to introduce his fake girlfriend to his mother, when everything about his relationship with Justine felt more real than anything he’d ever had.

“Ha. Now who’s looking stressed?” She was even cute when smug.

He leaned down to kiss her, and of course his mother opened the door just as their mouths met.

“Ah ha. The mysterious Justine is in fact real.” Cynthia sounded way too pleased with herself. “I knew it.”

Xavier hastily tore his mouth from Justine’s but kept his arm around her shoulders. “Hey, Mom. Meet Justine. Justine, my estimable mother, Cynthia Hanover.”

Cynthia pulled Justine in for a hug. “I’m so happy to meet you.”

Justine was flushed when she pulled back, but her shy smile told him she liked the embrace. “So nice to meet you too.”

She let Cynthia tug her inside. Xavier followed and shut the door behind them. “Are we waiting on Auggie, Mom? I don’t see her car.”

“Oh, your sister is busy. It’s just the three of us tonight.”

“Is that so?” What was his sister up to? He had a tough time believing she wouldn’t have wanted to interrogate Justine at a family dinner. For that matter, his sister had been surprisingly quiet lately. He’d chalked that up to her ramped up training, but now he wasn’t sure…

His mom started pestering Justine about all sorts of details, taking her attention. But Cynthia did it in such a nice way Justine immediately seemed at ease. She helped his mom prepare the salad while Xavier had been tasked with firing up the grill.

He compared dinner with Justine’s parents to dinner with his mom and noticed the difference in his date. Here, she laughed and was at ease. She answered honestly, well, with the exception of their fake dating.

Unfortunately, his mother was all over that. “So, you’re Rosie Gallo’s niece. Xavier’s a big fan of your aunt. I only met her once, but she made an impression.”

Justine laughed. “That sounds like Aunt Rosie. She has definite opinions about everything and lives her life the way she wants it.”

“I respect that.” Cynthia slanted a glance at Xavier. “That’s what I’m trying to do.”

“My mother is on the dating circuit,” Xavier reiterated for everyone’s benefit. “But it’s slow going. She hasn’t had much luck with the guys my sister and I have chosen for her.”

“Wow. I’ve never met an actual matchmaker.”

His mother snorted. “He’s a bad one. Between the men he and my daughter have mentioned, I might be single for the rest of my life.”

Xavier might actually be okay with that and immediately felt ashamed for thinking it. “Mom.”

Justine laughed.

“I’m just glad to see my boy with a girl I like for once.” Cynthia looked pleased. “Even Auggie likes you.”

“She does?” Justine asked.

“From what I could tell, yes.”

Xavier immediately turned the conversation to his sister, and Justine chimed in with various stories about her siblings.