“No that’s not what I’m saying at all,” he said quickly, not wanting her to get the wrong idea. “I think I would like for you to be present. She already knows you and has been around you so that’s a plus and I mean well, we know what she asked you last time,” he let out a small laugh. “As my girlfriend? No, I never did. Believe it or not I never got that far to being exclusive with someone after Mari’s mom so I wouldn’t be able to tell you how it’d go, but I’m optimistic about this. I really am. I should thank her then, what’s her favorite sweet? If she’s allowed to have them.”
The fact that he hadn’t introduced Mari to anyone else as his girlfriend should have been encouraging, but somehow it only made willow more scared knowing he’d never gotten that far with anyone before. “Never? This is just our second date. Are you sure you want to take that step? I don’t want you to feel like you need to rush it. I know it’s a big step. And even if you’re not ready, that doesn’t mean that I won’t be your girlfriend. We can bide our time if we need to.” It was odd that she felt this nervous. Usually Willow was great at schmoozing families but that was different. It was in New York with the rich. She felt completely out of her depths here. Especially knowing that she was the first after Mari’s mom. “How can you be so optimistic about this after such a short time? I don’t understand,” she shook her head. “Just get her one of those real fruit juice popsicles and she’s sure to love you.”