Just when the conversation between the two in the living room was getting increasingly strange, John and his daughter came out of the kitchen.
"Uncle! How come I didn't know you smoked?" Ally said in surprise.
James was startled and quickly put out the cigarette, then tried to play it off: "Smoking's not a good habit, I'm criticizing it…"
As a well-trained detective, Ally's uncle didn't smoke at all. That pack of cigarettes had been entirely prepared to test Jimmy.
From the moment they learned Ally had invited a friend over, both protective men had labeled Jimmy as a "bad boy."
Everyone knew that sweet, beautiful girls often fell for the worst guys.
But it seemed John and James had failed.
Jimmy, a bit uncomfortable, regretted coming over to the house of a girl he was just getting to know. He thought that maybe if he made more friends, things would be more fun in this town.
As expected, Ally's father and uncle were quite protective, and the moment she arrived, it seemed the attitude of both men changed completely.
Although Jimmy understood them, the truth was he had better things to do with his time.
"You should explain that to my dad—you know how prejudiced he is when it comes to vices." Ally walked around him and sat down next to Jimmy.
Although she didn't know what had just happened, judging by Jimmy's expression, the time he and her uncle spent alone didn't seem pleasant.
John knew it too, which is why he shot James a warning look.
He then called everyone to sit down at the dining table, where the food had just been served.
"Come on, let's eat."
John seemed to be more friendly now, which made the meal a bit more bearable for Jimmy.
Soon, Ally's father began talking about the family's life before moving to Texas.
"I heard you're good at math."
"Oh, I can honestly say I'm the best at math," Jimmy said confidently.
Thanks to what he already knew about Ally's friend, John knew how to steer the conversation to make his guest feel comfortable.
Meanwhile, James was a bit surprised by Jimmy's intelligence, and his opinion of him started to improve.
After the meal, Jimmy's relationship with Ally's family seemed much more harmonious.
After washing the dishes, Ally took advantage of the moment when her father went to put away the leftovers and said, "You really don't have to stay home because of me."
She remembered Alison's idea and wanted to create an opportunity for her and Jimmy to be alone. Not for the reasons she had discussed with her friend, but to figure out her true feelings.
When John looked into his daughter's expectant eyes, he understood what she was thinking.
After all, he had been young once too.
Besides, he was quite pleased with Jimmy—such a smart guy.
"All right, since it's John's first time here, you can take him to see our wine collection." John smiled and was about to ask his brother to leave.
"I haven't finished reading the newspaper yet." James grabbed the paper and looked like he was going to stay in the hallway.
John had asked his brother to come to the house to assess Jimmy—after all, he wasn't going to let his sweet daughter be fooled by some good-for-nothing guy.
But once he realized Jimmy was anything but a bad boy, he didn't really care what happened between them. He knew Jimmy wasn't dumb enough to try anything foolish, and his daughter was far too smart to let it happen.
"Fine, I'll go load up." Under his brother's steady gaze, James got up from the couch and walked toward the guest bathroom.
As James passed by his brother, his attitude shifted again. Inside, he paced back and forth, clearly nervous. "That boy's got a pretty face, and you can tell right away he's clever—too clever. I think he's playing Ally…"
"Calm down, you're acting like those annoying guys we had to suck up to just to get permission to see their daughters."
"But she's your only daughter."