by Naomi Niles
I turned to them and raised my eyebrows. “Why are you guys in dress shirts?” I asked.
“Madison’s coming over, right?” Sam asked. “We decided to dress up a bit for her. You know…impress her.”
“The only person who needs to worry about impressing her is me,” I reminded him.
“Oooh, are we feeling a little threatened, brother?” Sam asked teasingly.
“Please,” I said, rolling my eyes. “There’s no competition.”
“You’re right about that,” he nodded. “If I threw my hat into the ring, you’d certainly have something to worry about.”
“Do you want to eat outside today?” I threatened. “Or would you like a seat at the table?”
He laughed and sat down while John peered at the stovetop and all the different things I had going on there. “You’re going all out, aren’t you?” John said.
“It’s a special dinner,” I said.
“It certainly is,” John nodded. “Which is why I’m offering to help. Keep in mind this is a one-time offer. Don’t expect me to help you cook next week.”
I laughed. “I wouldn’t dream of it,” I said. “You could get the coleslaw going. And, Sam, you can dress the pine nut salad.”
“Umm…I don’t remember offering to help,” he said.
I threw a dishtowel at him. “I’ll set a place for you outside then.”
“All right, all right,” Sam sighed. “Geez, sometimes I feel like a pack mule when I come over here. You two are always getting me to work.”
John and I laughed as Sam got to work on the second salad. I had just transferred the steaks onto a large serving platter when the doorbell rang. “That’ll be Madison,” I said.
“I’ll get it,” Sam said quickly.
“Sit!” I commanded forcefully. “Finish what you’re doing and I’ll get the door.”
“Geez, does Madison know how possessive you are?” Sam called after me, as I walked towards the front door. “’Cause I’m thinking I should warn her.”
I ignored him and checked my reflection in the hallway mirror. I looked quite presentable for a guy who had spent the whole evening slaving over a hot stove. I opened the door to find Madison standing there with Polo at her feet.
As usual, she looked exquisite. She was wearing a romantic blue-green dress that ended just above the knees. Buttons ran down the front and the waist was cinched by a silky bow set off to one side. Her hair was draped over one shoulder and I could spy a delicate, little braid peeking out through the cascade of brown silk.
“Hi,” she said. “I brought wine.”
“Thank you,” I said, accepting it from her and leaning in to give her a kiss. “But you didn’t have to bring anything.”
“Of course I did,” she replied. “It’s rude to show up to a dinner party empty handed.”
“Who taught you that?”
“Television,” she admitted, with a good-natured laugh.
I knelt down and gave Polo some attention. He didn’t shy away from me at all this time. In fact, he actually looked happy to see me.
“I can’t believe how fast he’s warmed up to you,” Madison said, shaking her head at her dog. “I never thought I’d see the day.”
“With a little effort, we might be able to stamp out his skittishness,” I said.
“I hope so,” she nodded.
I led her into the kitchen, where she was given a chorus of welcomes by Sam and John. Sam leaped out of his seat and gave Madison a kiss. Then he flashed me a sly smile, and I couldn’t help but laugh. John shook his head and bent down to give Polo a pat.
“What can I do to help?” Madison asked.
“You can settle this argument once and for all,” Sam said quickly. “It’s a very serious matter.”
“Oh?” she said, with raised eyebrows. “Okay, what is it?”
“If we were all strangers to you and you weren’t already involved with Peter,” Sam started, “who would you pick between Peter and myself?”
He phrased the question in all seriousness and I rolled my eyes at him. “Ignore him,” I told Madison. “He’s just being silly.”
“I’m not,” Sam said indignantly. “I’m being very serious. Who would you choose, Madison? The handsome firefighter with an eight pack or the lowly police officer with a two pack?”
“It’s a six pack, you asshole,” I laughed.
“Hmm…I think six is still less than eight,” Sam said, screwing up his face in concentration.
Madison laughed. “It’s hard to choose,” she said, humoring Sam. “You both are so attractive.”
“Isn’t that sweet?” he smiled. “She’s being diplomatic so as not to hurt your feelings, Peter. I suppose she’s trying to ease in so that you won’t be too disappointed when she chooses me.”
Madison and I exchanged a smile, and I felt my spirits soar. It was always a good evening when the boys were over, but everything was heightened because Madison was here, too. Somehow, it almost felt like the family was complete. All we were missing was Talen and Alan. And Jessica, I added in my head. She was now part of the family, too.
As Sam and John sat around the kitchen table, doing the tasks I set out for them, Madison joined me by the counter. She kept her hand on my back and stroked me gently. It was a nice feeling, a familiar feeling. It felt as though we’d been a couple for years.
Half an hour later, dinner was ready and each of us grabbed a serving platter and headed for the main table in the dining room. Once everything was set up, the table actually looked quite festive. I had taken pains with the table settings, knowing that Madison was coming. I had laid out a fresh tablecloth, along with our second set of cutlery, the ones we saved for special occasions. I had even scattered a few wild flowers across the table for dramatic effect.
“Everything looks amazing, Peter,” Madison said. “You could be a chef.”
“Sometimes I think I missed my calling,” I agreed.
“There’s always time,” she said, winking at me.
Sam, John, and Madison took their seats at the table, but I noticed something missing. I headed to the cabinet where we kept all our extra plates and dishes and drew out an extra plate. Then I returned to the table and set down the plate in front of an empty seat. I noticed Madison’s questioning glance in my direction.
“That again?” Sam asked.
“I told you what I think about it,” I said.
“It’s unnecessary,” he shrugged.
“Must we have this conversation every other week?” I sighed.
Madison turned to me. “I’m sorry, am I missing something? Is someone else joining us for dinner?”
“No,” Sam said firmly.
I ignored him and turned to Madison. “I always set an extra place at the table, in case Talen decides to join us for Sunday dinner.”
“Oh,” Madison said, as realization dawned. “And, does he usually?”
“No,” Sam said with finality.
“He does occasionally,” I said.
“Very occasionally,” Sam interjected.
“But I still like to keep a plate out for him just in case,” I explained.
Madison’s eyes softened and she slipped her hand on my thigh under the table. “I think that’s a lovely gesture. I know that if I were Talen, I’d really appreciate it, whether I showed up or not.”
We settled into out dinner and Madison poured out the wine she had brought for everyone. With our plates full of food, and our wine glasses full, Sam rose to make a toast.
“Family dinner’s still on Sundays, huh?” a deep voice asked from the door.
I looked up with a start to see Talen standing on the threshold. He looked the same, perhaps a little more drawn in the face. His blue eyes were more prominent, and his head had been freshly shaved. He was wearing a shirt that displayed the full extent of his muscled and tattooed arms. He cut quite the intimidating figure.
“Talen!” I said, standing abruptly.
“I let myse
lf in,” he said as his eyes fell on Madison. “I hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course not,” I said. “This is your house, too. Come in and join us.”
Talen approached the table in his unhurried manner. John stood and embraced him, and then Sam did the same. I pulled out the chair next to me and gestured for him to take a seat. Talen came up to me and gave me an appraising look.
“You look good,” he said. “Fully recovered then?”
“Fully recovered,” I nodded. “I’m going back to work soon.”
“Good to hear,” he nodded.
“Talen,” I said. “I’d like to introduce you to Madison. She moved in next door a few weeks ago.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” he said, shaking her hand.
“It’s lovely to meet you, too,” Madison smiled. “I’ve heard so much about you from your brothers.”
Talen smiled. “Oh no.”
“Trust me,” she said. “All good things.”
“Hard to believe, but I’ll take it.”
Talen sat down at the table and looked down at the place setting before him. He picked up the plate as though he wanted to examine it. “You kept a plate out for me?”
“I always do,” I said. “Just in case you decide to show up.”
“Huh,” Talen said, glancing at me. Then he put the plate down and looked at the spread on the table. “Food looks good.”
I smiled and passed him the steak. Talen was not one for showy displays of affection or sentiment. He was a man of few words, but I knew from his expression and his body language that he was touched to have been remembered. He just expressed it differently.
We descended into pleasant conversation and the usual brotherly banter as Madison laughed along, fitting seamlessly into our well-practiced dynamic. Halfway through the meal, while Madison was talking to John and Sam, Talen leaned in towards me a little and whispered.
“She’s your girlfriend, isn’t she?”
I smiled. “We haven’t put a name on it,” I whispered back. “But I suppose at this point, I do think of her as my girlfriend.”
He nodded. “She’s nice.”
“I’m glad you like her.”
“It shouldn’t matter even if I didn’t like her,” he said, in his usual blunt manner. “But for the record, I do like her.”
I smiled and nodded. “How are you, Talen?” I asked. “How are you doing?”
“Good,” he replied shortly.
I nodded, content for the moment with that answer. At the end of the day, all I really wanted to know was that he was doing okay and that he was more or less happy. I didn’t pry any further because I knew Talen wouldn’t open up to me just because I asked a question. He was the type who would talk only when he was ready to. For now, it was enough that he had shown up.
We had just finished dinner and were all chipping in with the clean-up in the kitchen when Sam walked in with the last serving platter.
“Okay, now that Talen’s here, I’d like to clear something up once and for all,” Sam said, stopping the conversation in its tracks, as all attention turned to him.
“What is it Sam?” I asked.
“Madison,” he said, turning to her. “Who do you think is the best-looking brother?”
The kitchen erupted into laughter and Madison shook her head at Sam. Even Talen cracked a smile that burgeoned into a slow burning laugh. It was a good night. It was a really good night.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Madison
“Kiss for the cook?” Peter asked, leaning in a little.
I smiled and kissed him tenderly on the cheek, before his lips came down over mine.
“Whoa, whoa,” Sam said, interrupting the intimate moment. “Get a room you two.”
Embarrassed, I tried to pull away from Peter, but he kept a firm grip around my waist. “That’s not a bad idea, actually,” he laughed. Then he turned to me. “How are you?”
“Tired,” I replied. “And, full.”
“How about I walk you home?” Peter asked, as laughter came in from the living room. “It’s a little crowded over here.”
“Sounds good,” I nodded. We went into the hall to say goodnight to Peter’s brothers.
“We were thinking of taking a late-night drive and maybe catching a movie or something,” Sam said, obviously having orchestrated the outing. “You guys should come.”
“No thanks,” Peter said and then he turned to me. “Unless…you would like to go?”
“I’m a little tired,” I said, even though my real motive was to spend some time alone with Peter.
“Sure, sure,” Sam nodded, obviously not buying the excuse. “I suppose I can understand.”
We laughed, said our goodbyes, and then headed over to my place with Polo running ahead of us, his tail flopping about in the wind. At my door, I turned into Peter’s arms and kissed him passionately. Then I drew back a little.
“Stay with me tonight.”
He smiled. “I was hoping you would say that.”
I unlocked the door and pushed it open. I removed my shoes and pushed them to the side of the door, as Polo jumped onto his favorite spot on the sofa. I laughed at him.
“He’s claimed that side as his own,” I told Peter.
“I’m glad he likes it.”
“I like it, too,” I said. “In fact, I love it.”
“That was the hope.” Peter smiled; his hazel eyes were soft and tender. He reached out for me as though he hated the distance between us and I was only too happy to fall back into the circle of his arms.
“Since Polo’s got the couch, how about we move into the bedroom?” I asked.
Peter nodded, and I led him into my room. We lay down on the bed together, our bodies pushed together as close as possible because of the narrowness of the single bed.
I didn’t care. In fact, I actually preferred it. It gave me the perfect excuse to be as close to Peter as possible. I lay my head on his chest while he kissed my forehead.
“Thank you for inviting me over tonight,” I said. “That was such a lovely way to spend the evening. You’re lucky to have such wonderful brothers.”
“I wish Alan and Jessica had been here tonight, too,” Peter said. “Then the whole family would have been together.”
I smiled. “Do I count as family?”
“You do to me,” he nodded.
“Really?” I asked, sitting up a little so that I could see his face.
“Did you doubt it?”
“Well, we haven’t known each other for very long,” I said. “I wasn’t sure where you stood.”
“I broke into your house so that I could furnish it,” he laughed. “I nearly shot your brother because he dared to lay a hand on you. That wasn’t clear enough for you?”
“I’m a doubter,” I admitted.
“You just don’t know your own worth,” Peter said. “Which works in my favor because if you did know your own worth, you’d never be with me.”
“How can you say that?” I demanded. “I would most definitely be with you.”
He shook his head. “You’d be with a better man, taller, better looking, smarter, richer, and kinder.”
I glared at him. “Even if that we true, I don’t want a better man. I want you.”
Peter smiled. “Yeah?”
“Yeah,” I nodded fervently.
He was quiet for a long time. Every now and again, he would kiss the back of my hand as though he were thinking of something else. “I can’t believe it,” he said, in a faraway voice.
“What can’t you believe?” I asked.
“Dad was right,” he replied. “He was right all along. I never thought I’d the see the day when I actually agreed with him – on this subject, in any case.”
“You’re going to have to make more sense that that, Peter,” I said.
His eyes focused on me and he smiled.
“Sorry,” he said. “I was just thinking about my father. Dad was a real romantic. He believed i
n true love. He believed that life was pointless without it. He believed that you needed to search like hell to find it and then you needed to fight like hell to keep it. He’d actually sit us down on the odd Sunday and tell us as much.”
“And, you didn’t buy it?”
“Not really,” he replied. “Especially not after Mom left him. The pain of losing her was so great that sometimes I think, if it weren’t for the five of us, Dad would have just…given up.”
“He might have thought it was worth it,” I pointed out softly.
“He did,” Peter agreed. “He said if it was between knowing her, loving her, and losing her, and never having known her at all, he would pick the first choice every time. I just could never understand that until-”
There was a strong knock at the door and both Peter and I sat up in bed. We looked at each other, as though the other one would know who it was.
“Were you expecting someone?” he asked.
“No.”
“It’s probably just Sam or John. They probably forgot something,” Peter said, as he got out of bed. “Do you want me to check?”
“Sure,” I nodded.
He went out to open the door and I righted my dress just in case it was one of his brothers. I heard the door open and then a subsequent question.
“Who are you?” Peter asked. His tone was not friendly.
Wrinkling my eyebrows in confusion, I walked out of the room and froze in place as I saw who was standing at my front door. “Kameron,” I breathed, his name tearing out of me like poison.
He was standing there casually, with a toothpick in his mouth and an expression of intense interest on his face. His eyes were narrowed in calculated purpose.
“Well, hello there, Madison, darling,” he said. “It’s been awhile.”
Peter turned to me in shock, and the second that it took him to look away was the opportunity that Kameron needed to pull out the gun he was concealing in the waistband of his trousers. I gasped silently as my body froze in response to the shiny metal in Kameron’s hands. I felt my insides lurch uncomfortably when he pointed it directly at Peter.
Peter turned his gaze back to Kameron. If he was surprised to see a gun pointed at his face, then he did nothing to show it. I couldn’t help but admire the way he looked at Kameron. As though he were so insignificant that Peter was unable to feel anything at all, including fear. I knew Kameron well enough to know that that would piss him off.
