Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 64354 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64354 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 322(@200wpm)___ 257(@250wpm)___ 215(@300wpm)
I was introduced to Nana’s husband Ollie, who was a jolly little cherub of a man. I could tell right away he was a huge upgrade from her first husband, who I remembered as a bit of a douchebag.
Dante also introduced me to his nephew Josh, and Josh’s fiancé Darwin before asking them, “What are you up to?”
Josh grinned as he moved his glasses to the top of his head. “We hacked into Humpington’s smart home hub, and we just finished putting together a playlist he and his cohorts are bound to hate.”
I repeated, “Humpington?”
“The neighbor across the street,” Darwin explained. “He’s actually called Huntington, but Nana renamed him.”
Charlie asked, “What’s on the playlist?”
“At first, we went with all gay artists because he’s such a homophobe,” Josh said.
“But it was way too good,” Darwin told us.
“We didn’t want him to actually enjoy it,” Josh continued.
Darwin said, “So we switched to this experimental metal band from Portland, Oregon.”
“They literally use stuff like buzz saws and dental drills on their tracks.” This tag-team conversation made it clear Josh and Darwin had been together a long time. They seemed like two halves of a whole. Josh clicked a button and grinned. “Here you go, Humpington. Enjoy.”
We all waited to see what would happen. Half a minute later, we heard someone yelling in the distance, “Damn you, Dombrusos! I know you’re behind this!”
Everyone laughed, and Ollie patted Josh on the back. Josh looked pretty proud of himself as he said, “Mission accomplished,” and closed his laptop.
Darwin high-fived him and said, “Good job. For next time, maybe we can highjack Humpington’s TV and play some gay porn for him and his guests.”
Josh smiled at his fiancé. “I like the way you think, and I’ll definitely work on that.”
This family was twisted, and really not what I’d expected. That made me happy. I didn’t have to worry about being the black sheep, not when I was in an entire flock of them.
A little while later, when we were all seated and passing the dishes around, Trevor said, “I heard you grew up in Rome, Salvatore. That must have been interesting.” He was a pretty man with dark hair and light eyes, and his hand kept straying to his husband, who he clearly adored.
“It was very big and very noisy, but yes, also interesting,” I said. “I left when I was fifteen though, after my parents died.”
Trevor’s forehead creased with concern. “I’m so sorry.”
“Thank you. It was a long time ago.”
“Can I ask what happened?”
“A car crash.” I kept my eyes on my plate and tried not to get lost in the memories of that terrible night.
Nana said, “And then you went to live with your uncle Flavio. All I know about him is that he’d been married to your father’s sister, and she died the year before you lost your parents.”
I nodded, and she continued, “I’d get occasional updates from your grandmother about how you were doing, but I guess she didn’t hear much, either. Where did you go after you left Rome?”
“We bounced around Italy, then Spain and Portugal before finally settling in the UK. I spent the last seven years in London.”
“That’s a lot of upheaval for a young person. What about getting to finish school?”
I muttered, “My uncle saw to it that I studied art history, and that I was well-trained as a painter.”
“That’s good to hear,” Nana said with a smile. “What I remember most about you as a child was your love of art.”
My uncle had had ulterior motives for making sure I was educated, but they weren’t something I particularly wanted to discuss at the moment.
Dante asked, “So, why’d you decide to move to L.A.?”
I planned to tell him everything when we were alone, but for now I went with, “I needed a change of scenery.” Then I changed the subject by asking about the feud with the neighbor. They all took the topic and ran with it.
After we ate, everyone began to move from the table to a seating area beneath a pergola, but Dante said, “Sal and I will join you in a few minutes. We have some things to discuss.” He kissed his husband and nuzzled his cheek before telling him, “See if you can save me that last cinnamon roll. They were damn good.”
From across the patio, Vincent called, “Too late!” He smirked at his brother before taking a big bite of the last roll, and Dante sighed dramatically.
We went inside, and once we were seated in an elegant study, I said, “I have a question for you. I’ll understand if you think it’s none of my business, and please forgive me if it comes across as rude.”
“Fire away.”
I hesitated before saying, “Years ago, my Nonna told me your grandmother had married into a family that… well…”