Quinn
Turning on the oven light, I lean over and squint through the glass door to check on the tenderloin. I know it isn’t done, but I need an excuse to ignore my brothers for a moment, who won’t stop asking me about the twenty-two-year-old tutor joining us for dinner this evening.
“Needs another ten to fifteen,” I say gruffly as I stand up. “Alessandra should be here any minute, so I suppose I should get started on the wedges.”
I make my way to the fridge, continuing to ignore my brothers’ slightly judgmental stares, and pull out a couple of heads of iceberg lettuce to begin the process of preparing our first course.
“You can’t dodge our questions forever, you know,” Cooper says, a stupid grin lifting the corners of his mouth.
When I don’t respond, he nudges Gavin, who takes a long sip of his wine before saying, “Look, we’re glad you’ve finally started dating after thirteen years of ‘I’m too busy for that shit’, but we’re worried that you’ve fallen into an ‘I’m too old for this shit’ situation.”
I roll my eyes. “Alessandra is unlike any other woman I’ve met. If you guys would just give her a chance tonight, I promise, all this will make sense.”
“Of course she’s unlike any other woman you’ve met. She was still in diapers when you got your first hard-on.” Gavin scoffs, downing the rest of his glass.
“I can’t believe you, of all people, are giving me a hard time for dating a younger woman. It’s not like you’ve never been there before,” I say, slicing the last wedge of lettuce with gusto.
Gavin’s eyes narrow. “And look how well that ended.”
I know I’ll regret dredging up his past like that later, but I’m quickly growing tired of my brothers’ judgment. Especially since they’ve both had colorful romantic pasts of their own.
“We’re just worried about you, that’s all,” Cooper says, placing a hand on my shoulder.
Shrugging his hand off me, I plate the wedges, then drizzle the lettuce with my homemade dressing and sprinkle crumbled bacon on top. “I don’t need you to worry. I need you to give Alessandra a chance.”
Just as I finish talking, Emma and Corinne enter the kitchen, partly to join our conversation, but mostly to refill their glasses of rosé.
“Yes, when will Alessandra be arriving?” Emma asks, arching a perfectly plucked brow at me. “When Gavin told me you were dating, I couldn’t wait to meet the lucky girl.” As she speaks, she moves to stand next to Gavin, placing her hand in the center of his back.
I watch as Corinne instinctively does the same thing, standing next to Cooper and looping her arm around his. I’m happy for my brothers, but it’s becoming uncomfortable being the only unmarried Kingsley brother.
Before I can answer Emma, the doorbell rings and a wave of relief washes over me. It’s easy for my brothers to ask their judgmental questions, but I know they’re socially competent enough to be cordial in Alessandra’s presence, whether they approve of our relationship or not.
But, dammit, I just want them to give her a chance.
As I walk to the front door, I turn and give Gavin and Cooper one last behave yourselves look, to which they both shrug and furrow their brows.
I open the door to find Alessandra standing there, a bottle of wine in one hand and an olive tray in the other. Despite the worried look on her face, she looks as gorgeous as ever, her long, dark hair swept into a side braid, perfectly complementing the off-the-shoulder top she paired with jeans that hug her curves in all the right places.
As I stand there, taking her in, a whispered bellissima crosses my lips without my even thinking about it.
For a moment, Alessandra’s face softens, and she quickly steps toward me to plant a grateful kiss on my lips. If it weren’t for the wine and the olive tray in her hands, I would fully embrace her, but I don’t want to stress her out even more.
As we part, she scurries into the entryway behind me, and before walking into the kitchen, turns and begins talking faster than I’ve ever heard her talk before.
“I know you told me not to bring anything, but my mom always said you should never walk into a party empty-handed, and I was worried that if I didn’t bring something, your brothers would think I was just another asshole millennial, so I don’t know what you’re making tonight, but I hope it goes with wine and olives. Is the braid okay? Am I dressed nice enough? I didn’t want to overdo it, but I also wanted to communicate that I’m respectful of the family Sunday dinner tradition-”
Before she can continue, I cut her off by leaning in and placing another kiss on her lips. For a moment, Alessandra freezes, obviously surprised by the gesture. But within seconds, she softens again, parting her lips and running her tongue gently around mine.
Suddenly, she breaks away, her eyes frantic. “My lipstick! We can’t walk in there with lipstick all over our faces!” She begins pacing, searching the walls of my home for a mirror. “You’re lucky I decided to go with a nude. If I’d worn the darker color, we’d both be toast.”
I chuckle and run the back of my hand over my mouth to wipe off any traces of lipstick.
Alessandra smiles and uses her thumb to rub a bit of lipstick off my upper lip. “Am I good?” she asks, turning her face from side to side.