Chapter Twenty-Eight
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Ilias
I gripped Oscar’s hand tightly as we climbed out of the Uber and onto the pavement outside Dominic’s house, my heart drumming against my ribs. I had no idea why I was so nervous to have dinner with my brother and Louisa, but it felt like I was about to be interrogated by MI5.
Not that I was going to let that happen. Dominic had some serious explaining to do about why he’d ratted me out to everyone.
The interrogator was about to become the interrogated.
“Breathe,” Oscar said as we stepped up to the familiar, polished black front door. “It’s going to be okay. It’s just your brother and his wife, not your entire family. We can do this.”
“Easy for you to say,” I muttered. “Your family is charming. I just don’t understand why we couldn’t have just gone to a restaurant instead? Why did they insist on making dinner?”
“Because they wanted to be nice?”
“I bet it’s because Dominic wants to pin me down and ask me awkward questions. Although, his plan would have worked better in a restaurant because I wouldn’t yell at him in public.” I reached for the door handle, then wondered if I should knock.
My living situation had been a little weird for the past couple of weeks, and I’d half moved out of Dominic’s and into Oscar’s studio without really talking to either of them about it.
When we’d gotten back from our seaside tour, I hadn’t wanted to go back to sleeping alone, so I’d decided not to. The first night I’d gone back to Oscar’s to relax and unwind, and when we’d ended up in bed, it had felt totally natural to stay there.
And after that, I hadn’t wanted to leave.
I’d made a few quick trips back to Dominic’s for clothes and to see Teddy, Nico, and the twins, but I’d always gone back to Oscar’s afterwards. His studio was tiny and a little cramped with two of us living in it, but it felt more like home than Dominic’s house ever had.
The decision about the door was taken away from me when it swung open to reveal a glamorously dressed Louisa and a beaming Teddy in a pair of blue and orange pyjamas patterned with sharks in swim trunks.
“Uncle Ilias!” Teddy cried as he leapt at me, a beaming smile on his face. “I missed you. You haven’t been here in forever.”
“I’m sorry, buddy,” I said, scooping him up into my arms and giving him a squeeze. “I’ve been busy with work.”
Teddy frowned and looked at Oscar, then back at me. “Can we go see the sharks this weekend, please?”
“Sure.” I didn’t have anything else planned, and I owed him. Teddy was used to having me around virtually all the time, and in the space of a month, I’d practically up and left, and that wasn’t fair to him. “We can go tomorrow. For the whole day. As long as your mum says yes.”
I looked at Louisa, and she nodded. “You can go with Uncle Ilias. But you have to go and do your teeth now, then go to bed. Okay? Go ask your dad if he’ll read you a story while I finish making dinner.”
“Okay.” Teddy gave me a kiss and wiggled out of my arms. “Bye! See you tomorrow.”
I watched him run towards the kitchen, his feet thudding on the wooden floor. I grinned and turned to Oscar, who was hovering politely behind me.
“So that’s Teddy, and this is my sister-in-law, Louisa,” I said with a casual wave of my hand. “Louisa, this is my Oscar. Shit, I mean, my boyfriend, Oscar.”
“Lovely to meet you,” Oscar said as he reached out to shake Louisa’s hand.
“So nice to meet you too. Finally.” Louisa shot me a wry smile. “Come on through. Dinner is nearly ready. Let me get you some drinks. I’ve got some nibbles too.”
“You’re hungry, right?” I whispered to Oscar as we followed Louisa through to the living room, which seemed to have been tidied to within an inch of its life.
I wondered what form of bribery had been offered to Nico to put his elaborate train-scapes away.
“Er, yeah. You said Louisa likes to cook.”
“It’s her hobby,” I said. I’d told Oscar to come hungry, but I wondered if we had different definitions because if Louisa decided she was making dinner, she was likely going all out.
And to prove my point, Louisa chose that moment to stroll through the living room door with an enormous charcuterie board in hand. It looked absolutely gorgeous.
It also looked like an entire meal for four on a wooden slab the size of a tree trunk.
“Lou, is this your idea of nibbles?” I asked, staring at the immense selection of fruit, cheese, olives, cured meats, and crackers. “What have you made for dinner?”
Louisa shrugged and reached for a bottle of red wine that had been left to breathe on the sideboard. “Nothing fancy. Just some burrata and tomatoes to start, herb crusted lamb racks, and Nonna’s tiramisu.”
“I love how that’s your definition of nothing fancy,” I said.
“It sounds wonderful,” Oscar said, and I rolled my eyes and grinned at him.
“Don’t be such a suck-up.”
“You don’t have to have any if you don’t want,” Louisa said with a teasing smile as she passed me a glass of wine.
“I never said I didn’t want any. I just said that my equivalent of a simple dinner is very different than yours, but that is definitely not a bad thing.”
“Can you cook?” Oscar asked with a wry smile. “I never asked.”
“Excuse me. What do you think I’ve been doing for the past two weeks? I made you carbonara! And moussaka. They didn’t just appear in your kitchen.”
“You did.” Oscar put an arm around me and pressed a kiss to my temple. “And they were delicious, but my point stands that technically I never asked if you could cook, you just took over my kitchen.”
“That’s because your range of meals seems to be limited to bad student food and whatever takes your fancy on Deliveroo,” I said with a raised eyebrow.
I saw Louisa watching us with a curious smile, then I realised she’d never seen me with a boyfriend before, so this had to be a totally alien experience for her. I didn’t think I acted that differently with Oscar, but maybe I did.
“That’s only mostly true. I can make a good roast dinner. But that’s about it.”
“Seriously? You can make a full roast dinner, but you can’t make pasta?”
“To be fair,” said Dominic as he strolled through the living room door. “Not everyone had an Italian nonna insisting they learn to cook and making them practice every summer from the age of six. Most people just buy pasta.” He gave Oscar an easy smile and stuck out his hand. “Hi, I’m Dominic. You must be Oscar.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” Oscar said as he shook Dominic’s outstretched hand.
Dominic took the glass of wine Louisa handed him and gestured for us to take a seat on the nearest sofa, which was oddly free of teddies and baby toys. “How was your trip? I’ve hardly seen you since you got back.”
“Sorry, I’ve been busy,” I said, perching on the edge of the sofa. I’d only been gone a few weeks, but already, I felt out of place at Dominic’s. “Also, I’m not sure if I’ve forgiven you for ratting me out to everyone. How did you even know?”
“I didn’t,” Dominic said, looking at Louisa with a frown. “Neither of us did. I wouldn’t do that to you. I promise.”
“Then who told?”
“I don’t know.” He thought for a second. “Wait, hang on. I know.” He sighed. “You went out for dinner a couple of weeks ago, right? And you bumped into Henry Lu?”
“Yeah,” I said slowly. “Henry’s brother Jason is dating Oscar’s brother Lewis. But I don’t see how that’s relevant?”
“Tonia’s cousin’s sister-in-law was there having dinner too, and I reckon she must have seen the two of you.”
I sighed and rolled my eyes. “How the fuck did she recognise us? Does Auntie Tonia just send all her friends and distant relatives my picture?”
“I have no clue,” said Dominic. “But that’s my best guess. Mum mentioned it to me last week, and that’s all I can think of. I’m sorry.”
“Not your fault,” I said, taking a sip of my wine and wondering how quickly I could get drunk. The enormous charcuterie board sat on the coffee table between us, which was also oddly clean. I was used to seeing it covered in at least one set of sticky fingerprints. “I’m adding another strike to my mental list next to Auntie Tonia’s name.”
“I’m surprised you still have room,” Oscar said. “Based on what you’ve told me.”
“God, that woman is insufferable,” Dominic said.
“Agreed,” I said. “But I’m not going to talk about her. Mostly because we’ll be here all night, and I’ll just get so fucking frustrated that I’ll break something. So to answer your earlier question, the trip was good. Intense though. Lots of driving.”
“You started in Cornwall, right?” Louisa asked. She’d sat down next to Dominic on the sofa opposite us, and I was forever grateful she’d taken me up on my subject change.
“Yeah, down in Fowey at this place called August House. It was really lovely, although we didn’t get to see much of the town because of the rain.”
“We’re looking at heading down there in the autumn, maybe while Teddy’s on half-term,” Dominic said. “Wrap up warm, let Teddy and Nico run along the beach, give them a change of scenery.”
“It’s a beautiful part of the world,” Oscar said.
Dominic nodded and reached for the board, picking up a few bits. “I’ve never been, but it would be nice to have a family holiday just the six of us if we can find somewhere.”
“Are you still going to Italy this summer?” I asked quietly.
“Yeah,” Dominic said. “Are you coming? Nonna and Grandad would love to see you again.”
“Maybe. It’ll depend on work and whether I can spend time with Auntie Tonia without strangling her.”
“Italy?” Oscar asked, looking at me with a raised eyebrow, and I saw him putting several things together very quickly.
“Yeah, it’s a family tradition,” I said. “Everyone on my mum’s side spends the summer with Nonna and Grandad. We used to go for a couple of weeks every year. Everyone still does actually. I just… haven’t been in a while because of work.”
Oscar nodded. “That makes sense.”
“Have you got much booked in for the summer?” Dominic asked. He was frowning and looking between Oscar and me as if he knew he was missing something. I didn’t think Dominic knew about Daniele. I’d certainly never told him, and I didn’t think Zo? would have tattled on me.
“Potentially,” I said. “We’re still waiting to get the go-ahead on the next trips in Oscar’s LGBTQ+ holiday series, and the dates for those will depend on what’s available. And I’ve got a few more things in the works.”
Dominic nodded but didn’t press further, and the conversation moved on. I wasn’t sure why I felt awkward, but I did. I’d been out to Italy several times since everything had happened because there was no way my family would have let me go ten years without visiting my grandparents.
The first time had been hell, the second time I’d just been numb, and by the third trip I’d started to process everything and didn’t feel so hollow.
But I’d been on an emotional rollercoaster recently, and falling in love with Oscar had made me vulnerable in ways I’d never expected. I didn’t think I’d be able to cope with a week in the place where I’d lost my first love while my family interrogated my second. I knew they’d spend the whole time picking over Oscar like vultures on a carcass, and the whole idea made me weirdly nauseous.
Maybe it would be a good idea to go back to my therapist for a while, just to talk all of this shit out so I could finally move on. Or something like that.
The rest of dinner was fabulous, and it was actually fun to spend time with my brother outside of him being a parent. I’d forgotten how fun he could be when he partially removed the stick from his butt.
By the time Louisa rolled out the tiramisu, I thought I was going to burst, but I still managed a few mouthfuls because it was too good to resist.
“I can send you home with some if you want,” Louisa said as I forlornly eyed the dish. “We’re not going to eat it all.”
“Home?” I asked, turning over the word on my tongue.
“Sorry, is it too soon to say that? I wasn’t sure if you were still living here? We’ve not really talked about it.” She winced. “And now I’ve put my foot in it. Sorry.”
“It’s fine.” I looked at Oscar, trying to judge his expression. I reached for his hand under the table, and he gave me an easy smile.
“I mean, my flat isn’t much, but you’re welcome to stay there with me if you want.”
“I’d like that,” I said, my heart almost overflowing with emotion. “I don’t have a lot of stuff, so I won’t take up much space.”
“There isn’t much space to begin with.” Oscar squeezed my hand. “But it will do.”
“Yeah,” I said. “It’s a good start.” I leant over and kissed him, not caring that my brother was sitting right there.
When we parted, Dominic was giving me that strange expression again like he was happy but concerned.
I was going to have to talk to him, this time alone. And I got my chance ten minutes later when he shooed Louisa and Oscar out of the kitchen so he could load the dishwasher.
I lingered by the counter under the pretence of making coffee, even though both Louisa and Oscar had declined, and I didn’t think caffeine would do me much good this late at night. Because I apparently cared about that shit now that I had a man to curl up against and fall asleep with.
“So… what’s with the face?” I asked as Dominic stacked plates in the dishwasher. He frowned.
“What face?”
“The one you were making when Oscar and I were talking about being together. Do you not like him? Am I going to get a lecture about moving too quickly?”
“No, it’s not that.” Dominic’s voice was quiet. He sighed and slotted some cutlery into the plastic holder. “I just… I never thought I’d get to see you happy again. Not like this. Ever since Daniele…”
He trailed off, and I stared at him.
“What do you mean?”
“It’s okay,” he said quickly. “Nobody told me, and it’s not like the whole family knows. Just me, and Louisa, and Mum.”
“H-how?” The news had staggered me, and I almost felt dizzy. Dominic strode over and put his arm around me.
“Anthony’s wedding,” Dominic said. “I heard you crying with Zo?. I, er, I wanted to say something, but I didn’t know what. I didn’t want you to get mad at me for overhearing, but you just sounded so… devastated. And I realised nobody had really asked you about Daniele after it happened, and I just… didn’t know what to do. I didn’t say anything and decided I’d be there if you ever wanted to tell me.”
“Oh… That was nearly nine years ago, Dom.”
“I know. And I’m not upset you didn’t tell me. Truly, I’m not. I know our family is shit at keeping secrets. That’s why Louisa and I didn’t tell anyone she was pregnant with Teddy until she was about to pop because I knew as soon as I told anyone except Mum and Dad, everyone would know in two minutes.” He squeezed me gently, and for the first time in a long time he just felt like my brother, not someone trying to be more.
“So the face is because you’re happy for me? Sad for me?”
“Relieved, I guess? And happy. You always projected this carefree, careless air about you, and I never knew if you were really happy or not, and I never wanted to ask because then I’d have to admit I knew your secret,” Dominic said. “Which, logically, is kind of fucked up. But that’s how we do things here apparently.”
I chuckled. “Isn’t that the Verrati family motto? Share at your peril. Emotions are a family affair. Relationships are family decisions.”
Dominic snorted. “And that is why I’m reading every parenting advice thing I can get my hands on so my sons don’t become emotionally damaged by our relatives.”
“Good luck with that,” I said. “I thought all families were supposed to give you a healthy supply of emotional trauma?”
“No, I think that’s just ours.”
I smiled and shook my head. “You know, I actually like hanging out with you when you’re like this. Less drill sergeant, more normal man in his very, very late thirties.”
“Don’t fucking remind me.” Dominic groaned, releasing me and going back to the dishwasher. “I don’t feel like I should be turning forty.”
“Are you going to have a party?”
“Depends on whether I get a choice in the matter,” he said. “I think I just want to do a nice dinner party. Immediate family only. Go to a nice restaurant, have some good food, that sort of thing.”
I thought for a second, then I remembered Raphael’s. I wondered if they did private hire because the restaurant would be the perfect size for my parents, my brothers and their families, Oscar and me.
My heart fluttered at the realisation that I was automatically including Oscar. I knew things were getting serious between us pretty quickly, but I didn’t want to change that.
I knew what I wanted, and it was him.
“You know, I might actually know somewhere,” I said.
“Great. Send me the details.”
We stood in semi-silence for a moment, just the sound of clanking plates filling the room.
“Hey,” Dominic said as he shoved a washing tablet into the dishwasher and closed the door. “I mean it. I’m really glad you’re happy—genuinely happy. You deserve it. And I promise, I won’t share any details. But you will have to introduce him to a couple of people if you want to bring him to my not-forty-fortieth.”
I grinned. “Thanks. I’ll hold you to that. Or I’ll promise Teddy you’ll take him swimming with sharks for his sixteenth.”
“Come on,” Dominic said with a wry smile. “You and I both know you’ll be doing that anyway.”