Chapter 11 #2
“Thank you. Please, take a seat. Joseph, open the wine. This meal is best eaten when hot.” She gestured at Fiona to start serving while the men seated themselves at the table.
Father at the head, Joseph on one side next to Fiona’s empty chair, Linh Han at the foot, and Pastor Tran opposite the Han children.
On a large tray, Fiona brought in a variety of dishes and set them near her mother.
She took the tray back to the kitchen and then sat beside Joseph.
“Pastor Tran, please say the blessing.”
“It’s Andy, Mrs. Han. I don’t see the need to stand on formality.”
Fiona watched her mother’s lips all but disappear. Linh Han was a very formal person.
“Of course, Andy.”
Hands were joined, heads bowed, and the food was blessed before dishes were passed around.
“Mr. Han, I noticed your garden, your plants look healthy and well cared for.”
David nodded but continued to eat his meal. His wife led the conversation.
“Pas—Andy, I understand you are from California.”
“Yes,” he swallowed before continuing, “I was born in San Francisco. Except for a brother in LA, my family is still there.”
“And you went to Stanford?”
Under the table, Joseph nudged Fiona’s foot with his own. She nudged back. Andy’s presence was saving them from being grilled.
“Yes. I have a degree in social work. I worked for the city of Sacramento for a few years before I answered the call.”
“The call?” Fiona tilted her head in question.
Before Andy could respond, Joseph answered, “He means he heard God calling him to go into the ministry.”
Joseph’s cheeks reddened as the entire table focused on him.
Andy bobbed his head. “Exactly! The work for the city was unfulfilling, and I felt that my gifts could better be used elsewhere.”
Face pointed down at his plate, Joseph murmured, “I know what you mean.”
Fiona wondered if she was the only one who heard.
“You are a lawyer?” Andy looked at Joseph, one eyebrow raised.
“Joseph manages all of our properties. He is skilled at development and handling the tenants,” Linh Han answered from the foot of the table.
Andy nodded and directed his attention back at Joseph. “You must meet some interesting people. Do you enjoy your work?”
“Work is not to be enjoyed, it is simply work,” Linh Han interrupted again to redirect the conversation. “Fiona is the executive director of a non-profit. I’m sure you know of Keeney Works.” It was a statement, not a question.
If the pastor was fazed by her mother’s interference, he didn’t let on. “I have heard about it. I would love to talk to you further about it.”
Fiona opened her mouth to speak, but again, her mother was there first.
“My daughter is very good at everything she does. Her cooking is exceptional.”
A flush of color rose on Fiona’s face. Then, it dawned on her that her mother was trying to set her up with the pastor. She managed not to groan out loud.
“I’m sure it is,” Andy murmured to Fiona, meeting her gaze, appearing fully aware of her mother’s manipulations. “And Joseph, are you an exceptional cook as well?” He grinned at her brother.
Fiona felt her brother tense beside her. Twisting her head slightly, she saw the knuckles whiten on the hand holding his fork. “I get by,” he said between stiff lips.
Fiona darted a glance at her father. He, too, was watching Joseph, a frown wrinkling his brow. He caught Fiona’s look and raised an eyebrow before returning to his dinner.
Oblivious to the silent conversations going on around her, Linh Han continued, “You are not married. Do you have a fiancée?”
Andy leaned back in his chair, glanced around the table before settling his gaze on Joseph. “No. I haven’t found the right man yet.”
An awkward silence descended on the table before David picked up a dish and turned to Andy. “May I serve you more rice?”
Andy held out his plate, then the two men settled into an easy conversation about baseball.
Fiona swiveled her head between her parents. At one end of the table, her dad, who rarely said more than two words, talked with Andy. Meanwhile, her mother sat stiff and speechless. This was a situation she had obviously not anticipated.
If it weren’t for the tension radiating from Joseph, Fiona would have enjoyed herself.
It wasn’t often her mother was caught flat-footed.
And she was off the hook from a fix-up. Cutting her eyes to the right, she studied Joseph.
He was normally sociable. Why so silent now?
She puzzled it over in her head while eating her meal.
Joseph dated. She knew that. He’d mentioned dinners and events, but when questioned, he’d say, “Someone I met online,” or “You wouldn’t know them.” He hiked and kayaked. The photos he posted on Instagram were of the outdoors and the guys accompanying him.
The penny dropped, and Fiona wanted to smack her forehead.
Then she wanted to apologize to Joseph. She’d been caught up in her own drama the past few years and had paid him little attention.
From beneath lowered lashes, she cast furtive glances at him while listening to the flow of conversation around her.
Somehow, Father dominated, drawing both Andy and Mother into a conversation about replacing the church’s roof.
He sent questions Joseph’s way to draw him in, and gradually, her brother relaxed.
Participating slightly, Fiona watched her parents.
Father was clearly relaxed and in the know.
Her mother…? It was hard to read her mother.
She didn’t look surprised, though. Now Fiona was hurt. Was she truly the last to know?
After dinner was finished, and Andy departed, Fiona and Joseph washed the dishes and walked to their cars.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” She couldn’t help the whine in her voice.
“What?”
She gusted out a sigh. “That you’re gay?”
Joseph frowned down at her. “Why? Do I need your permission?”
“No. Of course not. It’s just that…I guess I’m just embarrassed that I don’t know that about you. You’re my brother and I love you, and I haven’t been paying attention.” The last words came out with a few tears. She dashed them away with the back of her hand. “Shit. Now I’ve made this about me.”
Long arms circled her. “You’ve always been a bit of a drama queen.” She heard the smile in his voice.
She stepped back and grinned up at him. “When did you come out to Mom and Dad?’
A wry smile tugged at his lips. “I didn’t need to. Dad saw me on the kiss cam at a Mariners’ game.”
At Fiona’s frown, he explained. “Between innings, a camera pans around the crowd, and zooms in on couples. They caught Hugo and me. It was during Pride month a couple years ago.”
Fiona did the math in her head. Where was she two years ago? Trying to stay afloat between Eddie and work. Totally checked out from anything except her own drama, obviously.
“Hugo?” She crinkled her nose at him.
Joseph snorted. “Yeah. Unfortunate name. Great kisser, though.”
“Are you still seeing him?”
Leaning up against the hood of her car, Joseph crossed his arms. “No. He moved to LA shortly afterward. I’ve dated a few guys since then, but no one steady.”
Fiona turned and settled against the hood of the car as well, staring out at her father’s greenhouse, sorting things in her mind. “You used to date girls, though?”
“Yeah.” He shrugged. “I’ve been with both women and men, and I like guys better. Does that bother you?”
Shaking her head, she looked up at him. “I’ve only had sex with Eddie, so I have very little expertise to comment on.”
“Maybe you should switch teams.”
She smacked him on the shoulder. “Yeah, I don’t think so.”
“If you change your mind, let me know. I could introduce you….”
With a grin, Fiona straightened and dug through her purse for her keys. “Sure. I’ll do that. So, what do you think of Andy?”
In the light from the kitchen window, she saw Joseph’s blush. “He’s cute. He gave me his number, but I don’t know.”
“Mom would love it.”
“Yeah,” he murmured, “but if it went sideways, that would be all kinds of awkward.”
“True. Well, you know what you’re doing.” She reached up and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. “Talk to you soon?”
“Yeah.”
Fiona climbed into her car, waved at Joseph, and headed home. That was an interesting dinner.