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)
Aside from the fact that we both had dark hair and wore glasses, I only saw a slight resemblance. Part of that might have been because Mike looked relaxed and happy, and I always tended to look uptight in photos. Plus, he was dressed in a Hawaiian shirt. You couldn’t pay me to wear that.
I asked, “Will he be joining us for brunch?”
“No, he and his husband took their sons to Maui at the start of summer break. They won’t be back for another week.”
“What about the rest of your brothers?”
“Gianni is touring Australia with his rock star husband, who headlined a big show in Melbourne yesterday. Vincent and his husband will be here, though.”
Dante pulled a bottle of champagne from the refrigerator, which instantly made me think of Armando. I snuck a glance at my phone, but it had been less than an hour since we parted ways at the hotel, and he hadn’t replied to my text yet. I decided I should give it a day before sending him another message. He’d probably be put off if I seemed too eager. But I didn’t want him to think I’d forgotten about him, either. Maybe I should just wait half a day before messaging him again…
Dante interrupted my thoughts by handing me the bottle and saying, “Let’s make some mimosas.” He started to pull champagne flutes out of the cupboard as he asked, “How many people are coming for brunch, Nana?”
“No idea,” she said, “but you should make extras for the boys in the yard. I’m sure they’re parched from all that dancing.”
Dante grabbed another bottle of champagne as a handsome, muscular guy with dark hair breezed into the kitchen. When he saw me, he said, “Wow, you look a lot like my brother-in-law, Mike.”
Dante kissed his cheek and said, “Hi angel. Meet my second cousin, Sal.” I’d never liked that nickname, but I didn’t bother to correct him. “Sal, this is my husband Charlie.”
“Nice to meet you.” We shook hands, and I muttered, mostly to myself, “It’s kind of amazing that all four Dombruso brothers turned out to be gay.”
“We thought Mikey was straight at first, but then we found out he was bi. Or pan. I never know which of those to use. Point is, he fell in love with Yoshi,” Nana said. “This was several years after his wife died, rest her soul.” She looked hopeful as she turned to me and asked, “What about you, Sal? Do you like dick?”
If I’d been drinking at the time, I absolutely would have done a spit take at the way she phrased that question. Dante must have seen how surprised I was, because he reminded his grandmother, “Not everyone likes to talk about their sex life, Nana.”
“I’m not asking how often he gets laid,” she huffed. “I just want to know if he’s gay. But don’t worry. I won’t disown him if he’s straight.”
Dante told me, “You don’t have to answer her.” Then he distracted Nana by saying, “We should make some snacks for the crew in the front yard.”
She was all for that idea and started giving us instructions. After we made sandwiches and mimosas and brought them to the performers, she put us to work making a few dishes for brunch. I was grateful to be included like that. I’d barely kept in touch with anyone over the years, including these American relatives from my mother’s side of the family, so I’d been worried this visit would be awkward. But she treated me not just like family, but like no time at all had passed.
While Dante and Charlie cooked and I assembled a large crudité platter, Nana sat down at the kitchen island and polished off one mimosa after another. Just as we were finishing up, Vincent and his husband Trevor arrived. Vincent and Dante were close in age, and they looked a lot alike, except that Vincent wore glasses and didn’t have a five o’clock shadow. I wondered if people were constantly telling them they looked like each other, since none of them could resist commenting on how much I looked like their younger brother.
“Well, that figures,” Dante teased, as he gave Vincent a back-slapping hug. “You managed to time it perfectly by arriving right after all the work was done.”
Vincent smirked and told him, “Like I wanted you to cook my food. You’re the only person I know who can burn water.”
Dante tried to look offended. “I didn’t burn water. I accidentally let it all evaporate, and the pan burned.”
“Same thing.”
Their good-natured teasing continued as we carried everything out to an elegant patio, which was surrounded by two rows of Italian cypress trees. An older gentleman and two college-age guys were clustered around a laptop at one end of a long table. It had been set for ten people but could easily seat twenty.