Page 18 of Yours, Unexpectedly

For too long, I stand there, soaking in every last drop.

I debate going over there and decide against it. I’m not ready.

I must be getting old because the idea of Sunday family dinner sounds amazing. It’s a Bardot tradition that I’ve always admired and have always dreamed of continuing on those nights I let myself think about what life would be like with Bex.

I brought a bottle of French wine even though I don’t drink anymore and the Bardot family isn’t actually from France, at least not in the last few generations. It’s something I’ve always done just as a token of my appreciation for the way Elaine and Hugo so immediately accepted me as Gabe’s friend and roommate.

Since I returned to Massachusetts, I have been avoiding Sunday dinners. I would never admit that to Bex or Gabe but I felt like I needed to distance myself. I’ve always known that if I’m too close to Bex’s orbit, I will get sucked in. I think I’m ready for that now.

Gabe and I rode over together since the apartment is only about fifteen minutes from the Bardot home. We pull up to the house and there are already several cars parked out front.

“Ben and Jules coming tonight too?” I ask Gabe as I step out of the car. Benoit and Julien are the other two Bardot brothers—identical twins that fall in between Gabe and Bex. No one goes by their full name in this family, which makes me smile.

Gabe checks his phone as he follows me up the front sidewalk. “Yeah and I think Bex brought Luci and Riz.”

Interesting. I can’t remember being at a family dinner with any of Bex’s friends before. Obviously I know Luci and Guilliana, or Riz as everyone seems to call her, from conversations with Gabe and a few quick meetings, but I’ve never spent a lot of time with them. It should be fun to see this side of Bex.

As soon as the door is open, I remember why I love this family so much. Boisterous laughter is coming from inside and the delicious smell of beef stew floods my nostrils. The warm, familial feeling is immediate.

Ben sees us first. “Ah, it’s the Golden Child, home at last!”

“I’m here all the time,” Gabe retorts.

Ben shoves past him and clasps my shoulders. “I was talking about Anders, you nimrod. How are you, man?” We do the typical bro hand clasp to a slap on the back move and I easily fall into my “Golden Child” role.

I pull back, grinning. “I’m great, Ben. Glad to know I’m missed around here.”

“Terribly missed. Especially by a certain Bardot woman.” He winks, but my eyes widen and my heart rate immediately picks up until a half a second later when I realize he’s talking about Elaine.

“Well I have heard that I’m the favorite child. I should find her and say hi.”

Before I make it two steps, Elaine has rounded the corner and is pulling me into an embrace. After a moment, she leans back and cups my cheeks with both hands.

“You are my favorite child and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise!” Beaming up at me, she leans in to whisper, “Though it would be nice if you hurried up and made that official.” She winks, leaving me to stand there gaping at her. Surely she doesn’t mean what I think she means.

Before I can spend too long analyzing that comment, I’m ushered into the living room. My eyes instantly find Bex. She’s sitting in the same chair she was in the first time I ever laid eyes on her. She has on a “Reading is Sexy” sweatshirt and I have the thought that anything Bex did would be sexy.

A blonde and a brunette with blue streaks in her hair sit on the floor below Bex. Luci and Riz but I can’t remember which is which.

“Hi, I’m Anders,” I say, directing it toward the two women on the floor.

The brunette raises an eyebrow at me. “We know.”

The blonde rises from the floor and flits over to me. She sticks out her hand before introducing herself. “I’m Luci! I’m sure we are going to get to know each other very well this semester. You know, since you’re in such close proximity to Bex!” She glances behind her and gives an exaggerated wink to the other two girls. Bex has her face buried into her palms and is murmuring something to the girl who has to be Riz.

As if Elaine has an alert set for whenever Bex and I are mentioned in the same sentence, she magically appears at my side.

“Why are you two in close proximity?”

I glance over at Bex with a question in my eye before she gives me a resigned nod. “Bex is in my Introduction to Acting class this semester.”

The once bustling house all at once becomes incredibly still.

Jules, the quietest of the Bardot brothers, is the first to snort a laugh. “No way.”

Bex’s glare could kill as she bursts out, “I needed a fine arts credit to graduate, okay?! It’s not a big deal. It’s fine.”

Convincing. We’ll definitely need to work on that in class.

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