Page 5 of Brandishing Beginnings

“That sounds horrible, sister.” I couldn’t help but smile.

“I’m kinda excited to be honest. Busy means surgery.”

I laughed and shook my head, despite the fact that my sister couldn’t see me.Leave it to fucking Jenna to be excited about the prospect of slicing people open.

“You should come by my place for Thanksgiving!” Kara said on the drive home.

In the end, I had decided to head home. Jenna managed to get Sunday through Tuesday off before the holiday, so I would hang out with my sister, before I headed down to my parent’s. I’d had made effort of showing up, then made myself scarce with friends the rest of the break.

I glanced over at my new friend. In the last several months, the two of us had grown extremely close, meeting in the library to study almost daily. We also met up with Stephanie and Terri, and a couple other friends at the mess hall for meals.

“It’ll be low key, I promise. Literally just me and my Mama, plus Marcos and his two best friends, Jason and Nico.” Kara elaborated.

I thought it over, wondering if I could handle sitting through a meal with Marcos, after ourmoment,as Kara was calling it. He was a very attractive man, and there was clearly chemistry there. “I uh—”

“Come on, Maya! It’ll be so much fun! We usually play Mario Cart after until we pass out into food comas on the couch.”

I laughed, and despite my better judgement, I agreed. “Alright, sounds good!”

“YES!” Kara shouted, throwing her arms in the air. “This is going to be the best Thanksgiving ever!”

I was doubting my decision by the time Thursday rolled around. As nerves rolled over me, I was wishing I had stayed in Chicago, despite my sister working long hours. Being alone sounded better than making a fool of myself in front of Kara’s family, her brother especially.

Dressed in leggings and slinky, off the shoulder top, I was classy and casual and still comfortable. I managed to bake some caramel brownies to bring to dinner, so I wasn’t showing up empty handed. After finding a parking spot near Kara’s building, I shut off my car and took a deep breath. I glanced in the rearview mirror to check that my hair and makeup were still good to go, before I slowly opened the door. I grabbed the brownies from the passenger seat and stepped out of the Honda Civic.

I made sure the car was locked and before I headed up the walkway toward the building. The complex was made up of rows of two-story buildings, and Kara’s mom’s place was at the end of the building on the second floor.

Moments later, I was knocking on a beat-up front door that was decorated with a cute fall wreath. “Coming!” Kara called through the door. “Hey, Maya!”

“Hey girl, Happy Thanksgiving!” I grinned as Kara stepped out of the way. “Happy Thanksgiving everyone.”

A chorus of grunted, “Happy Thanksgiving’s,” were sent back my way from the three men in the living room, as they looked away from the football game on the TV.

I was met with the stares of the three most beautiful men I’d ever seen, but it was Marcos that held my gaze the longest. He stood up quickly, and walked over. He dressed in a pair of dark washed jeans and a white cable knit sweater, that made my mouth water. “Welcome.” He smiled warmly, his dark eyes crinkling in the corners. “Let me get that for you.” He reached for the tray of brownies in my hand.

“Thank you.” I smiled.

“I’ll take your coat,” Kara offered.

I kicked off my shoes, before I shed my coat and handed it to Kara. Feeling eyes watching me, I looked back to the two men still staring. Both had blond hair. One was shaggier around his ears, like he was in the process of growing it out, while the other guy’s was darker, and short and spiky.

“This is Nico,” Kara introduced, pointing to the blond with shaggy hair and blue eyes. “And Jason.” She pointed to the one with spiky blond hair and slate gray eyes. “Guys, this is my friend Maya from school.”

“Nice to meet you,” Nico said, giving me a wide smile.

Jason just nodded in greeting.

“Come on, let’s get you a drink,” Kara said, pushing me toward the kitchen, just as a short woman with sensual curves and a gorgeous smile walked out. Carlita Candella was as beautiful as she was the last time I met her, with long wavy black hair that reached her trim waist and big caramel-colored eyes that were so warm as they crinkled in the corners and drank you in.

“Oh Maya, good you made it. I’m so glad you’re here,Nena.” Lita wrapped me a huge hug, that I couldn’t help but sink into. Carlita had welcomed me into her home with open arms, and immediately treated me with love and affection, more than my own mother ever had.

“Happy Thanksgiving, Lita,” I murmured into her shoulder. I had to bend slightly, to hug the much shorter woman, but Lita’s hugs were worth it. “Thank you for having me.”

“Of course, dear.” As we pulled apart, Lita patted my cheek affectionately. “You’re always welcome here.”

As we ate dinner, I relaxed into the atmosphere. I ended up on the same side of the table as Kara, while Nico and Jason took the other side, leaving the ends or heads of the table for Marcos and his mother.

Conversation flowed easily and I laughed often. The men at the table kept up a solid stream of banter and jokes. Even though I feltlike the three men were watching me constantly, I didn’t let it affect me. I kept up with their jokes and laughed when they flirted with me. The three of them were being very obvious in their attraction, that even Kara took notice and made her own flirty jokes.

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