“Nataniele is very important to me. I’m also really glad he’s met you, you know.”
“You are?”
“Very much so. Nataniele…he’s not been himself since Pops passed.”
My mouth drops open.
“Pops? You mean, your father?”
“Uh-huh. Just last month. He didn’t tell you?”
“He told me about your brother. He’s mentioned your father once or twice but not that he had passed. I’m so sorry.”
After all the time we’d spent together, how could Nate not have mentioned this? He’s talked a little about his father but nothing to indicate he had recently died.
“It was quick and unexpected,” Nora says with a sad smile. “He had a brain aneurysm and died in his sleep just after New Year’s. It hit Nate really hard. First Micha and then Pops. Nataniele never expected to be running the family, and he wasn’t prepared for it. Sometimes I wonder if he’s just going to put a bullet in his brain.”
I gasp.
“Joking.” She shrugs a shoulder. “He doesn’t like to admit it, but my brother really is very Catholic. He’d never do something like that. He’s still capable of screwing things up for himself though.”
I can’t help but wonder if she’s referring to me, but she’d also just said she was glad he met me. If not me, what does she mean? I stare at this woman who had been through a horrible ordeal, then lost a brother, a father, and a husband in such a short amount of time. How was she even standing here and not permanently residing in a mental hospital? I barely survived losing my aunt.
Maybe that’s what having a large family is really all about—having people to support you when you lose someone.
I glance up at Nate. He leans over the pool table and makes a final shot, sinking both the eight ball and the cue ball. He curses, drops to his knees, and shakes the pool cue up over his head.
“Loser again!” Antony laughs.
Nate turns his gaze to me, smiling glumly. His eyes flicker in Nora’s direction, and his face falls a bit. I wonder what he’s thinking as he pulls himself from the floor and joins us.
“He’s cheating,” Nate says, pointing to Antony over his shoulder. “I know he is. I just can’t figure out how.”
“You were cheating, too,” I remind him. “You deserve to lose.”
“Oh, my heart!” Nate places his hand over his chest and cries out as if in pain. He glares down at me. “You’re supposed to take my side in this, you know.”
“Am I?”
“Yes.”
“I wasn’t informed of the rules.”
“He tends to make them up as he goes along,” Nora says.
Nate takes my hand, insisting I play the next game on his team. I’m terrible at pool, miss constantly, and we’re destroyed by Nora and Antony. The teams switch around, we drink more wine, and the night goes on.
Though thoughts of Nora’s horrible experience still haunt me, I’m completely enthralled by the large family dynamic of the Orsos. I’ve thought about such gatherings, but I’ve never been a part of one, and they do this every week! Twos and Nora corner me, and despite Twos’ claim not to do “chick stuff,” we start making plans to get our palms read in Cincinnati while the boys go to a soccer game.
In what feels like an instant, I have a group of girlfriends. I’m not entirely sure how it even happened. Everyone is so accepting, and I feel completely welcomed. I join in the jokes and laughter. I’m not embarrassed when Nate pulls me onto his lap, kissing me hard right in front of everyone. I imbibe too much wine, and when the evening draws to a close, I know I can’t drive myself home.
“You can stay,” Nate says softly. He takes my hand and presses his lips to my knuckles.
My skin begins to tingle, and I’m very tempted to take him up on the offer, but I decline.
“I’ll take you home,” Nate says. “I stopped drinking long before you ladies did.”
“Are you sure?” I ask. “What about my car?”
“Good excuse for me to see you again in the morning,” he says. “I’ll bring your car in time for you to get to work, and Antony can follow me. No big deal.”
Nate leads me to the garage, and I let out a gasp when I realize just how big it is. It’s clearly an addition and goes back much farther than I could see from the front of the house. There are eight cars inside, all of them outlandish looking. I know very little about cars, but some cars just look insanely expensive, and all of these have that vibe.
Nate leads me to the ridiculous electric sports car and helps me inside. He drives slowly and silently, and I get the idea he wants to say something.
“Thank you for insisting I join you tonight,” I say. “I had a wonderful time. I love your family!”
“I’m really glad to hear you say that,” Nate replies softly. “They liked you, too, Nora especially, and she’s not an easy one.”
“She seems very protective of you.”
“We’re protective of each other.” Nate glances at me briefly before looking back at the road. “You were talking for a long time. I could infer what she was telling you about from her expression. That’s not a typical topic of conversation for her right after meeting someone.”
“I’m sure it’s not.” I twiddle my fingers in my lap. “What a horrible thing to go through!”
“For us as well,” Nate says softly. “I had never been so angry in my life. When I walked into that joke of a police station and saw her…well, I might have put my fist through a wall. She was a mess. Her nose had been broken, her clothes all torn up,
