“Taylor Swift,” I respond, grinning. He rolls his eyes, shaking his head. I turn around to open the door and he follows behind me.
I stop for a second, taking a moment to breathe and Evan holds onto my elbow. His touch is featherlight. I almost miss it, but then he tugs on it harder, making me turn towards him.
“Are we supposed to hold hands and kiss and all that?” he asks, his voice quiet as he subtly scans the foyer.
“You’re my date, not my boyfriend. There’s a difference.”
“So, I can’t hold your hand?”
I roll my eyes. “If you want to so badly,” I say, holding out my palm to him. He looks at it and shakes his head. He’s nervous. That’s fine, but I don’t like the way it’s making me feel like I should be nervous too. I can handle my brothers and my mom. They’re nice people when you get to know them. I haven’t told Evan anything about them so he’s just going to have to find out.
“What?” I ask, shaking my hand at him.
“No. I don’t want to do it if you don’t want to,” he whispers almost angrily.
“Ev,” I warn, watching the way his face softens and his shoulders sag at the use of the nickname. “Stop making this weird.”
“I’m not.”
“You are.”
“I’m not. I’m just-” I cut him off by dragging his hand that isn’t holding the flowers, slipping it around my waist. His heavy hand rests on my hip and he grips it tight. I gasp at the force of him. He releases his grip gently, tugging me into his side a little.
“Better?” I ask, looking up at him as he stares down the hallway.
He clears his throat. “I guess.”
It takes us a few seconds to get comfortable with his hand on me like that as we walk down the hallway. By the time I’ve finally settled into his touch, I’m pulled out of it. My brother pulls on the back of my ponytail, and I yelp as he drags me out of Evan’s arms, and I turn to face him.
“You’re such a dick,” I say when he faces me. Leo’s got his signature Voss smile on, grinning at me. He’s not dressed appropriately for dinner, but he doesn’t seem to care. He’s wearing sweats and an old grey shirt, his dark brown hair a mess like always. “You could at least get dressed. We have a guest.”
He shrugs, turning to Evan. “How much did she pay you to come here?”
“Oh my god, shut up,” I say, groaning as I link my arm through Evan’s. He seems a little starstruck. Still nervous. “This is Leo. One of the twins. He and Arthur are identical, but you won't get them mixed up, trust me. Their personalities are a dead giveaway.”
Evan nods, holding out his hand to my brother. “I’m Evan. It’s nice to meet you.”
Leo smirks before grabbing his hand. He glances at me as if this is the most unnatural meeting in the world and I give him a tight smile. “Pleasure,” Leo says before turning to me. “Everyone’s ready to eat and Hen’s looking for you.”
“Great,” I say, holding tighter onto Evan’s gigantic bicep and twisting us around to walk towards the dining room. “And Leo, please take a shower before sitting at the table. You smell like weed.”
Evan snorts and Leo laughs from behind me. “So, that isn’t your youngest brother?” Evan asks. I shake my head, chuckling.
“Where would you get that idea from?” I ask sarcastically just as we stop outside the door that leads into the dining hall. Henry is sitting on the floor, his back pressed against the wall, his legs spread open in front of him, a pack of Swedish Fish resting between them. He’s wearing a black tux, but he still looks put together. “That’smy youngest older brother.”
Henry’s head pops up now and he smiles wide. “Mia sorella Scarlatta,” he gets out between a mouthful of sweets. I can’t help but smile back at him. “I’ve been looking for you.”
“I’m here now,” I say, detangling my arm from Evan’s so I can help my brother up. He leaves the packet on the ground, wobbling as he stands, brushing off his trousers. “This is my date.” I turn and gesture to Evan and he holds out his hand to Hen.
“Evan,” he introduces. Henry takes his hand and shakes it. “It’s nice to meet you. Henry, right?”
Henry nods. “Evan?” He turns to me, his eyes narrowing. “Don’t we hate him?”
“Iused to hate him,” I say, chuckling. Henry’s about to get me into some real trouble tonight. “It turns out he’s not that bad.”
“L'hai scopato? Is that why we’re suddenly best friends with someone we didn’t like two days ago?” Henry asks. I know he’s trying to be protective but it’s not helping. The last thing we need is my brother suggesting that we’re sleeping together right in front of him. Good job he doesn’t speak Italian.
“No, non l'ho scopato io, stronzo. Non ancora,” I reply, muttering the last part as I paint my face into a smile to not arouse suspicion. Henry shrugs, not believing me. “You ready to go in?” I ask Evan.
