An American Cinderella

“Aria, I’d like to introduce you to my brothers,” Henry said. He motioned to the man on my right. “This is my younger brother, Freddy.”

Freddy grinned. His smile was full of mischievous light as he took my hand and brought it to his lips. “So you’re the one getting Henry in trouble with Liam.”

My eyes darted over to the other man. He was slightly taller, but with a stern face and serious gray eyes. His mask was edged in gold where his younger brothers wore simple black.

“This is my older brother, Liam,” Henry said while still glaring at his little brother.

Liam simply nodded a greeting. “A pleasure to meet you.”

“You can be more friendly than that,” Freddy chided him. “He’s always a stick in the mud for these things. He’d rather be working.”

“There is a lot still to be done, Freddy,” Liam replied, his accent thicker than his brothers. “Some of us have responsibilities.”

“That’s true, and I’m glad none of them are mine,” Freddy replied with a chuckle. He winked at me. “The benefits of being the youngest son.”

“You see now what I have to deal with,” Henry whispered to me.

“It’s very nice to meet the two of you. Henry speaks very highly of you.” I grinned, glad to have faces to put with the names from Henry’s stories. Well, masked faces, but still better than nothing.

Liam’s brow went up. “Are you sure you’ve got the right man? The mask isn’t fooling you?”

Freddy laughed. “That’s just because he wants us to make a good impression. Now that you’ve met us, you’ll get all the horror stories.”

Henry just rolled his eyes.

So far, his brothers matched what I had in my mind for them. Liam was the older brother who led the business. He was responsible and intense, but I sensed a warmth hidden deep within him. His younger brother Freddy was a trouble maker. Henry’s stories about the three of them usually started with “Freddy had an idea...” followed by some sort of trouble for the three of them.

I liked them both immediately.

“Can I steal you for a dance later?” Freddy asked.

“Um, sure,” I replied. “That would be nice.”

He grinned and winked at me. He turned to his brother. “I promise not to steal her heart completely away.”

Henry rolled his eyes again. “You wish you had a date as beautiful as I do,” he told him.

Freddy just laughed.

“What is Freddy up to this time?” A female voice asked, joining the conversations. The three boys turned and smiled at an older woman in a simple blue dress with matching mask. Her hair was silver, but she had the same kind blue eyes as Henry.

“Mother, I’d like to introduce Aria Ritter,” Henry announced. For the first time all night he looked nervous.

“Come here child, let me look at you,” Henry’s mother said, motioning me to her. I stood demurely before her, hoping I would pass whatever test she had to make me worthy of her son.

“It’s very nice to meet you,” I told her.

She smiled and looked into my eyes. “What do you think of my son?”

The question was abrupt, but an honest one. “He’s amazing,” I replied without hesitation. I blushed slightly. “He’s kind and intelligent. He always makes sure that others are taken care of.” I glanced over at Henry and my heart skipped a beat. “I like him very much.”

“Hmm.” Henry’s mother smiled and she looked over at her son. “I think he’s chosen wisely in you.” She smiled and reached for my hand. “I’m so very glad to meet you, Aria.”

There was a silence for a moment, the five of us standing there as a group.

“If you will excuse us, I would like to dance with Aria,” Henry said, taking my hand. I gripped him tighter than I meant to, but being in front of his entire family had me suddenly very nervous. I had come expecting a party, not a family gathering.

“Of course.” Liam nodded his head, Freddy winked, and their mother smiled warmly at me.

“It was very nice to meet you all,” I managed to say before Henry pulled me away.

My heart was pounding as he led me to the dance floor. There were only one or two other couples dancing to the music. He pulled me into his arms and began to dance.