But when I looked, Terzo, Dawson, and Dulles were looking at Primo.
It was only Primo whose gaze was on me.
That weird flip-flopping sensation in my belly had to do with, you know, the anxiety of carrying out my plan to spend a ton of his money without checking with him about it. It didn’t make sense that it could be anything else.
By the time I came back down, Primo and Terzo were gone and Dawson and Dulles were waiting patiently by the kitchen counter.
“I hope you two are wearing comfortable shoes,” I said, getting a smirk out of Dulles.
“That sounds like a threat, woman,” he said, those green eyes of his brightening.
“It is,” I confirmed, feeling my lips twitch at his chuckle.
“We are at your disposal,” Dulles said, waving an arm.
“Do you have a jacket?” Dawson asked, looking at my short-sleeve outfit.
“I wasn’t exactly given a chance to pack,” I reminded them then waved down at my outfit. “This is all I have. Unless I want to shop in my wedding dress.”
“Let me see if Primo has anything,” Dawson suggested.
“Anything that fits that man would be a floor-length dress on me. It’s fine. I will grab a jacket at the first stop,” I said.
“What is the first stop?” Dulles asked as we made our way to the elevator.
“What is the closest, but most expensive store?” I asked, getting a chuckle out of Dulles.
“Oh, you’re fixing to do some damage, huh?” he asked, sharing a strange look with his brother.
“I’m figuring my husband has earned it,” I said, giving them a long look.
“You might be right,” Dulles agreed, tone oddly firm.
After that, the day was a blur. My feet, even in expensive flats I bought at the first store along with my warm floor-length black coat with the bright red lining that made me feel fancy and chic.
All I knew was that by the time we stopped for lunch, the large trunk of the SUV was positively packed. And that was just with clothes and undergarments and shoes. We hadn’t even gotten to the basic care items like shampoos, soaps, lotions, makeup, or perfume.
“Better?” I asked as the men with me slowly perked up as they ate.
Really, they’d been troopers. There hadn’t been a single grumble loud enough for me to hear. But I watched as, like flowers left without water too long, they slowly started to shrink and wilt on me.
“Yeah,” Dawson agreed over a mouthful of meatball parm sub.
“You could make shopping a sport, woman,” Dulles said, shaking his head.
“In my defense, I actually never shop like this. Because, you know, I typically have all my basic care items and wardrobe and am just adding one or two things.”
Despite myself, I decided I liked the twins. Maybe it was because they had a different mom from Primo and Terzo, but they were easier to get along with. Especially Dulles who had a boyish sort of charm and a pretty good sense of humor. Even when being made to carry three bags full of my bras and panties.
Dawson was a little quieter than Dulles, but had been a decent shopping companion as well.
“Yeah, I get that,” Dawson said, nodding.
“I promise we just need like maybe two more stores. One box-type store where I can get just basic stuff like a toothbrush and such. And then a quicker trip to a makeup store.”
“Primo said you look better without it,” Dawson said, and I watched as Dulles’s eyes closed and his head shook. Because he knew what was coming.
“Did he now?” I asked, a smirk pulling at my lips. “I guess I will have to make sure to get some setting spray.”
“Setting spray?” Dawson repeated.
“Like a seal coat,” Dulles said, getting a small laugh out of me. “So that shit never comes off.”
“I fucked up, huh?” Dawson asked, sending me a sheepish look.
“Not at all. You’ve proven quite valuable.”
“Shit,” Dawson said, closing his eyes.
“Anything else about me that Primo likes?” I asked, reaching up toward my head. “My hair, perhaps?”
“Nope. No. Actually, he said he’d like you better bald,” Dawson quipped and I couldn’t help but laugh at that too.
“You know… you guys aren’t so bad,” I said, nodding.
“Be still my heart,” Dulles said, pressing a hand to it. “Not so bad. What a compliment.”
“Well, compared to Primo and Terzo, you’re practically Mr. Congenialities.”
“We weren’t raised with the three of them,” Dawson admitted. “We only became a part of the family when we were teens.”
“So all this good you guys have going on is from your mother.”
“Yeah,” Dawson said, but his mood and face had gone dark. So had Dulles’s.
I’d said something wrong. I didn’t know exactly what. I guess maybe they lost their mom. In which case, my heart went out to them. I didn’t know what I would do without my mom.