“Uh, why?” Robbie said. “I’d rather just forget he exists.”
“So would I,” Priest said. “But there’s something about him that we want to discuss with you, and you always avoid it.”
Robbie slumped back in his seat, but it didn’t escape Julien that some of the shine in Robbie’s eyes had faded—and Julien hated Nathan for that alone.
“Okay,” Robbie said. “What do you want to know?”
Julien sensed how difficult this was for Robbie to revisit. But they knew this crétin de Nathan had caused a few insecurities once upon a time, and they didn’t want them to pop up this weekend—or ever, for that matter.
“Did your parents ever meet him?” Julien asked.
“Nathan?” Robbie let out a derisive laugh. “Are you kidding?”
“Non. I’m serious.”
It was clear Robbie could see that too, because he quickly sobered and said, “No, they never met him. He said we weren’t ‘serious’ enough for that step.”
Robbie picked at a piece of imaginary lint on his shorts, then raised his eyes to Julien. “I’m glad for it now, though. He was an ass. And not in a good way. He made me think that being me was, I don’t know, somehow less.”
“Je suis désolé,” Julien said, a frown forming between his eyebrows. He didn’t like seeing Robbie like this. But both he and Priest knew this conversation had to be had.
Robbie had mentioned several times over that he’d never been in a real relationship, one where he felt truly loved for who he was. And they wanted to make sure it was one hundred percent clear that when they arrived in Oshkosh today, they wanted the real Robert Bianchi to arrive with them. Not some polite young man that he might think they want. The Robbie his family loved.
“Don’t be,” Robbie said. “It was my own fault. I made several stupid decisions all at once because I’m a genius like that. And it caught up to me.”
The car fell silent for a moment, except for the music that was softly playing in the background.
“When did you break up with him again?” Priest asked.
“A few weeks before I got in an elevator…with you.”
Priest nodded.
“What?” Robbie said. “What are you thinking right now? And don’t say ‘nothing,’ because I can see your mind working.”
Priest eyed Robbie. “I suppose I’d always wondered at the change between that first day in the elevator, and when I met you later with Vanessa and your nonna.”
“Change?” Robbie said.
“He means your personality, princesse,” Julien said. “When you two first met, he told me you were a little more—”
“Subdued,” Priest said. “You used to dress like you were going to a funeral.”
Robbie’s mouth fell open, making Julien and Priest laugh. “I did not.”
“Yes. You did. Do you need me to remind you?” Priest asked. “I remember exactly what you were wearing. How you smelled. How much I wanted to push you up against the wall and strip you naked, with no names needed.”
“Ah, okay…wow,” Robbie said. “You totally just redeemed yourself.”
Priest winked at him, and Robbie shook his head.
“But as for Nathan,” Robbie continued, “his problem was more with himself than me. He didn’t accept who he was, and then tried to make me someone I wasn’t. I let it go on for a little too long, and before I knew it, I didn’t even recognize myself when I looked in the mirror.”
Julien reached back to take Robbie’s hand in his. “Promise us something this weekend.” Robbie turned those wide eyes his way, and Julien squeezed his fingers. “Be you. Don’t be someone you think we expect or want. Be you, and enjoy your family. No matter how crazy and wild they are. You’ve been away from them longer than you should have been because of us, and we don’t want you to feel you have to censor yourself just because we’re here.”
Robbie’s eyes glistened, and he nodded. “Je vous aime. Both of you.”
“Nous t’aimons aussi,” Julien said, and punctuated that with a kiss to the back of Robbie’s hand. “Now, about these road games. Have you got any favorites?”
WHEN PRIEST MADE the final turn into his childhood street, Robbie’s heart began to tap-dance and his palms grew sweaty. The trip up there this morning had been… Well, it had been really wonderful. But now that they were closing in on their final destination, Robbie’s stomach was tying itself in knots.
He’d never been so damn nervous in his life, and the only reason he could think of as to why he wanted to bolt was because of how much he cared for the two men sitting in the front of the vehicle.
He still couldn’t believe it’d been nearly eight months since the three of them had started dating. Only eight months since Julien and Priest had walked into his life and upended it. It seemed impossible, because it felt as though Robbie had known them his entire life.