Once they were ready, they crept outside and were greeted with the beautiful morning sunrise. Priest was about halfway down the stairs when he stopped and glanced over at the back door of the Bianchis’ house, and as Julien reached the bottom, he turned and looked back.
“Joel?” Priest refocused on Julien as he took the final stairs down, and then Julien took his hand and said, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
Julien smiled, and when his dimple appeared, Priest reached up to touch it.
“What do you always tell Robbie about lying?” Julien said.
“Not to.” When Julien raised an eyebrow, Priest cleared his throat and said, “Point made.”
“Bien. Then I’ll ask again. What’s wrong?”
Priest was nervous, that was what was wrong, and as he looked into Julien’s handsome face, Priest found it difficult to admit. “I think you should do the talking in there this morning.”
Julien frowned and took a step closer. “Why?” Priest went to look away, but Julien moved in his direct line of sight. “Why, Joel?”
“Because you’re better at it.” As soon as he said the words, Priest knew how absurd they sounded, and so did Julien, judging by the way his lips quirked.
“I’m better at it? You’re a lawyer, mon amour. It’s your job to talk to people. Try again.”
“You know what I mean,” Priest said. “You are more personable, more…likable.”
Julien cocked his head to the side. “You’re nervous.”
“I’m—”
“Nervous,” Julien said again, and his grin grew wider until Priest glared at him.
“And if I am? Why does that make you so happy?”
“Because you’re never nervous,” Julien said. “In fact, you were the one who was the most excited to come up here. I almost feel like I should go and wake Robbie for this.”
Priest shook his head, and Julien chuckled.
“Je suis désolé,” Julien said, but judging by his smiling eyes, Priest highly doubted it.
“You will be if you don’t stop taking such joy from my misery. Why is it you’re so understanding with Robert, but my nerves amuse you?”
Julien leaned in and brushed his lips over the top of Priest’s. “Because it’s nice to be reminded that you’re like us from time to time.”
“As opposed to?”
“A hero,” Julien said. “My hero. Two times over now.”
Priest wrapped his arms around Julien’s waist and said, “I’m just a man, mon cœur.”
“You’re a man in love,” Julien said, and aimed his eyes up at the guesthouse.
“You would be right. And that’s why I’m nervous. I was the first time around, too.”
Julien took Priest’s face between his hands and said, “You have no reason to be nervous.” Priest put his forehead to Julien’s and shut his eyes. “You didn’t then, and you don’t now. The man up in that bed worships the ground you walk on, Joel. His parents have seen that all weekend.”
Priest reached for Julien’s hands and nodded.
“You don’t believe me, do you?” Julien said.
“I think you’re a little bit biased. But it’s in my favor, so I’ll take it.”
They turned to walk across the driveway, where the lights were still strung and bags of garbage had been collected from the night before, and as they headed up the back stairs to the main house, the door opened and Robbie’s mother called out, “Buongiorno.”
While Priest and Julien might not have understood a lot of the words they’d heard last night, that one was fairly obvious.
“Bonjour,” Julien replied, as Priest said, “Good morning.”
They climbed the stairs, and when they reached the top, Sofia beamed at both of them but reached out to pat Priest on the arm.
“How are you feeling this morning?”
Mortified, Priest thought. So much for Robbie’s parents not seeing. Best to apologize now. “A little bit embarrassed,” Priest said, and smiled. “Sorry for my behavior last night. I—”
“Your behavior?” she said, frowning.
“Yes. I had a little too much—”
“Fun, I hope. The girls told us you are quite the dancer. I only wish I’d gotten to see.”
Julien snorted.
“I, um…” Priest stumbled around looking for the right words to say to Sofia and ended up going off on a tangent. “I actually really enjoy dancing to the classics. I’m a big fan of Sinatra, so—”
“Ol’ Blue Eyes?” Sofia’s expression lit up, and she grabbed hold of Priest’s hand, and before he could say another word, she led him inside and called out, “Antonio!”
Priest glanced over his shoulder to make sure Julien was coming wherever he was being taken, and as they made their way through the kitchen, they spotted Valerie slumped over at the kitchen table.
“Valerie, where’d your pa go?” Sofia asked.
Valerie winced and barely looked up as she pointed toward the living room.
“Ignore her,” Sofia said. “She drank too much last night.”
Didn’t he know it. But Priest was pleased to note that he looked a little better off than she did.
“Antonio?” Sofia called out again.
“I’m in here,” Robbie’s father called from down the hall, and before Priest could pass along his condolences—or tell Valerie he was never taking another drink from her again—Sofia was leading them down the hall.