Duncan intended to answer her anyway. “Things between us changed while in Puerto Rico, so to answer your question, we're no longer pretending.” Actually, the relationship had started to change for him even before they even came to the island the first time.
“When you brought her here before your trip, I had a feeling that would happen. You rarely bring anyone you're with here. The last woman you did was Willow, I think.”
He'd prefer not to be reminded of Willow, the gold-digging witch. But his cousin was correct. Willow was the last woman he'd been involved with that he'd brought to Sanborn and introduced to his family.
“I'm happy for you. I haven't spent much time with Tory, but she seems nice,” Gianna continued.
Duncan intended to fix that. He wanted the woman he was falling in love with and his favorite cousins to be friends.
“Good, you didn't get abducted by aliens,” Alec said when Duncan and Gianna joined him downstairs.
“Your much better half was interrogating me. Gi threatened to leave me off the guest list for the wedding if I didn't comply.”
Alec put his arm around his fiancée’s waist. “I would've sent you an invitation anyway.”
“That's what I told her, but I answered her questions anyway. She gave me that evil stare of hers.”
“I'm familiar with it,” Alec said, his comment earning him an elbow to the stomach.
“You deserved it, Alec,” Tory said, joining them. “Your aunt poured this for you.” She held out a cup of steaming spiced apple cider. He didn't know what she put in it. However, she always had it on hand during the holidays, and he always looked forward to it.
“I was going to wait until after dinner, but since we're talking about the wedding, I'll ask you now. Duncan, will you be my best man?”
Duncan had expected to be in the wedding but not as the best man. Alec had three older brothers and more male cousins than he could recall at the moment. He hoped Alec wasn't asking because Gianna was his cousin.
“Definitely.”
“Don't worry, Alec didn't ask because you're my cousin,” Gianna said, as if she could read his mind. “I know how he thinks, Tory. Call me if you ever need someone to help you figure him out.”
He wished he could contradict her, but he couldn't. Gianna had always been able to read him and know when something bothered him. It was a skill he had as well, where she was concerned.
* * *
Every year Tory celebrated Thanksgiving.Sometimes dinner was at her parents' home. Other years, she joined an aunt and uncle for the day. And when she'd been rooming with Leah in high school, she'd gone to Jonathan and Judith's home in Weston, Massachusetts. But none of those celebrations resembled this one.
To start, regardless of the house, family members didn't arrive carrying pies, trays of cookies, or extra sides. Tory never chatted with Mom or whichever aunt was hosting while she prepared the meal. Instead, either the family's chef cooked the turkey and all the sides or the family had them catered. Desserts were ordered or prepared by the family cook.
The differences didn't stop with the food, though. When Tory's mom hosted, everyone gathered at the mile-long table in the exquisitely decorated dining room. Okay, that was an exaggeration, but everyone sat together in the same room.
Not here. Eight of Duncan’s relatives sat squeezed together around a table designed for six people. While the dining room was lovely and filled with items that reflected the family, photos of it would never find their way intoBoston Home, Life, and Style. Another six people sat in folding chairs at a table set up in the living room while the last four guests ate in the kitchen.
She couldn't hear every conversation, but the ones at her table covered every topic under the sun. That was how she knew Duncan's cousin CJ was having dinner with his wife's family, but they would be by later for dessert. She'd also learned that CJ's younger sister Brianna had remained in California for the holiday but should be home for Christmas.
“Can I have the potatoes when you're done with them?” Tory asked.
Gianna added a heaping spoonful of mashed potatoes to her plate and then passed the bowl across the table. “Are you all settled yet?”
“More or less. There is still a little decorating I want to do, but I'm all unpacked. Alec, didn't you ever hear of something called color?”
The same off-white paint covered every room in the condo. It was the same way in Duncan's condo, or at least in the rooms she'd seen. She assumed the off-white paint was standard in the building. She didn't need her place to look like a crayon box exploded, but she wanted a little variety.
Alec accepted the sweet potato casserole from Duncan, although Tory didn't know where he planned to put it. His plate was already full.
“White is a color.”
“It's fine in one or two rooms but not everywhere.”
“I'm just giving you a hard time. I planned to change things when I bought the condo but never got around to it.”