All I Believe (Firsts and Forever, #10)(10)

“That’s why I’m here. Nonna sent me to make sure you’re all coming tonight. She’s bent out of shape because your grandmother wanted to stay in a hotel instead of her house.”

“They talked about this. Nana and Nonna make each other crazy, and they know that, so I thought everyone was on the same page about us staying in a hotel.”

He shrugged and crossed his sneaker-clad foot over his knee as he leaned back in the chair. “You know how it goes, Nonna loves to stir up drama. Just tell me you’ll all be there. My grandmother feels like she has something to prove since your grandmother is a big-shot TV chef, and has been cooking since daybreak.”

“We’ll definitely be there. Nana just has a cable TV cooking show, by the way. I think the only reason anyone watches it is to see if anything explodes, and to count how many times she drops the f-bomb.”

The baby started to fuss, and Remy produced a toy out of nowhere with Ninja-like speed. That calmed his son instantly. “Nonna thinks her sister is the next Julia Child.”

“Not so much. She is a terrific cook, but somehow when she gets in front of the camera, everything sort of spirals out of control.” I sat up a bit and craned my neck as the handsome guy in the suit entered the hotel lobby, white paper coffee cup in hand.

He went to the bank of elevators and pushed the button, then scanned the lobby idly as he waited. When he spotted me, a big smile appeared on his face, and he called, “I’m glad to see you’re sticking with the tiny underpants. Not everyone can pull off that look.” That made a few heads swivel in my direction.

“Thank you,” I called. “Underwear as outerwear is all the rage in the states right now, and this pair is really quite conservative by most standards. I could have gone with a mesh thong, but I’m all about keeping it classy.” The guy chuckled as he got on the elevator.

“Who was that?” Remy asked as the elevator doors slid shut.

“No clue. He witnessed the bacon pants incident and chased the dogs away with some cookware.”

My cousin looked amused. “I don’t remember you being quite this colorful. When I visited you in San Francisco last year, you seemed….”

“Painfully dull?”

“I was going to say depressed. I think you were still reeling from that break-up. I’m glad to see you’ve put it behind you.” I didn’t bother pointing out that I hadn’t even sort of done that.

Remy and I visited for a few minutes, until a pair of desk clerks approached us and told me in accented and somewhat stilted English, “Sir, we have had some complaints from the other guests. May we offer you some assistance in adjusting your wardrobe?” Since the staff suddenly had a vested interest in helping me, it was easy to convince them to issue a new room key.

Once we got upstairs, my cousin turned the baby loose in the suite while I pulled on some shorts. Both pairs were white, tight and fairly sheer, so the red underwear was still very much on display. I went back into the living room, where Remy was following the baby around and moving anything potentially hazardous out of his way. My cousin glanced at me and said, “That’s a big departure from your usual khakis and oxford shirts. Are you trying out a new image?”

“Not by choice. My luggage got lost, so Nana went shopping for me. She also took my wallet by accident in the process of taking my only outfit to the cleaners, so I can’t buy anything else right now.”


Remy grinned at that. “I think your grandmother is trying to pimp you out.”

“You’re not wrong.”

“If you haven’t resolved this by tonight, come by my house first and I’ll lend you a few things so you have something to wear to dinner.” Since he was thinner and shorter than me, I didn’t think that would help a lot, but anything had to be better than the sheer shorts and painted-on stretch t-shirt.

“Thanks.”

“So, how goes law school? You seemed to be pretty much hating it last time we spoke.”

“I’m still hating it, more than ever.”

“But you’re sticking with it?” He grabbed a lamp with a glass base and lifted it out of crawling baby range. When I nodded, he asked, “Why?”

“Well, I have to do something, and just because law school sucks doesn’t mean I won’t enjoy being a lawyer.”

Remy frowned a little, then executed a smooth pivot and plucked a ceramic figurine from an end table before the baby could grab it. “You feel you have something to prove, don’t you?”

“What do you mean?”

“You were perfectly happy all those years you worked as an EMT, but after you caught your snobby ex cheating, you immediately applied to law school. Is it because he’s a doctor and you’re trying to prove you’re as good as he is?”

Part of me wondered if there was something to that, but I said, “I just needed a fresh start. I left my job when I moved out of Los Angeles, so it was the perfect time to try a different direction.”

“But it doesn’t seem to be a direction you enjoy.” Remy picked up the crawling baby, pointed him away from the big fireplace where he’d been headed, and put him down again. Remy, Junior didn’t seem to notice, and cheerfully propelled himself forward.

“I know, but like I said, working as a lawyer and slogging through law school are two different things.”