Page 27 of Allured (Love and Burlesque #1)
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
ALEK
Stop feeling—up my boyfriend.
“ I think that’s enough garlic, dude.”
A large hand wraps around mine, which was previously mincing a whole head of raw garlic. I may have been spacing out a little and chopped up more than the recipe called for.
“One, get your fucking paw off my knife.” I slap Thomas’ hand, probably rougher than necessary. “Two,” I continue as I set my knife down and turn to face him, “you can never have enough garlic.”
“Jesus, Alek. I didn’t realize you had a vampire infestation.” The larger man crosses his arms and raises an eyebrow at me in question.
“You’re nervous, aren’t you?” I can tell by his tone that it’s a rhetorical question but I go ahead and answer anyway.
“I just want tonight to go well and I don’t want y’all chewing his head off.” My eyebrow raises right back at him in our brotherly standoff.
My siblings and I are all overprotective of each other. Growing up the way we did, we only had each other to look out for one another. I had been the one to advocate and look out for them when they were kids. Once they had aged up, T and Viv have proven themselves to be just as protective, even with me being over seven years their senior.
“We’ll be nice!” Viv calls out from the dining area as she and Rhett set up the table together. Rhett, previously the neighbor kid of ours back in Utah, is like a sibling to us too. There’s a whole story behind that for another day, though.
“Uh—huh, like how you guys were nice to Stephanie?” I ask, tilting my head behind where T now leans against the center island of my kitchen. “Gimme the butter and make yourself useful if you’re gonna be in here.”
“She was a dick, Alek!” Viv yells from the dining room and I hear Rhett chuckle in agreement.
“Viv’s right, man.” T walks up with the bowl of softened butter in his hands and holds it steady as I pour in the minced garlic and parsley.
“Stir that up while I clean this board.” Orders given, I turn to the sink and begin washing off the white and green remnants on the wooden surface.
Deep down, I know my siblings aren’t wrong. Stephanie was my last quasi—relationship nearly a year ago and it did not go down well. She not only turned out to be jealous, but she even tried hooking up with some of the other dancers while we were supposedly exclusive. That scenario is one of the reasons I hesitate dating someone who knows me from my dancing.
Viv strides in from the dining area as I’m drying the cutting board with a dishtowel.
“Does Ezekiel look down on you about your job?” Viv asks, no filter on that one.
“God, no. He doesn’t.”
“Then I like him already.” Tearing off a piece of the baguette, Viv joins T in dipping pieces of their stolen bread into the garlic butter mixture.
“Y’all can’t wait ten minutes to toast it? You fucking animals.”
“Bread is bread,” Viv mumbles in between bites of stolen baguette.
At that moment, the doorbell rings and when I turn in the direction of the door, I see my siblings turn to each other and share a devious look.
“Rhett, could you grab that please?” I ask, hip—checking my siblings out of the way so I can toast up this damn garlic bread.
“I’ll grab it!” Viv and Thomas rush out of the kitchen and nearly start a fist fight trying to get to the entryway.
When I pop in the garlic bread, the exhausted sigh I let out mixes in with the heat of the oven.
“Oh holy shit, you have to let me make you an outfit!”
Stepping out of the kitchen, and down the short hallway to the living room, I hear Viv practically bouncing with excitement. Viv is standing right in front of Ez, her hands skimming the lapels of Ezekiel’s coat as she observes the stitching.
Ezekiel gives me a confused look, like he doesn’t really know what to do at the moment, but it’s more of a fascinated look than uncomfortable.
“Stop feeling up my boyfriend, Viv.”
With a shy smile, Ezekiel hands Viv his coat so she can inspect it closer.
“She said it was nice to finally have someone in the family with any kind of fashion sense.” Rhett laughs, making his way around Viv and Ez to close the front door.
“Madame Zhān made this for you?” Viv’s eyes go wide and I have no fucking clue what she’s talking about, but there seems to be recognition in her stare.
“Yes, she is our family tailor. You know her?” Ezekiel asks, with shock of his own.
“She’s in school for fashion design.” I clarify, taking Viv’s stunned moment to finally make it over to Ezekiel and wrap him up in a hug while I kiss his stubbled cheek.
“Hey, angel,” I whisper against his skin, relishing in the way he hugs me back.
“You got something hard in that bag or are you just happy to see me?” I ask quietly, a smirk plastered on my face as I back away and meet his gaze.
“Can’t both be true?” He says it only loud enough so that we both hear it while my family is in the background putting away Ez’s coat and chatting amongst themselves.
“But if you must know, Knight suggested some wine to bring that will go with dinner.”
A choking noise that turns into a cough has us turning in the direction of the coat closet where Viv stands, patting her chest.
“Sorry— just love this coat so much.” She smiles reassuringly at us before running off to the kitchen. Probably to steal some more bread.
“She’s a weirdo but here, meet my other weirdos.”
Placing a gentle hand at the back of Ezekiel’s dress shirt, I take a moment to enjoy the feeling of having my hands on him again before I lead him to where Thomas and Rhett sit down in the living area.
“This is Thomas,” I begin, nodding over to the giant that makes my loveseat look tiny.
“Hey Ezekiel.” Thomas gives a kind smile and a small wave.
“And this is?—”
“Rhett, from the burger shop.” Ezekiel nods in acknowledgement.
“And you’re sweet potato!” Rhett chuckles, snapping his fingers and pointing over at Ezekiel.
“Dude, don’t tease him.” Thomas smacks Rhett in the chest with the back of his hand. Rhett rubs at his chest while trying to reach over and hit Thomas back.
“Apparently sweet potatoes are the inferior potatoes to order with a burger.” Ezekiel looks over at me and sighs. “I had to hear it from Alek, too.”
“They just don’t have good taste like we do, Ezekiel,” Thomas defends.
The timer goes off in the kitchen and Thomas and Rhett offer to go get everything set up. Ezekiel hands them the bottles of wine he brought.
Once they’re out of sight, I move to stand in front of Ez, rubbing the back of my neck in a move that’s part nervousness and embarrassment.
“So uh, that’s my family.”
“They’re lovely, Alek.” Ezekiel takes my hand away from my neck, and places a calming kiss to the knuckles.
His facial expression changes suddenly as he narrows his eyes over at the hallway closet. “Your sister isn’t going to steal my coat, is she?”