Page 98 of The Fake Husband Deal

“Give me the signal if you want to go, okay?” I whispered in her ear as Noah rang the bell.

The door opened, and Noah’s mom beamed. “Welcome. You must be Lior’s mother. Come on in. I’m Carla.” She kissed my mom on both cheeks.

“Nice to meet you too. I’m Mathilda.”

Mom glanced at me.

“Sorry, I forgot that’s a thing for Portuguese people,” I said.

Jack came out and shook her hand.

Carla led us to the kitchen, where a large old table was set.

“Noah, help our guests pick a seat and then get your brothers.”

I chuckled at Noah’s reaction.

“It’s like I’m back in high school,” he mumbled.

His dad lightly smacked the back of his head. “Respect your mother.”

“Jack, go get your mom. Mass should be over by now.”

He rolled his eyes at his wife’s orders. I had to suppress a smile because he looked so much like Noah.

“Carla, I’m not great in the kitchen, but my late mother-in-law taught me to make these cookies, and to this day, they’re still my favorite.” Mom handed Carla a box.

“That’s so lovely, Mathilda. We can have these with coffee later. Can’t wait to try them.”

Noah went over to the kitchen door and shouted his brothers’ names.

“Mathilda, I’m sure you’ll understand this as the mother of a boy. No matter how hard you try to teach them manners, they never learn. It’s like I raised three wild animals,” Carla said.

“Oh, I can imagine. Lior is an only child, but he made up for it in his teenage years.”

“Which were a long, long time ago,” Noah said, coming back and sitting next to me. I poked his sides, making him giggle.

After the introductions to the rest of the family, after Noah’s grandmother, brothers, Lex, and River came into the kitchen, Carla started plating up the food.

“Mathilda, I hope you like our food. I forget that not everyone will like Portuguese food. This is a beef stew with peas and potatoes. There’s also some rice there and vegetables.”

“Double carbing is a thing in Portugal, Mathilda,” Noah said. “Don’t feel obliged to have it, although if you don’t, Mom will be very upset.”

“Noah,” Carla chided.

“See? And you better finish your plate, or you won’t be allowed to play games after dinner— Oh wait, that’s just for us.”

“I’ll have extra vegetables, Mamã,” Adam said. “I’m trying to be healthy for the wedding.

“Kiss ass,” Lex coughed.

“Boys…” Jack threatened, although I wasn’t sure what the threat was because after spending time with him at the vineyard, I knew he wouldn’t hurt a fly.

“This food is wonderful,” Mom said.

“Have some more, dear,” Carla added.

“Oh no, I couldn’t…”