Hugh leaned in close to me. “This is a lot of food.”
“Eat up. This is for Atlas.”
When his mom sat down and served herself, all eyes landed on us. Elena shooed us to start. I guess we were to take the first bites?
I stabbed a meatball with my fork, dipped it in Tzatziki sauce, and took a bite. The cucumber and yogurt paired really well with the savory meat.
“Delicious,” I said.
“Oh, this is so good,” Hugh agreed.
Elena beamed at us, and everyone dug in to eat.
“Any big construction projects your company is working on?” Christos asked.
“Yes, we recently acquired PrimaryMed. They’re constructing a hospital in Reston,” Hugh replied.
“Oh, that’s exciting. I wish I were on a job like that. It would pay really well.”
“What is your current construction project?” I asked him.
“Not nearly as exciting as a hospital. But we’ve recently started on a new shopping center in Bethesda.”
I raised my wineglass in the air, and Hugh followed suit before everyone else raised their glasses in response. “May we never run out of projects.”
“Here, here,” Christos said, a huge smile gracing his face.
Atlas’s brothers kept side-eyeing us, and I worried it was only a matter of time before the parents noticed or finally said something about our relationship. No one was ready for that news yet. Fortunately, they kept their mouths shut as Atlas said they would.
The meal was long, loud, and my stomach felt like it was going to fucking pop. Just as I finally cleared my plate, Elena served me some more food. God, I was going to die.
“Save room for dessert,” she said.
I swore a squeak escaped me. “Dessert?”
Atlas burst out laughing, prompting a gentle smack to his head from his mother, which, in turn, made me laugh. Fuck, I felt like I was a kid again, but only in the best way.
Elena and all three of her sons cleared the table and cleaned the kitchen as she got dessert ready and made coffee.
Christos wiped his mouth with his napkin before resting his elbows on the table and forking his fingers together, eyeing Hugh and me. “Thank you for eating all that food. I know it’s a lot, but my wife wanted to impress you.”
“It was our pleasure. Your wife is an amazing cook,” Hugh said.
I rubbed my protruding belly. “Indeed, but I’m about to pop.”
Christos chuckled. “She likes to keep us fed. It’s her love language. Elena overdoes it sometimes, and we all try to offer help with cooking, but she runs a tight ship in the kitchen and kicks us out.”
“Elena sounds like a good woman.”
“I am,” she said with twinkling eyes and a small smile when she came back into the dining room, carrying a cake, which she set in the center of the table. Following behind her was Atlas, holding dessert plates and fresh forks.
Just looking at the slice of cake placed in front of me made me want to cry, but I dug my fork into it and took a large bite. It tasted citrusy and very sweet.
“I see no rings. Are you two married?” Elena asked us.
Atlas’s jaw dropped. “Mama!”
“What? I am just curious about our guests, is all.”
