"Harper texted," I say, scrolling through my phone. "They're bringing wine and some fancy cheese board."
"Awesome."
My phone buzzes again.
Pierre: On our way. Do you need anything else other than my winning personality?
Joelle: Your humility is truly inspiring.
Pierre: I know. It's a gift.
I smile and set my phone down, having my brothers here feels right. Feels like home, for the first time since leaving London.
"They'll be here in an hour," I tell Collette.
"Good. That gives me time to fix this disaster." She gestures at the pie crust, which looks more like abstract art than anything edible.
"Want me to take over?"
"Absolutely not. This is a battle of wills now. Me versus the dough. Only one of us is walking away victorious."
"Pretty sure the dough is winning."
"Shut up and stir the gravy."
An hour later, there's a knock at the door. I wipe my hands on my apron and head over, expecting to see Pierre's smug grin and Felix's easy smile. Instead, I open the door to find not just my brothers, but four additional people crowded in the hallway. Emmett, Sully, and two women I don't recognize. My brain short-circuits. Emmett is here. In my hallway. At my door. On Thanksgiving.
"Surprise," Pierre says cheerfully. "We brought guests."
"I ... what ..."
"We knocked on their door to say happy Thanksgiving," Felix explains, gesturing to the group behind him. "And they mentioned they were having a bit of a cooking crisis."
"More like a cooking catastrophe," one of the women says. She's brunette, pretty, with kind green eyes and a familiar smile. "We forgot to thaw the turkey. We may have drunk a little too much wine last night.”
Oh shit. That will do it.
"We haven't come empty-handed. Cass makes the best strawberry and rhubarb pie," Sully adds.
"It's a Wisconsin thing," the other woman says.
It looks delicious. You can never have too much pie.
"Welcome. The more the merrier," Collette says brightly as she holds the door open and lets the extra four guests in.
"The place smells amazing," Issy says, giving me a kiss.
"You two look like you've been working hard," Harper adds as she greets me.
"Collette nearly lost a battle against some dough. But other than that, I think we're good."
"Hope you didn't mind, sis. But couldn't leave them on Thanksgiving without turkey," Pierre tells me as he walks in.
"Happy Thanksgiving," Felix says.
"Hi, I'm Ember. Emmett's sister," the brunette tells me. Now I see it. "Thank you so much for letting us barge in like this. Your brother was very insistent."
"He can be. Welcome. It is so nice to meet you."
