Monday night rolled around and it was time for Love Match. I had planted myself on the couch with Ugly Quilt and a hot bowl of popcorn. Beau and I only had two dates left. Two dates until the project was due. I needed Victoria’s help more than ever. I needed the kind of date that would bring Beau back. I pressed the power button on the remote and waited for the show to start.

I thought I heard footsteps walking down the hall. I hit pause just as Nina poked her head around the corner. “Hi.”

“Nina? Hi.” I pulled the quilt back so that there was an open spot on the couch. She sat next to me, curling up under Ugly Quilt.

“Watching Love Match?” She reached for some popcorn.

“Yes. It just started. Want to watch?”

“This week is hometowns. I’m not missing it. This is one of the best episodes of the whole season.” She mumbled as she stuffed more popcorn in her mouth.

And just like that, we were ok.

Before I pushed play, I stopped. “Wait. What are hometowns?”

“Oh, those are the dates when Victoria goes to each of the bachelors’ hometowns and meets his family. It’s awesome. Someone always has a nutty uncle or something. This is definitely make it or break it time for the men. If Victoria doesn’t click with the family, there is no way he’ll make it through the rose ceremony.”

“I didn’t know anything about this episode. I thought the whole show was dates.”

“Yes, they go on dates, but in the hometown. Just watch.” Nina reached across my lap again for the bowl. “Holy shit, London! You have to go to Beau’s hometown!” She was squealing loudly. I had missed the squealing even if my ears were in pain. “This is too perfect. I had completely forgotten about the episode.”

“You realize my life is not a TV show episode? What if he doesn’t want to do this hometown thing?” Beau might be more resistant to this idea than to a baseball game. My attempt at reminding him about us ended in an utter fail in the front seat of my car.

“Have you been staying on plan?” Nina sat straight up.

“Sorta.” I was going to have to fess up.

“What’s sorta?”

“I kissed him in my car the other night. It seemed like a good idea at the time. In retrospect, maybe not such a good idea.”

She leaned forward. “What did he do?”

I giggled, remembering Beau running out of the driveway and down the street. “He ran. Literally ran away—all the way back to his apartment.”

Nina started laughing. “Well, that’s one reaction.” She halted her giggling fit. “But it means he’s totally into you.”

“Really?”

“Yes. He couldn’t handle it, so he ran. It’s obvious. We just need to get you two in a situation where he can’t run. Like hometowns.”

“I don’t want to cage him.”

“It’s not caging, London. You are just eliminating escape exits. That’s all.”

Nina’s eyes zipped back and forth. “How about you take him home with you instead of you going to his house? He will definitely be stuck.”

“To my house? You realize my parents aren’t the most open-minded people on the planet.”

“Oh, they’re fine. They’ll like Beau.”

“But it’s a bit crowded at home. I don’t know if I should take him. Meeting my parents is a big deal. They might scare him away.”

“Your parents aren’t going to do anything like that. It will be fun.” Nina’s smile was wide.

“You really think this will work?”

“You worry too much, London. Watch how Victoria does it. It’s going to work. He’ll win your parents over. They’ll fall in love with him and then you’re on to overnights.”

“Overnights?” I was nervous just hearing the word.

“Let’s just take it one week at a time.” Nina smiled. I was glad to have my friend back.

* * *

The phone call to my mother had been awkward. Explaining to her that I was coming home for the weekend with a boy that wasn’t my boyfriend was tricky. She was way too nosey.

“But, London, what kind of professor would assign a weekend trip? I don’t see how this is proper by any standards.” This was the same mother who made sure I was in an all girls dorm my first two years on campus.

“Mother, she didn’t assign the trip. It’s just how the project has evolved. He’s nice. You’ll like him. He’s pre-law.”

“Pre-law? Hmm…I’ll mention that to your father. All right, if you have to, then we’ll get the guestroom ready for him.”

“Thank you. I appreciate it. We’ll see you Friday night. Tell Daddy I said hi.”

“London, be careful on the drive. The roads are still slick at night.”

“Yes, Mother. I’ll be extra careful. Bye.”

I hung up the phone with my mother and sighed. Nothing about this weekend was going to be easy. My parents had always had high expectations for me. I knew they didn’t want me to pursue acting. My mother thought it was a total waste of my time, and my father thought I was neglecting more important brain cells. They both would have been much happier if I had gone into pre-med or law, like Beau.

Now, to plan B—getting Beau to go along with this concocted Nina idea. I only had a few minutes until class. I grabbed my backpack and headed out the door.

* * *

Professor Garcia was particularly wrapped up in today’s theory. She recounted her days in graduate school and how she selected a dissertation on gender communication styles. I was trying to be less critical of her; she was, after all, my new ally in class. Without her support, I wouldn’t be getting ready to ask Beau to go home with me for the weekend.

Every few minutes, I saw her taking us in at the top corner. Beau didn’t seem to notice the new attention. He had no idea we had our own London and Beau super fan. If only class would end so I could ask him about the hometown date.

“See everyone Thursday. We’ll really dissect gender styles then.” She walked away from the podium and unclipped her microphone.

Beau shot out of the seat and had escaped through the doors before I had a chance to utter the first word of my question. I gathered my notebook and chased him out of the building.

“Hey, Beau. Wait.”

He paused at the bike rack next to the Manning Hall steps.

“I just wanted to talk to you for a second about the hometown date. Did you watch the Love Match episode last night?”

“Not yet. I’ll get to it later.” He unlocked his bike from the rack.

“Cool. No problem, but the dates were all hometowns. Victoria went to each of the guys’ family homes.”

“Oh. I didn’t know that. I’ll see it sometime this week.” He grabbed the handlebars and shook the bike loose from its station.

“I didn’t know about the hometowns either, but I already talked to my mom and she said we can go to Asheville for the weekend. I mean, if you want to.”

He swung one leg over the seat.

“Beau? Did you hear me?” I was standing right next to him.

“Yeah. I heard you. I don’t know about that, London. The whole weekend?”

“We could just go up Saturday night if that’s better? I don’t want you to do it if you’re not into it. It’s the only thing I could come up with after I watched the episode.”

He kept his eyes on the handlebar. I couldn’t even get him to look at me. “No, it’s cool. We can go, I guess. I haven’t been to Asheville in a long time, and I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was curious to meet your parents.” He finally looked up and smiled.

“Awesome! I mean, good. That’s good you want to do the hometown date.” Could I get more tongue-tied in front of this boy? “I can pick you up Friday. You know, whenever.”

“See you.” He peddled off in the direction of the student union.

He had actually agreed to go. I smiled. Hometown weekend was starting to look more promising by the minute.

* * *

Date Nine: Hometown Brotown

It was hard to keep my eyes on the road with Beau in the seat next to me. He kept changing the radio station halfway through the songs. The farther I drove us into the mountains, the harder it was to keep a station static-free.

“I think you need to give me the crash course in the James family before we get to your parents house. You never really talk about your family.” Beau gave up on finding music and turned the radio off.

“There isn’t much to tell. What do you want to know about them?”

“What do they do?”

“I haven’t mentioned anything to you about this already?” It seemed that in one of my tequila hazes I would have told Beau about my parents.

“No. You just said they were strict when you were growing up and you told me about the bargain they made with you about going to L.A. Is there something you’re not telling me? I’m getting nervous about the weekend now. Is your dad some kind of former spy like Jack Bauer or something?”

I laughed thinking of my dad doing anything threatening. “No, he’s not Jack Bauer—far from it. My parents own a winery.”

“A winery? That’s awesome. Why didn’t you tell me?”

I wasn’t sure what had kept me from telling Beau more about my life growing up. We did talk, but it was all about the present. Nothing else seemed to matter when I was wrapped in his arms. I definitely wasn’t thinking about my family or my childhood.

“It just didn’t come up.” I looked over at him. His forehead was scrunched up and I could tell I had annoyed him. “But that’s all about to change. You get to meet the James family in about five minutes.”

We drove past the town sign declaring we had entered the city limits of Asheville. Now, all we had to do was navigate the rows of coffee shops and wine bars and we would be close to the turn off to the family homestead. Beau’s eyes were glued to the scenery outside his window.

“What should I expect?”

“Well, my mom is the business manager and runs the marketing and finances for the winery. So, she’s pretty much a no-nonsense kind of woman. My dad was an attorney. I was too young to remember when he practiced law, but now he manages the property, the employees, and the grape production.”

I slowed the car as we reached the double iron gates. I rolled down the window and punched in my pass code.

“Mystic Vineyards?” Beau looked over the entangled M and V welded into the gate. “Wow.”

I waited for the gates to swing open fully then crept forward, taking us along the winding drive to my parents’ house and the family business. The sun was just starting to set on the rows of vines stretching out in front of us.

“Are there any grapes on them yet?” Beau asked as the gnarled branches crawled past us.

“No. It’s too early in the season. The vines are just starting to wake up after the winter.” He looked disappointed. “But there’s plenty of wine. We always have wine.”

He laughed.

We turned another corner before the house came into full view.

“Shit.” I didn’t mean to say it out loud.

“What’s wrong?”

In the driveway, parked next to the house, was a line of cars. We had company. “Oh, nothing. It will be fine. You’re going to get to meet more of my family than I thought.”

“And the mysteries keep coming.” Beau opened the door and stepped out of the car.

I was on my way to the trunk of the car when I felt my body lifted in the air and tossed over a shoulder like a sack of potatoes. “Gotcha, little sis.”

“Austin?”

My oldest brother ran a circle around my car while I bobbed up and down on his shoulder. If I kicked too much he might drop me.

“Seriously, put me down. I’m going to throw up, Austin.”

“Yes, ma’am.” He deposited me at the bumper. I reached out for the trunk to steady myself, but felt Beau grab me by the arm to keep me from stumbling.

“Hey, man, I’m Austin.” My prankster older brother reached out to shake Beau’s hand. “Welcome.”

“Thanks.” Beau shook his hand, and then turned to me. “Brother?”

I grinned sheepishly. “Well, about that. I was getting ready to tell you—” Before I could finish my sentence I was whipped up into the air again.

“London! You’re home! We haven’t seen you since Christmas.”

“Ok, you all have got to stop picking me up.” I pounded on my brother’s back. He set me down in time for me to see the other two on their way over to our sibling reunion.

Austin stood next to Beau. As the oldest, he often took charge. “Beau, this is Nash, Jackson, and Roman.”

Beau performed the customary handshake ritual with each of my brothers.

“I’m just so shocked to see all of you here. Nash is right; we haven’t all been together since Christmas.”

“Mom called us and mentioned you might be bringing a guy home this weekend. Couldn’t miss it.” Jackson punched Beau in the arm.

“Oh, no you misunderstood,” I stammered.

“London, come inside and get out of the chilly air. Boys, get her things out of the car.” My mother was standing on the front porch, smiling sternly.

I shrugged my shoulders at Beau. Clearly, I had not prepared him for the onslaught of the James boys. How could I? I had no idea they were going to be here, at least three of them. Roman was the youngest and a senior in high school. My older brothers: Austin, Nash, and Jackson were all grown up and living on their own.

“Hi. I’m Lydia James, but you can just call me Mrs. James.” I sighed as my mother introduced herself to Beau. She was always so formal.

“Thank you for letting me crash this weekend, Mrs. James. The vineyard is impressive.”

“Why thank you. London will have to give you a tour tomorrow. Now, everyone inside. Dinner’s on the table and we don’t want to make Dad wait for supper.” She herded the pack along the porch and into the front door.

I lagged behind, watching my brothers laughing about something. Beau was a step in front of me. I tugged on his jacket before he crossed the threshold.

“I’m sorry about all of this. I didn’t know they would be here.”

He laughed. “Don’t apologize. They’re your family. Although, maybe you could have mentioned the four brothers at some point.”

I looked at my boots. Why had I kept so much from him?

“Come on, I heard we can’t let your dad get hungry.” He slung his arm around my shoulder and we walked into the house.

“Dad!” I dislodged Beau’s arm and ran to hug my father as he descended the staircase.

“Hi, kitten. I heard you brought a friend home for the weekend.” My father looked over the top of my head to survey Beau.

“Dad, this is Beau Anderson. He’s my Comm 224 partner this semester, and he’s pre-law.” I emphasized the law part.

“Nice to meet you, sir.” Beau was probably getting tired of shaking hands by now.

“Welcome to our home, son. Let’s go eat. You’re probably hungry after that drive. I want to hear more about your law studies, Beau.” Oh, jeez. I knew this was going to happen. Beau was right—I should have prepared him.

* * *

“Mrs. James, dinner was delicious. Again, thank you for having me this weekend.” Beau had survived the firing squad over dinner.

“Beau, you are so welcome.” My mother stood from the table with two plates in her hand.

Beau jumped up and leaned across the table. “Here, let me help you with that.” He took the plates from my mother and disappeared into the kitchen.

My mother looked shocked. “Boys, did you see that? There are men who have manners in this world.”

My brothers rolled their eyes. “I’ll go help him, Mother.” I collected a few more plates and joined Beau in the kitchen, where he was rinsing plates and stacking them in the dishwasher.

“You know, you don’t actually have to impress my parents. But if you’re trying—it’s working.” I winked at him as he threw a dishtowel over his shoulder.

I liked seeing him in my parents’ kitchen. He seemed at ease and relaxed. I wanted to wrap my arms around him and kiss him right here in front of the pile of dirty dishes. The nearby room full of raucous brothers didn’t deter the feelings stirring under my skin.

“London? Where’d you go?” Beau waved a plate in front of my face.

“Right. Nowhere.” I smiled and grabbed the silverware. This weekend was supposed to be about luring him back to me, but so far, in only two hours, I had managed to fall even more head over heels for him.

“So, what does everyone do around here when the sun goes down?” Beau’s smile quickly transformed into a look of panic. “No, that’s not what I meant. I was just asking about nightly entertainment. Dammit. Not what I meant.”

I giggled. It was nice to see him squirm for a change. “I know what you meant. Do you want to try some of the wine?”

“Definitely.” He eased back into shoveling plates in the loading rack.

“A wine tasting it is. I’m going to leave you with kitchen detail and gather some wine for us. It will just take me a few minutes. Be right back.”

“Ok. I can handle it.” Beau turned to face the tower of pots and pans climbing out of the sink. That should keep him busy for a few minutes.

I slipped out of the kitchen door and walked toward the barn that was adjacent to my house. My parents had converted the barn into a tasting room years ago and used it for corporate parties, wine launches, and the occasional wedding.

Quickly, I went to work setting up glasses, selecting my favorite wines, and lighting a few candles. Satisfied I had created the perfect wine tasting setting, I dimmed the lights and went to rescue Beau from the mountain of dishes he was plowing through.

“Hey, lil sis. Ready for some cards?” Austin was in the kitchen with Beau and I could tell I had interrupted a conversation.

“Oh, thanks, Austin, but I was going to let Beau taste some of the wines. Maybe after?”

“That’s too bad. I was going to show your boy here how we play.”

Uh-oh. Beau looked interested in the challenge. “Man, I know how to play. What game?”

“Texas hold ‘em?”

“I’m in.” Beau threw the dishtowel on the clean countertop and followed my brother into the hallway.

Ugh! The allure of male bonding had taken over. “Ok, don’t worry about me. We can try the wines later,” I called out, but they were already gone.

I moped all the way to the barn, and returned the glasses and the wines to their original spots. I blew out the last candle before I turned off the light. So far, my hometown date wasn’t going as I had planned.

* * *

“Good morning.” Beau was already at the kitchen table, sipping on a cup of coffee when I entered the sunny room.

“Good morning.” I smiled and walked to the cabinet in search of my favorite tea. My mother always kept the best stash of raspberry tea.

“London, you missed a good game last night. Beau here is quite the card player. I lost fifty bucks last night.” Austin looked pleased with himself despite his monetary loss.

My brothers had managed to rope Beau into their clan in just one night. They were definitely better at it than me.

“Sorry, I missed it. I’m in the middle of this amazing book, Marjorie Morningstar, and I—”

“Hey, Beau, do you want to shoot some hoops? We have a full court behind the barn. Bet you can’t get past my D.” Even my youngest brother, Roman, was part of the testosterone conspiracy.

“You have a court? Yes, I want to play.” I don’t think Beau had noticed that I sat in the empty seat next to him.

“Guys, I wanted to show Beau the vineyards.” Did that sound as whiny as I think it did?

“Oh, like he wants to go look at a bunch of baby grapes instead of play ball. Come on, London. You can take him sightseeing later.” Nash had chimed into the basketball discussion. I knew this battle was lost.

“Ok, I’ll just see you later, I guess.” I waited for Beau to turn down the hoops offer, but he looked excited.

“Cool.” He hopped up from the table. “Whose team am I on?” My army of brothers filed out of the kitchen, taking my date with them.

I sighed, a little too loudly. “Everything ok, kitten?” My father stood in the doorway to the kitchen. He was still in slippers and his long, plaid robe.

“Hi, Dad. Yes. It’s just the guys hijacked Beau and I thought I’d give him a tour of the winery this morning. It’s no big deal.”

My father poured a steeping cup of coffee and sat across me at the table. “Honey, now I know what your mother told me about the project and I heard what you said last night, but it’s all a bunch of BS. You care about that boy. It is as clear as day on your face.”

I wasn’t sure what surprised me more: my father’s perceptive abilities or the fact that he just said BS. “Dad, you’re reading too much into it.” I wasn’t ready for this conversation.

“Look, I’ve been there. I’ve been at this same exact crossroads you’re facing. College graduation is a scary time, but having someone there with you makes it a little easier to face. The world ahead of you must seem like a big black hole—the great unknown.”

“Are you talking about when you and Mother were in college?” It was hard to think about my father being afraid of anything, especially as a young man. He was always so certain.

“I am. I faced the biggest decision of my life when I was your age.” He took a sip of coffee and his eyes were warm and reassuring. “I could have moved out of the state and gone to an Ivy League school when I graduated. But that would have meant I was leaving our relationship up in the air. I knew when I graduated I didn’t want to start my life without your mother in it. I gave up a different career path to have this life with her. I’ve never looked backed—never regretted it once.”

“Dad, that’s so sweet. I’ve never heard you talk about college like that.”

“I’m not trying to be sweet. I’m trying to tell you that we all have to make decisions and sacrifices. You can’t possibly make it through life without facing a tough choice. If you like him, do something about it before the choice is made for you.”

My father sat back in his chair and smiled at me over his coffee cup. I tried to picture him and my mother fresh out of school, completely in love, with their whole lives ahead of them. It was hard to think of my parents as anyone but my parents. The sparkle in my father’s eye told me there was much more their life together than only parenthood.

“Dad, I think I’ve already messed the whole thing up.”

“What did you mess up, London?” My mother entered the kitchen right on cue. “And your cheeks are looking quite pink this morning—something is going on.”

“Oh, nothing. Good morning, Mom. Thanks, Dad.” I kissed my father on the cheek and walked out on the porch before my mother could analyze anything else written on my face. I could already predict the advice my mother would give: stay home and give up acting. I didn’t need her to tell me what to do; I already knew what my heart wanted.

* * *

I needed a way to get Beau alone—away from the James brothers. Think, London. What would Victoria do? The mountains sprawled out in front of me. I rocked on the front porch, sipping my tea and devising a plan to separate Beau from the allure of poker, basketball, video games, and action movies. I had a sinking feeling I might not be able to compete with any of that. I had delivered him straight into the hands of the perfect guy weekend. Wait, I had a brilliant idea. A resource that was more powerful than testosterone. Divide and conquer. I pulled out my phone to text Nina.

Up for a road trip? I need your help.

It only took a second for my friend to respond.

Where are we going?

How fast can you get to my parents’ house? I need you to run interference. My brothers are here.

OMG. On my way. Do I get to pick which one?

Gross. But, yes.

I leaned back in my chair. Nina would probably be here in about four hours. I hoped the boys enjoyed their male bonding. They had just started a new game of corn hole in the backyard. Tonight I was getting my alone time with Beau.

* * *

I jumped up and down when I saw Nina’s car roll into the driveway.

“You’re here!” I hugged her fiercely before she had a chance to put both feet on the ground.

“You bet. I wouldn’t miss a chance to spend the night with your brothers.” She smiled.

“Ewww, Nina. I can’t hear that.” I covered my ears with both hands.

She laughed. “Your plan. Not mine. Now where is the pack?”

I pointed to the bonus room over the garage. “Up there. After they played basketball for two hours, they ate lunch, started some kind of weight lifting competition in the wreck room, which I think Austin won, and now they are deep into a Bruce Willis movie. I’m drowning here. Beau doesn’t even know I’m here anymore. It’s like they initiated him into the brother bond.”

“Don’t worry. We can break them up. Who’s the leader?”

“Definitely Austin. But, Nina, he’s the oldest.” I thought about my twenty-eight-year-old brother and his reputation for dating. It was doubtful Nina could sidetrack him that much, no matter how flowy her blond hair was or how long her legs were.

“I brought a secret weapon.” Nina reached into the backseat of her car and pulled out a grocery bag. “Ta-da!”

“Cookie dough?” I shook my head. This definitely wasn’t going to work. “That’s it? The magic that will undo all things testosterone?”

“Come on. It’s worth a shot.” She dangled the bucket of dough in front of my face.

“Ok, but I don’t see how this is going to do anything.” I helped her with her overnight bag and a pillow.

The kitchen door closed behind us. Nina was already searching the cabinets for a cookie sheet before I even had her bag upstairs. In twenty minutes, the entire house smelled like chocolate chip cookies.

Nina and I were sitting at the kitchen table when we heard the low rumble of shuffling feet. Roman was the first to stick his head in the kitchen.

“Did you make cookies?” He ran over to the oven to peek inside.

Jackson, Nash, and Austin sauntered in after him. Nina winked at me.

“All right, guys, give me just a second.” Nina took her time walking to the oven before making the perfect bend at the waist to open the oven and check the cookies. My brothers were ogling every inch of her bottom, and Nina was fully aware of the attention her ass was getting. I had to turn away. Just as I did, I saw Beau enter the kitchen.

Nina shuffled the cookies around and placed the hot tin on the counter to cool. “Who wants the first one?” She smiled brightly at her captive audience.

Austin cut to the front of the line. “Are you Nina?”

“Yep. In the flesh.”

“Haven’t seen you since we moved London into the dorms her freshman year.” Austin was clearly flirting.

“Oh, were you there?” Nina toyed with him. Ok, she was good.

She reached for a spatula and began stacking the cookies on a plate. My other three brothers waited while she served them cookies. They cleared the kitchen and headed back up the stairs to Bruce Willis. Austin hesitated by the oven.

“Since you just got here, you probably haven’t had a chance to see the winery. Would you want to go on a tour of the vineyard?”

Nina’s eyes lit up. “Now? I just got here. I’m not sure. London, would that be ok with you?”

I had to bite my lip to stop myself from giggling. “Yes, if you have the time, Austin, that would be really sweet.”

“Sure. Yeah. Come on. Let’s take some cookies for the road.” He piled a few on a paper plate and ushered Nina out of the door. I waved good-bye to my over-the-top-conniving friend.

Beau leaned against the counter. “I didn’t know Nina was coming up.”

“Me either. It just kind of happened.” I walked toward him and reached around him for a cookie, making sure my arm grazed his body in the process. I tore off a gooey bite and deliberately held the morsel in front of my lips.

Beau’s gaze was hungry. “Didn’t you want to take me on a tour too?” He cast his eyes to the floor.

“Aren’t you in the middle of a movie?” I savored the chocolate and the moment in my mouth.

“I’ve seen it before. Never been to a winery, though.”

I smiled. These chocolate chip cookies were amazing. “Ok, I could probably show you around. Let’s go.”

* * *

There were so many different parts that made the winery function: the vines and grapes, the distillery, the tasting room, and the main office. My mother spent all of her spare time in the office—we would keep the tour away from the number crunching expo.

It was late afternoon—my favorite time of the day to walk through the vineyard.

“How many acres do your parents have?” Beau was walking next to me down a gravel path, his hands stuck in his front pockets.

“It’s almost a hundred. Ninety-six to be exact.”

“Wow. That’s a lot of grapes.”

“Yes, but it’s not all grapes. It includes the house and the office and all of the other buildings used to make the wine.” We had wandered close to the creek that ran along the edge of the property.

“It’s like its own little city. I never thought about wine like this before.” He glanced at the vines running near our path. “To think it starts here on that nubby branch and ends up all the way in a big barrel on tap at the wine bar.”

I stopped at the edge of the water. The stream bubbled over the rocks and flowed into the woods. I pulled my backpack off my shoulder and sat on the cool ground.

“Since we didn’t get to have our wine tasting last night, I brought a few samples.” I pulled out our glasses and the bottles I had opened last night.

Beau took a glass from me and began pouring from the Pinot Noir bottle.

“So, my father always instructs the tasting seminars, and his wine mantra is ‘swirl, sip, savor.’”

Beau repeated, “Swirl, sip, savor. I think I can do that.”

I watched as he rotated the glass in a circle and the red wine sloshed around the sides. He took a sip. “Mmm. Pretty good. Not that I know anything at all about wine. But it’s good.”

I smiled. “My father would take the compliment.” I swirled my glass before sipping. I felt the warmth spread through my limbs. I edged closer to Beau.

“Ok, so you have to tell me. I know my roommates gave you a hard time about your name, but seriously, why are all of the James kids named after cities?”

I blushed. “It’s kind of embarrassing. Really embarrassing.”

“What is it?”

“Before my parents were upstanding members of the community, they used to travel a lot. They weren’t very conventional—at all. I would say they were kind of like hippies or something.”

“So they liked unique names?”

“I guess that’s part of it. They said they wanted our names to be special. So, they named each of us after the city where we were conceived.”

Beau choked on his sip of wine. “Uh. That is not what I thought you were going to say.” He started to laugh.

“I don’t tell too many people, but since you’ve obviously been initiated into the James family pack, you can probably handle it.”

He grinned. “Yeah, your brothers are awesome. It sort of makes me wish my parents had wanted to have more kids. A brother would have been fun. I’m having a great time with them.”

“I’m glad. They obviously love you. You have managed to experience every competitive sport offered at the winery.”

“So what changed?”

“What do you mean?”

“With your parents. Why did they go from gypsy-hippies to strict, iron fist ruling dictators?”

Beau had asked a question my brothers and I had asked repeatedly. Austin was the only one who could remember all of the trips they used to take and the life that was so different from the one I grew up experiencing.

“I don’t know. They aren’t really dictators.” I thought back to the conversation with my father in the kitchen this morning. He was always genuine and warm—just cautious. I was their only daughter and that wasn’t an easy post to hold among my brothers. They were all protective of me. “I guess they grew up and had responsibilities with five children. They started the winery as a dare almost, but it turned into their entire life. I think they thought it would be more fun and less business. Turns out running a winery is a full-time business.”

“Isn’t that what everyone worries about? Life might stop being fun?” Beau watched the water rippling over the rocks.

“Are you worried about law school in the fall? I’ve heard it’s not much fun. All those vicious one L horror stories.”

“Me? Worried? No.” He slammed back the remaining drops in his glass. “What’s the next wine on the tasting?”

I reached into the bag to pull out our next sample. I let the crimson liquid flow into his glass.

“This one is good too.” He smiled. “Are you worried about L.A.?”

Of course I was worried. I was terrified to move across the country, but I couldn’t tell Beau that. “That’s silly. L.A. is going to be amazing. I know I’ll probably just get commercial spots or be a movie extra for awhile, but it’s still going to be amazing.” I thought about all of the casting calls I had tossed in the trash. I hadn’t even applied for the first spot.

Beau sighed. “I thought you might say that.” He stood up. “It’s getting dark. We should probably get back to the house before your dad gets hungry.”

“But we didn’t try all the wines.”

I was frantically trying to think of how I could drag out our time away from the house and my brothers. Beau held out his hand. From my position on the ground, I looked up at his brown eyes covered in sadness. I placed my palm in his, allowing him to ease me off the ground.

“Another time, movie star.” His hand still held mine. I didn’t want to let go or break contact with him. I reached down with my free hand and slung my backpack over my left shoulder. His fingers entwined in mine. We walked back to the house, not talking, but somehow I felt Beau was saying something much more important with his hand pressed into mine.

* * *

“I feel like you’ve been holding out on me, London.” Nina was busy tucking in the sheets to my trundle bed that we had just erected from under my bed.

“Nina, I love you, but I cannot hear you talk about my brothers. It’s just gross. Nothing. Not one detail. Ok?”

“Awww…but who am I supposed to tell that Austin is such a great kisser?” She giggled as I hit her with one of my throw pillows.

“Ick. That is exactly what I don’t want to hear. You already kissed my brother?” I tried to erase the image burning a hole in my brain of my older brother lip-locked with my best friend.

“Hey. I came here to do you a favor.” She picked up a pillow and pretended to hit me with it.

“You’re right. Thank you. The cookie dough was the perfect magic to break them up.”

“So? What happened? I haven’t had a chance to talk to you since dinner. I can’t believe we played in a card championship all night. They are relentless.”

“Yeah, my brothers are extremely competitive. They play any game they can, any chance they get.”

“And? What about Beau? What happened when you got him alone?” Nina positioned herself on the edge of the single bed.

I smiled. “He held my hand. It was nice.”

“What? Held hands? Why didn’t you jump him in one of those big wine barns and rip his clothes off. That’s what I would have done.”

“He initiated it. It was perfect, actually.” Twenty minutes of hand-holding might be regarded as taking it ultra slow, but considering we were broken up and Beau had put up every roadblock to my other advances, I considered it a true victory.

“You only have one date left, London. Then it’s the end of classes and graduation.” Nina looked stressed.

“Don’t remind me.” I slid between the covers. Beau was only a few feet away, sleeping in the guestroom at the end of the hall. I probably wasn’t going to get any sleep tonight.

* * *

I awoke to the smell of bacon. Mmm…bacon. I quickly darted in the bathroom, washed my face, brushed my teeth and hair, and changed out of my pjs before racing downstairs. When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I couldn’t believe what I saw.

They were all there. As if cooks in an assembly line, my brothers were manning the breakfast stations, along with my favorite houseguest, Beau.

“Wow. What’s gotten into all of you?” I scanned their faces for an answer. My zombie movie-watching experience told me an apocalypse had probably occurred while I was sleeping.

“There she is.” My dad was at the table reading the morning paper. “Isn’t this a treat? Your brothers were possessed in their sleep last night and we get the benefit of them making us breakfast. Sit. Sit.”

I wandered over to the table, still not sure if I was awake. Who knew Roman could scramble eggs or that Nash was any good with toast? Austin handed me a cup of tea.

“Here you go.”

“Thanks.” I took the tea and swirled in a teaspoon of sugar. I glanced around the kitchen. This was utterly amazing. All of my family, my best friend, and the boy I was crazy about were in the same room.

Beau walked over with a tray of bacon. “Don’t you look happy this morning.”

“I am. I really am.”

* * *

The parking lot was crowded. It looked like everyone in Beau’s apartment complex had returned from their weekend excursions. I steered into an empty spot far from Beau’s building.

I shifted the car into park and turned to face Beau. “Thanks for going on the hometown with me.” After the rocky start, the weekend had gone better than I ever could have imagined.

“It was awesome. I loved meeting your family. Your brothers are cool to hang out with. I don’t think I’ve ever played that much basketball and corn hole in one weekend.” My brothers had cornered Beau into every competition they could create. I was surprised they didn’t get into competitive eating.

“So, you’ll go easy on them in your blog?”

The smile that had spread across his face faded. “You’re worried about what I’m going to write for my post?”

Shit. “No, that’s not what I meant. They are overwhelming sometimes. There was so much that happened this weekend.” My joke was a fail. I should have said something about the way he washed dishes and won my mom’s respect, or how he impressed my dad at dinner with his newly learned wine technique, or how my world suddenly felt so complete with his hand in mine. But no, I had to mention the blog.

“Right. I better go. Thanks for the weekend.” Beau opened the door, retrieved his overnight bag from the backseat, and jogged toward his building.

Dammit. Two steps forward and three hundred steps back.