Chapter 213

The twins tried the joke on Gemma. You saw it coming as soon as you both walked into the restaurant and they were wearing very similar dresses in a gorgeous burgundy. Sabrina had followed your request and they both had drapey, flowy garments that left their backs bare but stayed tight and high in the front.

When they both stood to greet you, the one who came to you grinned and said, “Hi, baby,” and pulled you into a kiss. You snuck in a brief feel of her breast with your thumb, disguising it as touching her side for anyone who was glancing towards you all, and you felt the little extra bumps of nipple piercings.

She was still smiling when she pulled back from the brief kiss, one eyebrow just slightly raised as her eyes glinted playfully, knowing that you knew she was Katherine.

Meanwhile, Sabrina was pretending to meet Gemma for the first time, making a show of hugging her. Gemma looked at you over Sabrina’s shoulder with a look, and you shrugged, and she rolled her eyes and pulled back from the hug and planted a kiss on Sabrina, who was surprised and then kissed her back.

Then Gemma really did hug Katherine. “It’s so nice to meet you,” Gemma said. “Sabrina was so excited that you were coming down to visit.”

“Thanks,” Katherine grinned, “It’s really nice to meet you too. And God, I swear I’m not hitting on you, but you’re so gorgeous.”

“Thanks,” Gemma chuckled back, and then she leaned forward. “And I forgive you for this morning. Did he hit the spot?”

Katherine blushed and nodded. “Definitely, and thanks.”

You got into the booth. Sabrina had picked a Pho restaurant, mid-ish scale, a couple of blocks from her place that she had tried take-out from before. The decor was nicely subdued, and the restaurant itself wasn’t terribly busy so there was enough noise in the place to cover your own conversations, but not so busy that you felt crowded.

“How did you know?” Sabrina asked Gemma as you sat beside her while the twins sat on the other side of the table.

“Easy,” Gemma said. “I know the smell of your shampoo.”

“I used her shampoo,” Katherine pointed out.

Gemma shrugged. “Then it was a lucky guess. And I think a mistaken kiss would be the least of our problems, wouldn’t it?”

The embarrassed look on Katherine’s face as she flushed made the three of you chuckle.

Dinner was ... well, it was delightful. You already knew that Katherine was just as personable and bubbly as Sabrina was and you enjoyed spending time with her, and Gemma immediately picked up on the same vibe. The conversation mostly focused on the twin’s childhood and teenage years as they took turns embarrassing each other, but you and Gemma chipped in some of your own stories. Katherine had lots of questions about Australia, but Gemma was pleasantly surprised it was more about the music scene and a couple of popular Aussie television shows rather than the usual questions about kangaroos and koalas and deadly animals.

The girls all laughed when you ordered chicken wings, which were supposed to be an appetizer, rather than a bowl of pho, and you told them about a terrible first date you’d had back in your first year of university where you’d had the brothy Vietnamese soup for the first time and it hadn’t sat well with you. Ever since, your stomach complained when you tried it, so you avoided it.