Reb looked to Alex for support. Alex shrugged. ‘It was all in fun, Reb,’ he said.
‘Hey, Rebbie.’ Sal was on the couch slapping the cushion beside him. ‘Sit down here a minute.’
Alex dealt a new hand. Reb sat. Why did they want to see a man make a fool of himself?
‘The guys all know my wife’s having another kid, okay? You know what happens next? Do you?’
‘Calm down, Sal. What happens next?’
‘Her goddam old lady comes to live with us.’
‘Well, that’s good ain’t it?’ Reb said. ‘She helps out around the house.’
‘Full of shit up to your ears, Rebbie. When she’s in the house I don’t get near the wife. No, she says. Not with my mother in the next room.’
Reb lifted his glance to the table. The players fooled with their hands, their real attention on Sal. ‘You’re making a mountain out of a mole hill,’ Chub said. ‘You don’t get laid that last month anyhow. Rebbie’s right. You gonna take a vacation? Who the hell’s gonna mind the four kids?’
‘Who’s talking about any last month?’ Sal said.
‘She’ll be moving in in two more weeks. This is another half a year affair at least. That broad lives with us more than in her own house.’
‘Well, put your foot down,’ Reb said.
‘I try. When she tells me not with my mother in the house I say kick her the fuck out then. Don’t talk that way she’ll hear you. I want her to hear me.’
The players exchanged looks.
‘After that I’m not grateful for all her family done for me. What have they done? Gave me a piece of land and built me a house on it I never could of afforded. Sure. But her old man holds the mortgage. I pay him the same interest you pay a bank.’
Wiggy and Dom peered in from the kitchen. Reb wished he had let Sal spill it all out in the privacy of the bedroom.
‘I told her once about getting fixed up and she says what’s the matter with your education. Don’t you know that’s a sin against God. And there was her family making me toe the mark to hang on to the house. Every Sunday morning I hadda help them oiling and greasing the equipment. If I had a nickel for every time them brothers of hers threw it in my face about the house they gave me. Gave. They raised my pay after two years from fiftyfive to sixty a week. One day I was fed up to here and went straight to the old man and told him off. Look. You can still make out the scar. Her biggest brother jumps me on the spot and takes three stitches over my eye. Mauro. Get the hell out he yells at me. And don’t try going back to my daughter the old man says. You telling me I’m fired I says. That’s right he says. And get out of my daughter’s house too.’
Sal’s eyes were wild.
‘Gee, Sal,’ Reb said. One by one he searched the others’ faces. In turn each averted his gaze.
‘Some night that was,’ Sal said. ‘My wife sided with them. They told her I jumped the old man. Me. I was always scared shitless of him even though he was over sixty. I got home with blood all over my face, the two kids started crying their eyes out, and there’s Mary yelling get out. Get out. I would have too. That same minute. They all wanted me out. That’s when I made up my mind to stick ha ha. My revenge on them.’
Sal’s eyes glassy. In the corners water had gathered.
‘Easy now, Sal,’ Reb said. He reached out and squeezed Sal’s shoulder.
‘It was three months after that night before she let me touch her again,’ Sal said. ‘That was the third kid.’
Reb turned to the kitchen doorway. Wiggy’s sleeves were rolled up, his hands wet. Dom held a dishtowel and grinned. Vultures. ‘You guys finished in there?’ Reb said.
‘Pretty near,’ Dom said.
‘Then take care of your business,’ Reb said. ‘And you guys. If you’re still playing cards play.’ He was out of the room and back again with the last unopened bottle of whiskey. One drink for Sal. One for himself. And around the table he went filling each player’s glass. He called in Dom and Wiggy. He poured two more shots. ‘Okay. We’re all having a round together now. Friends.’
It was quick and in silence. The players bid.
Dom and Wiggy withdrew.
‘You’re a good guy, Rebbie,’ Sal said. ‘Another?’ Reb held out the bottle. The quicker Sal knocked himself out the better. ‘Sure.’
‘Gonna stay calm now, Sal baby?’
‘Like a rock now, Rebbie. Gonna stay like a rock.’
‘Atta boy.’
After washing his face and combing his hair Reb put on a fresh shirt, then his suit, then his new tie. At the card table there was excitement but it was impossible to tell winner from loser. A quick succession of bursting hisses came from the kitchen as someone opened four or five cans of beer.
‘Hey, Dom. Make it one more,’ Vinnie said. ‘Here’s Reb.’
‘Where’s Sal?’ Reb said.
‘Out for a breath of air,’ Chub said. ‘It’ll do him good. Cool him off.’
‘Joe Harvard with that necktie again,’ Lee said. ‘Ha ha.’
Dom brought the beers in. Reb refused his. ‘Ivy League,’ Lee said. ‘They drink martinis.’
‘Nah,’ Reb said. ‘Beer on the rocks. But for us Harvard boys the glass gotta have a handle on it.’
‘Hey, Lee,’ Vinnie said. ‘Remember that job we done over in Cambridge? You ever seen them Harvard guys, Alex? They wear chino pants when they get dressed up. Chino pants. I wear chinos mixing mortar on the job for chrissake.’
‘Boy, I don’t know what the broads see in them guys,’ Lee said. ‘They don’t even know what a nice crease is in a pair of pants.’
‘Where I come from that Ivy League is nothing,’ Chub said.
‘Look who’s talking,’ Reb said. ‘Them guys got more brains in their little finger than you got in your whole head.’
‘Yeah?’ Chub said. ‘Then brains ain’t everything.’
‘Look at him,’ Lee said. ‘Defending those guys.’
‘Why not?’ Reb said. ‘Anybody with brains is better than guys like us.’
‘What the hell do you mean by that?’ Vinnie said. ‘I don’t know,’ Reb said. ‘It just came to me.’
‘Then you better take off that suit and that tie,’ Vinnie said. ‘They’re making you act queer.’
‘Them broads of theirs are a little dizzy too if you ask me,’ Lee said. ‘Going around in raincoats in the middle of the winter.’
‘That’s nothing,’ Vinnie said. ‘One day I seen one coming down the street wearing Bermuda shorts under her raincoat and no shoes. No shoes in the middle of Cambridge. That’s nutty.’
‘That’s brains for you,’ Lee said.
‘I know what you like them broads for,’ Vinnie said.
‘What?’ Reb said.
‘Them college girls will do anything that’s what.’
‘Meaning?’
‘They suck.’
‘Who told you?’
‘I heard.’
‘Hmmm,’ Alex said.
‘Where?’ Reb said. ‘Hanging around the drugstore in Putnam Falls?’
‘What’s wrong with the Falls now?’ Vinnie said.
‘Nothing’s wrong with the Falls,’ Reb said. ‘Only nobody in the Falls ever seen the inside of high school that’s all.’
‘Huh. Now look who’s talking,’ Chub said. ‘Did you finish high school?’
‘That ain’t what I’m saying.’
‘What are you trying to say then?’ Lee said.
‘I don’t know,’ Reb said. ‘It’s just you guys piss me off sometimes. Anything different you make fun of.’
‘Are you going somewhere?’ Alex said.
‘Naw.’ Reb stole a glance at his watch and waited for a new game to start. It did. ‘Sal went out then, huh?’
‘You oughta get the wax cleaned out of your ears,’ Chub said.
‘Maybe we better keep an eye on him,’ Reb said. And he was out of the room and halfway across the kitchen. Wiggy stood by the sink drying his hands. ‘Forgot you
were still in here. I was just gonna see if Sal’s outside.’
Wiggy’s arm went out in an arc. ‘Finished,’ he said. ‘Looks good, huh?’
‘Look’s great.’ Reb inspected his shoes.
He stood on the landing and squeezed the screen door shut behind him.
11
The yellow light was off. Good. If Sal were prowling around Reb would escape being spotted. But touching Chub’s car ahead of it and Lee’s behind, the Buick was locked in. Reb hoisted himself over the bumpers to size up his predicament. He would have to plow Chub forward a foot or two and then try to jockey a way out. What if Sal heard? Having him along tonight was sure to spoil it. Reb cast a furtive look into the dark before turning the key.
‘That you, Rebbie?’
Reb shrank. ‘Whatta you doing, Sal. Not out here stargazing are you?’
From out of nowhere Sal appeared beside the car. ‘Not really. Nice sky, though, huh?’
‘Lay off looking up there now, Sal. Don’t get yourself all started again. Understand?’
‘Where are you going, Rebbie?’
‘Thought I’d take a little spin. Get some air.’
‘Meeting one of them broads?’
‘What broads?’ Reb was glad Sal could not see his face.
‘Come on. The ones last night.’
‘Listen. You don’t have to mention nothing to the guys now.’
‘You’re a hot shit, Rebbie. Always telling everyone else to never mind the broads. Then you slip out ha ha. To get a little all by yourself.’
‘Nah, I ain’t gonna get nothing. Maybe we’ll have a couple of drinks together that’s all. It was only casual. Who says she’ll even be there.’
‘You’re gonna get laid, you bastard.’
‘I’m telling you.’
Sal’s hand on Reb’s arm. ‘I’m telling you.’
Reb hesitated. He could not just leave Sal like this.
‘Go ahead. Have a good time,’ Sal said.
‘Wanna come with me?’
‘What. And queer it for you? Get going.’
‘Hey, Sal, do me a favor and see if Chubbie’s keys are in his car. Christ. A whole yard and look at how these cowboys have to park.’
Sal felt his way into Chub’s car. After half a minute the car bucked forward a few feet. Reb started the Buick. Sal trailed along, his hand on the door, as Reb eased out of the yard.
‘Thanks, Sal. Stay loose now.’
‘You too, Rebbie.’
‘And don’t say nothing.’
‘Not a word.’
‘See you then.’
‘Reb. Did I mention back there?’
‘What?’
‘The sister that died. It was in childbirth.’
12
Reb shouldered through the pile up inside the door and made his way to the far end of the bar. There she was, in her checked suit and black jersey, a hand playing with a strand of blonde hair, seated two tables away from where they met the night before. Two of her friends were with her. Reb’s heart took a dive.
‘Hi,’ Rosalind said, lifting a hand and coming forward to meet him. ‘You’re right on time.’
‘Am I?’ He scowled over her shoulder at the friends.
‘Well, let’s go,’ she said.
‘Let’s go?’
‘Yes. Don’t we want to go somewhere else?’ Her slender fingers toyed with a slim bracelet.
‘But what about your friends there?’ he said, confused.
‘They were only keeping me company until you came.’
At last Reb smiled.
‘I wouldn’t have liked waiting here alone,’ Rosalind said.
‘No,’ he said, blossoming. ‘Course not.’ He put out a hand and gently took her by the bend of the arm. ‘And that’s why we can’t just rush off on them.’
‘It’s all right,’ Rosalind said.
‘Not by me. Not after the way they came and stayed with you. Let me buy them a drink.’
At the table there was an exchange of greetings as if they were all old friends. Reb asked Bonnie and Dee what drinks they would like.
‘Where’s Sally tonight?’ he said.
‘That party pooper,’ Dee said. ‘That’s not fair,’ Rosalind said.
‘She got burned to a crisp on the beach today,’ Bonnie said.
More small talk. The cheer spread. Dee said if only she could turn black like Reb but she always burned and looked like a lobster ha ha. The drinks came. Reb paid and gave Rosalind a sign. A hand held the hair out of her eyes as she bent over the table to pick up her things. It was a gesture which, trivial in itself, melted Reb. Rosalind told the friends not to wait up.
Out in the parking lot, heading for the Buick, he told himself he would have to try to speak a little better now that he was away from the guys. Use grammar. Say yes.
‘I’m glad you got them drinks,’ Rosalind said.
‘Yes,’ he said vaguely just to try the sound of the word. He wanted to tell her a little harmony in the family never hurt. ‘Where would you like to go?’
‘Anywhere’s okay.’
‘Anywhere? Isn’t that a dangerous thing to say?’
‘That’s right. My line’s supposed to be ha ha. Shouldn’t we get to know each other better first?’
‘Ha ha.’ Reb judged that she was too good looking just to throw in the back seat and start playing with. ‘Well, name a place.’
‘I don’t know any.’
‘I know a small place out on the back road. A pretty good combo’s been playing there all summer.’
‘With dancing?’
‘Yes, but not your style. Couples only.’
She laughed. Their hands brushed, fingers locking. Reb drew her to his side. Either she would break free or rub against him like a cat. Rosalind came around slightly and ground her hip against his. He released her. With a slink like that she knew the score. The word from here on was finesse. ‘Will this one do?’ He gestured expansively, indicating the Buick. ‘A convertible.’
The pleasure in her voice was not lost on him. ‘Sure. It’s a convertible night, isn’t it?’ He held open the door and watched her slide in. When the floor light went out the few inches of stockinged legs above her knees dissolved into darkness. He told himself he would play it straight and be frank.
He could hear what he would tell Alex. I knew in the end I’d have to prove to her she wanted it as much as me. She was that type. But when you finally get it ooh. They’re the best kind.
He drove speedily but with care, authority, and ease, peacocking. And with the wind rumbling in his ears he laid the groundwork, gathering the dull but necessary facts and information. Where was she staying? She and Sally were down only for the weekend, she said, staying with Bonnie and Dee in a cottage they had been renting for the past two weeks. Was she from Boston? Hyde Park, she said. He told her he lived in Putnam. She said the girls worked in an insurance office in Boston. He told her he never would have guessed that. She said she worked in a finance and loan company on the same street. While she spoke he framed the next question, not even sure he was listening to her answers. It would be easier once they got to Mario’s and had a couple of drinks in front of them, he told himself, pressing down on the gas.
‘And what do you do?’ Rosalind said.
‘Me? Contractor. In business with my father and brother. We build houses.’ With his friends he only called himself a carpenter.
‘Builder.’
‘Yes. But don’t think it means I carry blueprints under my arm all day. You know. Half engineer, half executive.’
‘I see.’
‘Well, why should I lie? You felt my palm. You know I really work for a living.’ He held an open palm out to her for the proof. Rosalind touched it. ‘And don’t be fooled because I ride around in an expensive car either.’ He knew that saying this only fooled them more.
‘You down for the weekend too?’
‘Yes. Down from Putnam.’ No mention of the cottage. It was best to
keep a few tracks covered. When they turned off the road their headlights swept an unlighted signpost, picking out the words spaghetti and chops. The place itself, which looked like a hunting lodge, was set back from the highway under a cover of old pines. On the edge of the sloped roof a steady neon sign spelled out its name in red.
‘Mario’s Italian Villa. How do you find a place like this in the middle of the woods?’
‘You have to know about it,’ Reb said. ‘It’s not like the Windmill. Hardly any of the summer crowd come here.’ He helped her out. Rosalind looked up into the trees and glanced around the parking lot. Two cars were leaving.
‘You can hear them playing from here,’ she said. ‘Sounds good.’
‘Smell these white pines.’
Reb told her he knew the place because Mario’s daughter lived in Putnam and a few years back they had built her a house. As he and Rosalind entered, couples streamed off the dance floor and the musicians laid their instruments aside. With her hand in his Reb picked a way to the back of the Villa’s two big rooms and located an unoccupied booth. The table was littered with beer bottles and glasses.
‘Let me get a waitress to clean up,’ he said.
Rosalind handed him her black coat. ‘And let me go fix my hair.’
The table was cleared. Rosalind was back, asking if he had ordered yet.
‘Waiting for you.’ He stood, took her arm, and helped her into the booth. Rosalind slid along the seat making room for him. He sat down opposite her, watching for a reaction, then began to say something, broke off, and said instead, ‘Oh, did you want me to sit beside you?’
‘Well. I mean if you’d like to.’
‘Sure I’d like to. But if I were over there next to you how could I see your face? You didn’t go comb your hair for nothing, did you?’ His eyes on her. Her pale cheeks glowed like two flowers. ‘Anything the matter?’
‘Go on with what you were saying.’
‘The rumbling in my ears. That’s the thing I got against convertibles.’
‘You mean you don’t like the car?’
‘Yes, I like it. But I like to hear too.’
‘I never heard anyone say that about them before. Are you thinking of getting rid of it then?’
‘I’ve given it a couple of thoughts. I may get something else next year. When you think about it they’re really a showoff ’s car.’
What About Reb Page 6