by Quinn Ward
“Just because I’m letting you and Freddie help out doesn’t mean I don’t need to know what’s going on in my restaurant,” I spat out. God, I wished I could go back in time and stop Papa from forcing me to be in charge. I’d busted my ass in college to make sure I didn’t wind up in this exact position.
“Fuck you, very much!” Tony pushed me out of his way and stormed to the door. “The last I checked, the last name on this place is all of ours. It’s not yours any more than it was Papa’s. It’s a family business and that means it’s up to all of us to run it.”
“And yet Papa didn’t need any help with it, did he?” I slammed my hand against the door to keep Tony from leaving. If he wanted a fight, he was going to get one. I was tired and looking for someone to unload on. “When he was here, Marino’s was the place to be. People made reservations so they wouldn’t have to wait for a table. There were parties in the private room every weekend. Now, it’s been sitting empty so long we had to go in there and dust to get ready for tonight’s group and there’s a fucking stain that’s been setting into the carpet for who knows how long. He’s probably rolling over in his damn grave at how I’ve let this place fall apart.”
“Woah, wait just a fucking minute.” Tony led me back to the desk. “First of all, yes, Papa did micromanage every aspect of the business. That’s probably why he worked himself into an early grave and left us all here to continue in his wake. But even he wasn’t doing it all the way you’re trying to do. He had Daryl in the kitchen and Uncle Mario helped out up front. Plus, Mama was in here every weekend once we were old enough to be home alone.
“As for business being slower, that has nothing to do with you and everything to do with the market right now. People aren’t going out as often, and it’s harder for anyone who’s not over by the mall to succeed,” he reminded me. I knew that, but I hated it. Hated that people would rather eat bland meals they could get anywhere in the country than try something local and homemade. “We’re going to be fine. Things are already starting to turn around with the changes we’ve been making. Take the weekend to recharge your batteries, spend some time with the new mystery man, and next week we’ll sit down again and brainstorm some ideas.”
There was a knock on the office door. “Come in.”
If I hadn’t already been sitting, I’d have fallen over when I saw Calvin walk through the door like it was a normal occurrence. Tony looked at him, then to me and back to Calvin. “Seriously?” he mouthed, before quickly excusing himself.
I felt like the walls of the office were closing in on me as Calvin stalked across the room. His brow was furrowed, the corners of his mouth drawn in. “Is there a reason you haven’t answered my messages this morning?”
“Yeah. I’ve been busy putting out fires since I walked in, and I could either spend time playing the dutiful sub or I could focus so that, just maybe, I wouldn’t have to come home tonight and tell you there’s no way I can take the weekend off,” I sniped.
I expected Calvin to come back with some threat to punish me for acting like an immature brat. That might’ve been easier than seeing the frustration in his features morph into concern. He stepped behind me and began massaging my neck. The pressure was just short of painful. I closed my eyes and allowed myself to feel each of his fingers digging into my tense muscles.
“When you’re having a bad day, I want you to tell me.” His words were quiet and carefully measured. “Holding it all in, thinking you have to carry your burdens alone is part of what leads you to make poor choices. Let me help you.”
“Unless you know how to tend bar, I’m not sure there’s anything you can do,” I told him. Tabatha’s absence was the one issue I still had no solution for. Tony was right that Freddie would take care of the problems in the kitchen, and I knew Tony had the dining room under control. But without a bartender for the private party, we were screwed. The family was well-connected, and I’d been relying on their party being a hit to kick start the turn around in business.
I opened my eyes when Calvin released his hold on my neck. Everything that’d been swirling around in my head seemed quieter. The throbbing pain in my head had eased.
“Hey…yeah, I know it’s early, but I need a favor.” I spun around to see Calvin on his phone. “You have a bartender you can spare tonight?” He pulled the phone away from his ear. “How long is the party, Frankie?”
“They have an open bar from six until nine,” I told him, flipping to the booking form to verify. Good thing, too, because when Mama booked the party, she let them have the room right up to close, which we never did. “Fuck. No, the bar goes until ten. Who are you talking to?”
“Eli,” he responded. I was tempted to argue that most of the bartenders at Club 83 weren’t quite what we looked for at Marino’s, but I was desperate. And apparently bitchy. Just because they also worked at a gay bar that was a bit on the rougher side didn’t mean they couldn’t put on a white shirt and dress pants to serve drinks to our customers.
Calvin started pacing behind me as he and Eli discussed who he might be able to spare for the night. “Yeah, no. I know you like him, but he relies too much on flirting for tips… He won’t work, either. If you tell him to tone down the glitter eyeshadow, he’ll flip.”
“What about Max?” I asked. If I was going to bring in a bartender for the night, I wanted it to be someone I trusted. And maybe I could sway him into working more of these parties, because he was just what we needed. Good looking, had a photographic memory, and a chameleon who could work any crowd. It pissed me off that I hadn’t thought of calling him on my own.
“Hey, I know it’s a big ask, but would you be cool if he asks Max to work here tonight?” Calvin pulled the phone away from his ear, and I could hear the string of expletives from Eli. “I get it, but you don’t get slammed until around eleven. If he’s up for it, that’d give him time to help Frankie out over here and still make it back before your rush… Thanks. I owe you.”
They ended the call and Calvin pulled me out of the chair. Once he sat down, he arranged me on his lap. I stiffened, worried someone would waltz into the office and catch us. He started rubbing my back, and I settled into his chest. I wasn’t sure what I’d done to deserve someone who understood me so quickly, but I wasn’t about to push him away.
“Sometimes you need to think outside the box,” he told me. “If you’d told me what was going on sooner, I’d have done exactly what I just did but you wouldn’t have spent the morning stressing about it.”
“I’m sorry. But in my defense, I did warn you I’d be total shit at this,” I reminded him. If I had issues asking my brothers for help, it was unrealistic to expect me to unload on Calvin.
“You’ll get better,” he assured me. “And when you screw up, I’ll be here to remind you you’re not alone. Now, what else do you need to do before you leave for the weekend?”
The argument that I couldn’t take the weekend off knowing how it was starting was at the front of my mind, but I pushed it back. Calvin came down here because he was worried about me, helped me take care of the last crisis I was currently dealing with, and I’d given him my word that we would spend some quality time together this weekend. Before long, all his weekends would be spent traveling around the region to tournaments with Ryan, so our opportunities were somewhat limited.
“I have some paperwork I’d like to take care of. I have to make the deposit and get change,” I listed off. “Once that’s done, I’ll be free. You can head home; I know you have proposals to draw up and all that.”
Calvin cupped my face in his hands before kissing me. “But if you need me, all of that can wait.”
“No, I’ll be fine,” I promised him. I hopped off his lap and reached back for his hand. I was still paranoid about my family knowing he was here because we were sort of together, but I was reluctant to let him go. Just having him here with me settled my mind. Plus, he was great eye candy.
At the door of the office, I wrapped my hands around his mid
dle. I knew he was self-conscious about the slight spare tire he was carrying around, but I liked it. I couldn’t imagine trying to cuddle with someone who was about as soft as a pile of rocks, and I was quickly learning there was nothing more relaxing that curling up on the couch with Calvin.
“Do you want me to bring home dinner tonight? I happen to have an in with the owner of the joint.”
Calvin placed a chaste kiss to my forehead. “I don’t want you to worry about a thing other than getting home. I’ll pick up something and take care of dinner.”
“But you have work to do, too.” One of my biggest fears was he’d eventually get tired of reminding me to do things most functional adults took for granted or helping me solve my problems and walk away. If his own business started suffering because of how much attention he was paying me, it would be a catalyst to his exit.
“Actually, I don’t. I sent off the last proposal this morning, which is why I decided to come down and check up on you since you weren’t reading any of my messages.” I felt bad about that now. I’d told him repeatedly that I wasn’t upset with his reminders, that they were actually helping me stay focused and relaxed, but he was still the one I’d gotten pissy with this morning. At least I’d stopped short of firing off a reply for him to leave me the hell alone. “You’re not upset that I came to your work, are you?”
“No. I’ll probably have to play twenty questions with Tony, but he won’t tell anyone else anything. If they ask who you are, he’ll play it off. He’s always been the master of deflection in our family.”
“Okay.” Calvin tightened his hold on me, pulling me close enough to rest my head against his chest. I closed my eyes and listened to the steady rhythm of his heart. He kissed the top of my head again. It was such a simple gesture, but from him, it meant everything. “I’ll head out so you can get back to work. Max is going to stop by mid-afternoon so he can find out what he needs to do.”
That was both a blessing and a curse. Max was the closest thing I had to a friend, which was pretty sad since we never did anything outside the bar and I hadn’t talked to him since the night Calvin caught me in the storage room. He was a good guy, but he’d no doubt wonder what the connection was between Eli and me. I wasn’t sure how much I was ready to tell him, but a niggling voice at the back of my head reminded me this was supposed to be time to take my life back. I could start that by making more of an effort to find friends I could trust. Obviously, I already trusted him, so maybe he was someone I could open up to.
I walked Calvin out to his car, carefully avoiding the kitchen so we wouldn’t run into Mama or Matteo. They were the busybodies of the family and the most likely to ask questions I wasn’t ready to answer yet. Lucky for me, Calvin had parked around the corner in one of three alley spots, so I was able to steal one last kiss from him. God, the man had an addictive mouth.
He pressed a hand to my chest, staring into my eyes. “Get to work. I’ll see you at home.”
“Okay.” And damn if I didn’t walk back to the entrance of the alley and watch him drive away. This wasn’t a life I expected, but one I was ready to fully embrace. It wasn’t often a man like Calvin came along, even rarer that he was willing to put up with me.
When Max hadn’t shown up by four-thirty, I started to worry. The only way I could reach him would be to call Club 83 and ask Eli for his information, and I didn’t want to do that. I already felt weird that Calvin had called in a favor to make sure this shift was covered for me tonight. At almost five o’clock, the office door burst open as Tony led Max inside.
“Hey man, sorry I’m late. Didn’t know Eli had whored me out to you for the night.” I groaned. I trusted Max to filter his crude comments tonight, but I couldn’t be certain.
“No sweat. You have everything you need for tonight?” I looked him up and down, impressed by how well he cleaned up. Truth be told, Max looked more professional than a lot of our servers. “Everything should be set up and I asked my baby brother to cut up all the garnishments. They’re in the cooler under the bar in the private dining room.
“I’ll show you where we’re going and Tony will come in to show you the register. It’ll be easy since it’s an open bar, but we still have to ring up everything for the final bill.” Since I was itching to get out of there and home to Calvin, I ushered Max and Tony out of my office. I didn’t miss the way Max checked out Tony, his eyes pausing on the middle Marino’s backside. I so didn’t want to think about Max and Tony. “Don’t waste your time. I’m the only brother who swings your way.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Max quipped. Tony split off from us at the kitchen, mumbling about needing to check with Freddie to make sure he was ready for dinner service to begin.
A few minutes later, I left Max in Tony’s capable hands and made one last round to make sure everyone was cool with me taking off. The guys had even called Enzo to come in for the night. I was grateful he was willing to pick up shifts when we needed him. He might be the second youngest of the bunch, but he was the peacekeeper. If Tony pissed off Freddie, and he would before the night was over, Enzo would make sure there was no bloodshed.
11
Frankie
Music streamed through the house when I got home, and Calvin greeted me at the door with a kiss before taking my messenger bag while I toed off my shoes. “You’re not going to need this for the weekend.”
“My laptop’s in there,” I argued when he set the bag inside his home office and made a show of locking the door.
“As I said, nothing you’re going to need for the weekend.” Calvin laced his fingers through mine and led me to the living room. There was a tablecloth draped over the old chest he used as a coffee table, with two place settings and a candle in the center. Since it was still a couple hours before nightfall, he’d pulled the drapes to block out the afternoon sun. He pointed to the floor. “Get comfortable. I’m going to grab dinner.”
I couldn’t smell anything permeating through the air, so I was pleasantly surprised when he walked in carrying a cardboard flat filled with Chinese from the takeout place down the street. There were baggies filled with egg rolls and crab Rangoon, two of my favorites. When he set down a container filled with garlic shrimp, I swear I just about launched myself over the chest to kiss him. Again, it was a favorite dish, but I never brought seafood into the house because I knew Ryan was allergic.
“I hope this is okay.” He took the plate from in front of me and started heaping it with food. Before I could tell him I couldn’t eat that much, he cut off my protest. “You never eat enough. And I plan on keeping you active all weekend, so you’re going to need the energy.”
Well, that certainly sounded appealing. I waited for Calvin to fill a plate for himself before eating, even though my stomach was growling. I had, in fact, forgotten to eat today. “Thank you for this.”
“You’re welcome.” He smiled, reaching over the makeshift table to brush the hair out of my eyes. I sighed, wondering how in the hell such an innocent touch could turn me on. Calvin smirked, as though he knew what he was doing to me. The bastard.
As we ate, we went through getting to know you pleasantries at the pace of speed dating. It amazed me how little we knew about one another despite the fact we’d been roommates for months. Again, that made me think about how I’d kept people at a distance and how out of character that was for me.
“Hey now, what’s this?” he asked, scooting around so he was sitting next to me. He traced a finger over the creases in my forehead. “Did I say something wrong?”
“No, it’s nothing like that,” I responded in a rush. God, I was going to give the guy a complex if my mind kept going to unpleasant places whenever we were together. “Tonight’s Frankie fun fact: I tend to overthink things a lot. Sometimes, at really shitty times.”
“I’d already figured that one out.” Calvin smirked and pulled me into his lap. He leaned back against the front of the couch, pulling me with him. I swear, this was my new favorite position.
“Do you realize how the tension melts away when we cuddle?”
“Mmmhmm.” I closed my eyes and tried to live in the moment. Each slow, deep inhale filled my nose with the scent of spicy aftershave and Calvin.
He reached around and started undoing the buttons on my shirt. I shifted so my back was to his chest, offering him easier access. The graze of his fingertips down my sternum tickled, causing me to fidget. “I think we should move this someplace more comfortable.”
“I’ll clean up dinner, then we can go wherever you’d like.”
“Leave it,” he told me. That was one order I couldn’t follow, because I knew the mess would drive him crazy, and I had no plans on either of us leaving whatever bed we landed in unless it was to shower before the next round. I’d pull out every seduction skill I possessed if needed, but I was going to get well and truly fucked before the night was through.
“It won’t take me long.” As much as I’d have liked to stay in his lap, I got up and started tossing empty containers into a plastic bag. He scooped the tablecloth off the chest and took it straight to the laundry room. By the time we met up in the kitchen, there was no sign we’d eaten in the living room tonight. “There. Now we can both relax tonight.”
I tried to hide my disappointment when Calvin led me to my own bedroom. Maybe it was stupid, faulty logic, but I couldn’t help feeling like he was trying to maintain a safe distance between what we were doing and his real life. After all, he had the bigger bed, one I assumed didn’t sag on both sides with a huge hump in the middle. I’d never complained about the bed in his former guest room since it was a piece of furniture I didn’t have to buy, but the thing was hell on my back.
Calvin massaged my shoulders as he guided me to my dresser. “Grab yourself a fresh pair of underwear. At some point, you’ll need them.”