by K. L. Myers
I squeezed Giovanna tighter before I kissed her once again. The softness of her lips on mine sent a shiver down my spine, causing my dick to twitch. Something I’d never felt before with any of the girls I’d dated. That was how I knew she was the one I was going to spend the rest of my life with, the one who would raise my children and love them like I was loved. I could already hear my mom—she’d say I was too young to know what love is and that I’d outgrow these feelings, but she’d be wrong. What I felt was the real deal, and I knew that because I’d give up my life for hers.
“Are you ever going to go to college? We’ve never talked about it. My parents are pushing me to pick one.”
“College isn’t in the cards for me, Jefferson. Right now, I just want to find the right job and find a place of my own. Someplace far away from my mom, but not too far that I can’t see my dad.”
“What if your job was here? Helping my mom take care of Serafina. Would you want to do something like that?”
Giovana pulled out of my arms and faced me, her smile so big that I could see her teeth. “Are you serious? Is that even a possibility? I love your little sister and your family like they were my own.”
“I’m not sure, but I can ask tonight. I overheard Mom and Aunt Lillian talking on speakerphone last week, and Mom said she wished she had a second pair of hands sometimes.”
The smile on G’s face dropped instantly. With a shrug of her shoulders, she replied. “I won’t get my hopes up.”
The alarm on her phone went off, and she silenced it as she stood. I reached for her hand, taking it in mine. Everything inside me wanted to pull her onto my lap and tell her it would all be alright, but I wasn’t going to make a promise I wasn’t confident I could keep.
“Jefferson,” Mom called out from the back door. “Almost time for dinner.”
As the two of us walked hand in hand to the house, there was a shift in G’s mood. I could feel she was a million miles away, and I would have given anything for her to be here in the present and happy once again.
“Giovanna, will you be staying for dinner?”
Mom never hesitated to invite G to dinner; she’d become another member of the family, even if it wasn’t by blood.
“No, I need to be heading home. Thanks for asking,” Giovanna replied with a smile.
“Jefferson, I think Sal is with your dad in his office. Go tell him I said he needs to give Giovanna a ride home.”
G argued with my mom that she didn’t need a ride home and was perfectly fine taking the ferry across the river. I knew my mom, and she would never settle for that.
“Nonsense, child. Your father may not have an issue with that, but I do. You shouldn’t be traveling alone; it’s going to be dark soon.”
Giovanna giggled. “You’re funny, Bethany. I’ve pretty much been fending for myself since I was ten. I’ll be fine.”
“I’m sure you will, but just humor me and take the ride from Sal. Please.”
Serafina decided that now was the time she needed to be vocal. Her cries from the living room echoed into the kitchen. Giovanna turned and made her way to Sera’s playpen and picked her up. The moment my sister was in my girl's arms, she stopped crying. Mom and I looked at each other, and both of us smiled at the same time.
“Okay, my little angel, I’ve got to go, so behave for your mom.” Giovanna kissed Sera’s forehead and then handed her to my mom just as Sal entered the room.
“You ready to go, Giovanna?” Sal's booming voice asked.
“Yep.”
I reached for G’s hand to walk her out, but she pushed hers into the pocket of her jeans and continued walking. I followed alongside her until we got to the door.
“I’ll see you later, Jefferson,” she called out as she walked with Sal to his car.
“I’ll call you later tonight,” I replied as she opened the door and climbed in. Her hand rose to wave as the car pulled around the circle drive and left.
Mom, Dad, and I sat at the dinner table. Sera’s playpen was only a few feet away so Mom could quickly get to her if she began crying. Sera amused herself by playing with a rattle and muttered sounds similar to the word nut, or maybe it was her version of Mom. Regardless, she was desperate to be heard.
“Our piccola ragazza sure has a lot to say tonight.” My dad smiled at my mom and then turned his head to talk to Sera. “What’s that you say, ragazza? You want to eat steak with the rest of us?”
Across the table, my mother laughed a full belly laugh. “Sometimes, Angelo, it's hard for me to believe you’re a badass when you say things like that. She doesn’t even have teeth to eat steak with.”
“That doesn’t mean she doesn’t want it.” Dad smiled at my sister once again. “Ain’t that right?” He nodded his head before turning to look at me. “How was your day today?
I shrugged my shoulders. “Nothing exciting happened.”
“I didn’t ask if anything exciting happened. I asked how your day was. You’re quiet tonight, and that’s not like you.”
Mom’s eyes lifted from her plate to meet mine. “Is everything alright between you and Giovanna?” Her arm reached across the table, her hand reaching for mine, but I refused to take hers.
“I’m fine. Giovanna and I are fine.”
“Then what is it, son. What’s bothering you? Because something is.”
I took in a deep breath and then released it. It was now or never. “Dad, did you know that Giovanna’s home life sucks?”
“How so?” Mom inquired
“Her mom doesn’t care about her and is rarely around when her dad isn’t. I just keep thinking about how lucky I am to have a mom who loves me and supports me. Even when I do something stupid, you never criticize me; you just ask if I’ve learned anything from my mistake.”
“I’m sure her mother loves her, Peanut. A mother's love is unconditional. Just some mothers show it differently, and not all mothers love the same. But I’m certain that if anything ever happened to Giovanna, her mother would be right there by her side.”
“I’m not so sure of that,” my dad spoke. “Tessa never wanted kids; she wanted the protection being married to the mob gave her. She could shit on anyone she wanted, and no one would do anything for fear that they’d feel the wrath of the Vicci family. That’s what she loves. Well, that and her dealer.”
“So, why doesn’t Gabriel do something about it, Dad? You know that’s why G comes here so much. She loves being around a normal family.” I thought about how I wanted the next part of my conversation to go and decided now was the time to get my girl a job. “Soon, she won’t have time to spend with us ‘cause she’ll be getting a real job and moving out. I’ll barely get to see her when that happens.”
“She won’t be moving out, son. Gabriel will never let that happen. Tessa has made enemies who would love a shot at Gabriel through an unprotected Giovanna.”
“I don’t understand. Dad, G is alone lots, and no one has bothered her yet.”
“Is she, son?” Dad raised an eyebrow at me. “Lefty and Switch are usually around.”
I pondered what he’d just said and tried to remember a time when Lefty and Switch weren't with Giovanna. Every time I talked to her, they were usually at her house. The only time they weren’t around was when she was here. “I don’t get it, Dad, they’re not much older than we are. You said so yourself that they were terrible influences, so why would her dad allow her to spend all her time with them if they were so bad?”
“For you, they are not boys I would want you to be around. For their purpose, they are ideally suited. Those boys' fathers are soldiers, and one day, they will become soldiers. They’ve already taken the omerta, and soon it won’t be long before they are answering to a Capo as full-fledged soldiers as well. Their presence gives Gabriel peace of mind and also allows Giovanna to do as she wishes without being unprotected.”
This conversation had gotten way off track, and I needed to steer it back in the right direction, but not before I got one last
answer. “So, I can be a soldier one day since I’m protecting G when she is with me.”
“No!” both of my parents answered simultaneously.
“Son, you are not protecting Giovanna; you are never alone. Sal is always somewhere close. You may not see him, but you are never alone. I’d never risk that.”
I pushed my plate away; I’d officially lost my appetite, hearing my dad say in a roundabout way that I was a pussy. “So, I’m less than a man in your eyes, Dad. I’m just a boy, a disappointment to you, I’m sure, since you are a soldier,” I snarled back at my dad. I’d never disrespected him that way, but I couldn’t help myself.
“You are never a disappointment to me, and if I had it my way, you’d never become a member of “THE FAMILY.” I have bigger dreams for you. Those that don’t include you becoming a killer. I will teach you to protect yourself, but that won’t mean Sal will abandon his duties. That, my son, you will have to learn to live with, just as your Aunt Lillian had to.”
Mom stood from the table to fetch Sera—she’d become very vocal in the last fifteen minutes. It was as if Sera knew I wanted to talk about her. Mom held my little sister and placed a pacifier in her mouth while rubbing her back. An attempt to restore a bit of quiet to the room.
“Mom, would you ever consider hiring G to help you take care of Sera? This way, she’d have a job with us and wouldn’t have to go searching for one. Sera love’s her, and you keep saying you wished you had time for yourself.”
Mom turned to my father for guidance. She’d never decide without consulting him first, and I’m sure that part of her was uneasy about the whole situation considering who G was and what her family did. Of course, that would be like calling the kettle black considering who my father was.
Dad raised his hand to his face and bounced his pointer finger over his lips for a second while the wheels turned in his head. “That might not be a bad idea, Bethany. It would give you some time to do things for yourself, and it would help Giovanna out. I’m confident Gabriel would much rather her have her work for us than find a job doing god knows what. Not to mention she’d be safe here.” Then my father turned to me and smiled. “Plus, the boy here would be able to spend time with his girl. I’d bet my Saint Christopher’s that he’s afraid Giovanna won’t have time for him if she gets a job in Brooklyn or the Bronx.”
“I guess that would be fine, Peanut, but on one condition: Sal picks her up and takes her home. I hate that she takes the ferry; it’s just not safe.”
Rushing to my mom, I hugged her tight. “Thanks, Mom, can I be the one to tell G she has a job?”
“Of course, let her know we can discuss the specifics when she comes by again.”
I took the stairs two at a time as I headed to my room. Once inside, I dug my phone out of my pocket and dialed Giovanna.
Chapter Eleven
Giovanna
Every day for the last year, Sal would pick me up in the morning and take me home at night, just as Bethany requested. Sometimes, I’d even spend the weekend with Jefferson and his family. My life was almost perfect, except for my mother. Her drug habit had gotten even worse, to the point that my dad and I would go weeks, sometimes months, without seeing or hearing from her, she’d just disappear. Then out of the blue she would show back up on our front steps begging us to forgive her. She’d lost so much weight that she looked as if her skin was hanging on a skeleton. My mother didn’t even look like my mother anymore.
I woke up this morning to the sound of my parents fighting and breaking glass. I dressed quickly and headed down the hall towards the stairs. “They’ll kill me if you don’t,” I heard my mother say, stopping me in my tracks halfway down the stairs. My father replied with a few terse words before Mother started screaming for him to take his hands off her. I’d never seen my dad lift a hand to my mother once, not in all the times they’d fought about her drugs, but this time was different, and my feet couldn’t get me down the remaining stairs fast enough to see what was going on. Just as I reached the bottom, I saw my dad pushing my mom towards the front door. He had one of her arms pinned behind her back and his other hand wrapped around the back of her neck. He released her momentarily to open the front door and push at the screen door before tossing my mother out.
“You better get right with God before you enter the danger zone again, woman. Until you get clean, you are not welcome here!” my father yelled and then slammed the door.
I moved closer to the front door, giving myself a new vantage point just in time to watch my father run his hands through his hair before resting his forehead against the door. When I spoke, it startled him.
“Is everything okay?”
My father turned, walking towards me, taking me in his arms, and holding me close. He rested his chin on the top of my head as he spoke. “Everything will be just fine, little one.”
I felt his chest rise and fall before he removed his arms from around me and placed his hands on my shoulders, pushing me back slightly. Then he put a finger below my chin and lifted, raising my head until our eyes met. “I’ve got some things going on right now. That means I probably won’t be around much. I don’t want you home alone, so I’m going to ask Angelo to let you stay with them.”
As much as I loved being at Jefferson’s house, this was my home, my things were here, and I wasn’t going to let my mom be the reason I wasn’t able to stay in my own home.
“That bitch. She’s the reason you don’t want me home alone, isn’t she?” My father nodded his head. “Just have Switch stay with me here. It’s not that I don’t like staying at Angelo’s, but I want it to be my choice when I decide to stay, not a forced prison sentence.”
“Oh, so melodramatic, little one. It’s not a prison sentence. I just want you safe, and as much as I trust Switch, it's not a solution. He has family business that he’s accountable for now.”
Placing my hands on my hips, I stared at my father, lips pursed. Only, it didn’t faze him as I had hoped. He just narrowed his eyes and then lifted a brow. Finally, I dropped my hands and turned to walk away, but not before letting out a huff in displeasure. I heard my father chuckle behind me.
“You know, I’m not a child. I’m twenty and should be able to decide for myself.” I wanted the last word, but with my father, I should have known that wasn’t going to happen.
“Whether your twenty or fifty, you’ll always be my little one, so stop arguing and do as I tell you.”
“Hi, Bethany,” I said when I entered the kitchen.
As usual, Bethany was cooking something that smelled amazing. She must have been a master chef in another life, I was sure. “Hi, Giovanna. Jefferson is in the man cave.”
“Thank you!” I yelled back over my shoulder as I headed towards the door.
Lots had changed over the last year. As much as Bethany fought letting Jefferson learn how to shoot, Angelo said it was time he learned. If only for his own protection. But everyone knew she was afraid it would one day end up being more than for his protection.
About six months ago, Angelo had a cement building erected where the tennis courts once were. Inside, it held a full gym, a single-lane bowling alley, and a shooting and archery range. Jefferson spent a lot of time in the building, and often I just sat and watched him work out, enjoying how the sweat glistened off his fantastic body. But today, as I watched him, he was different, more intense, and he pushed himself harder than he would normally.
“Hey,” I called out to him, but he didn’t falter. No, he continued to punch the heavy bag harder and harder. “Jefferson, are you ignoring me?” His hands collided with the leather a few more times, and then he stopped and turned to face me briefly. The usual smile I’d receive wasn’t there; a scowl had replaced it.
“So your mom finally did it. She put you in danger.”
“What? Who said I was in danger?”
I wasn’t sure what he was talking about. As far as I knew, I wasn’t in danger. My father didn’t want me to be alone, but he never said an
ything about any threat.
“Your dad told my dad.” Punch, punch. “Your mom is all messed up and did something stupid, but my dad wouldn’t say what it was.” Punch, punch. “Now your dad is afraid they’ll hurt you, hence why you are here staying with us.” Punch, punch, punch.
“You’re wrong. My father wouldn’t keep me in the dark if he thought I’d be in danger. He’d tell me.”
Punch, punch, punch, punch-punch. Jefferson turned to face me again. “Don’t be stupid, G.”
“Stupid? Go to hell, Jefferson.” I turned away and was ready to leave when I heard his gloves hit the ground, and his hands grabbed my shoulders, forcing me to turn and face him.
“Hell is precisely where I’d be if anything happened to you.” He pulled me tight against his body. “I’m sorry for being a dick, G, but if anything happened to you, I’d die inside. You’re the reason the sun rises and sets each day, so that I can see your beautiful face.”
My hand caressed the side of his face as I tilted my head up, begging for his lips on mine. Jefferson didn’t have me wait long. He claimed my mouth so intensely that it almost hurt, but it was a pain that pushed all my buttons and had my heart beating faster.
“I love you, Giovanna, so, so much. My dad once told me meeting my mom made him want to be a good man. Well, having you in my life makes me want to be a bad man. I’d kill for you if it came down to it. That’s why I spend so much time in here.”
His mouth claimed mine again, his tongue dancing with mine before Jefferson pulled away. “I may not have the best aim with a gun, but my bow skills are spot on, and Dad says my punches are almost as lethal as his.”
“Hahahaha!” I couldn’t help but laugh. “Then I’ll make sure you have your bow in hand when and if someone comes for me. You can wear it on your back every time we go somewhere.”
Jefferson slapped my ass, causing me to squeal.
“Don’t be a smartass. This isn’t something to joke about.”