Page 11 of Deal Takers

Charlee rolls her eyes as she holds the door open for me. “You’re an idiot.”

I roll my suitcase over the threshold and kiss her on the cheek. “Love you too, sis.”

I somehow managed to convince my older sister to let me crash at her place when I decided to come back for the summer. She has an apartment in the heart of Downtown Seattle which puts me right in the middle of the action.

“You know where the guest room is. Go put your stuff away and come out for dinner.”

“Yes,mother,” I deadpan.

She puts her hands on her hips. “Remind me why you’re not staying with them again? And why are you back so soon? I thought you needed to find a new roommate.”

“Already found one. He moved in earlier this week.”

She raises her eyebrows in surprise. “That was fast.”

“I guess,” I say with a shrug. “My buddy, Riley, needed a roommate too, so it made sense.”

Charlee follows me down the narrow hall as I drop my bags into the guest bedroom. “The same Riley I met?”

I scowl. “Yep.”

“I see. I think I may have to plan a visit sometime soon, little bro.” Her grin is way too big for my liking.

My sister is a huge Boston sports fan and came out to watch a live game last January. While she was in town, I brought her to some of my favorite establishments, which is where she met Rye. After a few too many beers, big sis here decided to put the moves on him. He swears he didn’t sleep with her, but I knowsomethinghappened between them after I left with some chick. I’m choosing to stick my head in the sand for that one.

“Don’t even think about it, Charlotte,” I warn her. “Youdo notwant to push me on this.”

“Ooh, I’m shaking in my boots,Brody.” She holds her hand out to show how much she’snotshaking.

I puff my chest out and stand to my full height, trying to look as intimidating as possible. “You do realize I’m much bigger than you, right?”

She swings her arm and whacks me in the back of the head.

“Son of a cocksucker!” I rub the spot where her palm met my skull. “What the hell was that for?”

“Thatwas for being a douche,” she replies. “Put your muscles away, Brody. We both know you wouldn’t hurt a fly.”

“Hey! Plenty of flies have met their demise at my hand,” I argue.

Charlee turns away from me and heads toward the open kitchen on the other side of the apartment. She lifts somefoil off the dish sitting atop the stove and begins plating our dinner.Mmm, lasagna.

“Sit your ass down.”

I practically run to take a stool at the counter. Don’t judge me. She may be a tiny woman, but she’s fucking scary when she uses that tone.

I take a huge bite as soon as the dish is set in front of me. “Damn, this is good. Don’t tell Mom, but it’s even better than hers.”

She takes a bite of her own and smiles when she’s done chewing. “It is, isn’t it? I modified Nonna’s recipe a little bit. I roasted the garlic, then added some gruyère and fresh herbs. The sauce is something new I’m working on for the restaurant.”

Charlotte is the head chef at this great little Italian place a few blocks away. She started as a hostess in college and worked her way up through the years. It’s been run by the same family for decades, but when Mama Pistorio got too old to stand on her feet all day, Charlee slid into her spot. Mama P says her sons are a bunch of uselesschoocheswho she can’t trust with her beloved kitchen.

“So why aren’t you staying with the parentals?”

“What? I can’t have some quality time with my favorite sibling?”

“I’m youronlysibling, dumbass.”

“Even more of a reason.”

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