Page 70 of Just A Little Fling

“Perfect. We are going to leave it in my kitchen. We’ll put some water in it and figure out if it can be salvaged later. We’ll get everything we need from my place and then prep it at yours so everything will be ready when they arrive. Once everything is set up, I will make myself scarce, and you can bask in the glory. Good with you?”

“Deal.” The urge to grab him was too strong to resist and I threw myself into Babbo’s arms. He caught me with anoof,and I covered his face with kisses. “Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.” Babbo just laughed at my silliness, grabbed the pan off the ground, and headed back toward his house.

My dinner and my pride were saved.

* * *

“All right, Sweet Boy, we have twenty-five minutes left. You slice and butter the bread, and I’ll get everything ready for the pasta.” Babbo shooed me off to my small kitchen table to finish the bread slicing while he started chopping basil and crushing garlic. The state of my kitchen was a little embarrassing, but I didn’t have time to worry about it. I made a note to myself to get aluminum foil and some canned stuff the next time I went to the store.

“Not that I’m complaining, but do you think they’ll be able to tell it’s canned tomatoes?”

“I’m sure they’ll be too busy being wowed you cooked them dinner to wonder whether it’s canned. Besides, if that’s your biggest worry when someone serves you, maybe you should stay home and feed yourself.”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

I giggled to myself at the emphatic tone in Babbo’s voice. This was a me issue. My parents couldn’t care less what I cooked for them. I didn’t want to embarrass myself in front of my brothers and prove, once again, that I couldn’t do anything as well as they did. Naturally, they were both excellent cooks.

The space-time continuum was out of whack tonight because when I first glanced at the clock, we still had twenty-three minutes. When I looked again, it was down to fifteen, which didn’t make sense because we had only been working in the kitchen for two. I stepped away from the kitchen long enough to move some mess from my living room to my bedroom. Fingers crossed, we could finish everything before… Oh dear god, they were on the porch. I didn’t even get past my bedroom door before Levi opened the front door to them. Ma stood transfixed in the doorway, staring at Babbo. This was bad.

“Have I got the wrong house?” she asked confused.

My dad bumped into her, knocking her forward into the house, and Nonna followed him. Copy and Paste were two steps behind.Shit. Shit. Shit.

“Uh, guys, you’re a little bit early.” No one responded to me. They kept staring at Babbo. He smiled serenely at them. His apparent lack of concern or urgency to leave baffled me. Since no one was moving or speaking, I went silent too.

“Hi, you must be Nico’s family. I’m Levi.” Babbo put out his hand to Ma and then my dad. Copy and Paste gave him a head nod, which he acknowledged with one of his own. He’d never been hotter than when he was taking my family in stride like it was no big deal.

Ma turned to me and asked, “Isn’t your landlord named Levi?”

“Funny story, this is my landlord.” Everyone looked at me like I was supposed to say the funny part, but I didn’t know what to add.

“Yes, I’m Nico’s landlord, but we’re also friends. I popped over to say hello when I got home from work and then we got to talking.” I looked in panic at the half-made dinner on my kitchen counter. I didn’t even know what to do at this point, and my worried gaze collided with Babbo’s serene one. “Nico, since it’s my fault dinner is late, you go enjoy your family, and I’ll finish up in here.”

“Yeah, uh, sounds good.”

With Babbo’s encouraging nod, I ushered my family into the living room area of the house. My parents took spots on the couch with Nonna anchoring the end. Copy took the chair, and Paste flopped on the ground.

“Honey, I’m really surprised you’re cooking. I thought you’d go buy something from the store,” Ma said with a knowing grin. I wasn’t fooling her in the least. Grrr.

“I said I would cook dinner, and I did.”Ha! If by cooking, I meant burning.

“Did you really? Seems like your friend is doing most of the cooking,” Paste offered from the floor. My eyes narrowed, and I turned so our parents couldn’t see the two-handed, single-finger salute.

“So this is what it’s like to have brothers,” Babbo chuckled from the kitchen.

“Are you an only child, or do you have sisters?” Ma asked. “We always wanted a girl, but I’m not sad about our boys.”

“No brothers or sisters, just me and my mom now.”

“Does she live close?”

“Over in Yakima. I get out there about once a month or so. I keep telling her she needs to move closer, but she says that’s where she’s from, so that’s where she’s staying.”

“Would you ever move back yourself?”

“Not very likely. I like where I live.”

“Sweetheart, is that your boyfriend?” Nonna asked in her perpetually sing-song voice. When I was a kid, I thought she was a princess because of that voice. She’d always say she was PopPop’s princess, which made him a prince.

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