Page 10 of Dirty Little Secret
My friend often used slang from the age of the dinosaurs, though I had a pretty good idea of what he meant. “Leg, Rocco?”
One hand came up to cover the left side of his mouth, hiding it from his mother, who sat only two chairs away from him on that side. “Sex, moron.”
“Ah!” I didn’t need or want any of that. “Nah. I’ll pass.”
“Pass?” His brows raised, his expression changing to one of absolute confusion. “Who says no to that?”
“A tired doctor,” I let him know. “I told you about my week, Rocco. Don’t look so stunned.”
“Well, here’s how my week went.” He banged his fist on the table, making the wineglasses shake, “Grandmama’s arthritis flared up, so I had to make meatballs every day this week. On top of that, it was my week to clean the damn fryer. That is one bitch to clean, mind you. I’ve worked three double-shifts this week and closed one night, then opened the next day. Now that is one hellacious week, and one that I need to end on a positive note.” His hand came up to cover the left side of his mouth once again. “And that positive note is sex, my friend. As much and as nasty as I can get. And I need a wingman, if nothing else.”
“And you want me to be said wingman, I suppose.” My drink sloshed as I picked it up. I was just about tipsy. Maybe the rest of the wine would make my decision for me—either take me home to bed or out to play wingman for the man I considered my very best friend. Downing the rest of it, I looked at Rocco. His eyes pleaded with me. “Can I go home and change first?”
“Hell, yes, you can!” With a snap of his fingers, his young cousin Giovanni came to Rocco’s side. “Give Kane a ride to his place so he can change. Then come back here and get me. I’m gonna clean up a bit in the kitchen, then I’ll be ready to go. You’re gonna drive us to that nightclub you were telling me about earlier.”
Minutes later I was sitting in the passenger side of an old Buick as the kid drove me home. He stopped abruptly in my driveway, making me grab the dashboard. “Okay, we’re here.” I got out of the car then looked back. “I’ll be right back.”
Going into the empty house, I immediately felt the absence of my son. I hated when he wasn’t home. But he’d really been looking forward to the trip to Florida, so I had let him go.
Walking past his bedroom, I stopped and pushed open the door. I hadn’t stopped by the house when I left work; I’d gone right over to Rocco’s restaurant. I saw that Fox had left his drawers open in his haste to pack. The maid would have to clean up his mess on Monday.
Closing his door, I pulled out my cell to call him. He answered the phone with an excited, “Hi, Dad!”
“Hey there, son. How was the trip down to Miami?” I went to my bedroom and took a seat on the bed, pulling my shoes off.
“Pretty long and mostly boring. I slept most of the way. Uncle James kept teasing me that I was farting in my sleep.” I heard him laughing.
Then the voice of my uncle came in the background. “He was farting up a storm.”
I couldn’t help rolling my eyes. “Well, doesn’t that sound like a fun trip.” More like a nightmare that I was damn glad I hadn’t been a part of.
“Nana and Pawpaw are coming up tomorrow, Dad,” Fox said. “They wanted to surprise us. But now they’re only going to be surprising Aunt Nancy, Uncle James, and me.”
I’d had no idea they would be going too. And now I felt bad for not being there. “Well, dang. I wish they would’ve told us something. I definitely would’ve come with you guys if I’d known. Do me a favor and give them some kisses and hugs from me, buddy.”
“Sure, Dad.” He laughed. “Nana will smother me with her kisses anyway. She always does.”
Mom and Dad had moved to Napa Valley, California, a couple of years back. We only got to see them once, maybe twice a year. As the newest doctor at the clinic I usually got the worst shifts, and my busy schedule made it hard for us to get out there to see them much. And they didn’t like to travel, so seeing them was difficult. The fact they’d gone to Florida was odd.
“Tell them I’ll call tomorrow,” I said as I got up to take my pants off to put on a nice suit.
“Whatcha doin’ tonight, Dad?” Fox asked.
I didn’t want to tell him too much about the little outing Rocco had planned. “Not much. Just going out with Uncle Rocco for a while.”
“Oh, man!” Fox laughed and shared my news with whoever else was around him, “Dad’s goin’ to hang out with Uncle Rocco tonight.”
“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do, lover boy!” Uncle James called out.
I wasn’t some horny teen anymore who needed a scolding. Having a son before you turned twenty could be a real wake-up call. “I shouldn’t have mentioned anything about my night. I can see that now.”
“Nope, you shouldn’t have,” Fox told me. “Be good, Dad. And please, don’t do what you did when you were in high school. I’m not ready for a little sister or brother yet.”
“Gee whiz,” I whined, not used to getting sex and relationship advice from a ten-year-old. “Love you, son. Be good. Mind your aunt and uncle and be careful, please.”
“You too, Dad. Love ya.” He ended the call as I sat back down on the bed.
Being so open and honest with my son didn’t come without a bit of a backlash sometimes. It had been Rocco’s party where I’d finally gotten to know young Zandra Larkin better, making my little boy in the process. And no one ever seemed to forget it.
