Page 3 of Just for Her
I barely stepped back into my office when my personal cell sounded with the ringtone I’d assigned to family members—Frank Sinatra’s “The Best Is Yet to Come,” if you were wondering. The man was one step short of a saint in my parents’ household.
That call I answered without hesitation.
“What’s up, Gina? I’m still at work.”
“I know you are,” my youngest sister replied, “which is why I’m standing outside your locked office with a bag of food. Let me in, will you?”
I chuckled to myself. It didn’t matter how old we were, my mother felt compelled to ensure her single offspring were well fed. She said once we were married and started giving her grandchildren, she’d back off. That claim hadn’t been tested yet, but it wouldn’t be long before my brothers Nick and Vinnie, both of whom had gotten engaged recently, came through.
I hustled back out to the front and unlocked the double doors, where Gina was standing with a carryout bag from our family’s restaurant, Mama C’s, her features pinched in annoyance.
“When did you start locking the doors anyway?” she asked, her eyes narrowing.
I didn’t bother reminding her that my family services law practice often meant I had to deal with people who were abusive, hurt, or angry. She knew. I knew she knew. Just as I knew she’d probably call our brother Vinnie the moment she left and tell him to beef up the patrols around my building. We were protective of each other that way.
Instead, I shrugged and said, “Stella must have done it on her way out.”
My clever little sister wasn’t fooled for a moment, but she pretended she was for my benefit and covered her concern with a smirk and her trademark sass. “I guess she doesn’t want anyone poaching on her territory when she’s not here.”
Gina was convinced that Stella had a thing for me. I disagreed. Stella was just ... Stella. What Gina saw as romantic interest, I saw as a form of gratitude. I’d given Stella a break by offering her a job after her cheating ex drained their bank account and ran away with his mistress.
But as Gina was a woman and therefore had a much greater understanding of those things, I wasn’t stupid enough to dismiss her opinion entirely. I opted for mild sarcasm and a change of topic instead.
“Yeah, that’s probably it. Do you have to head out right away?” I asked, reaching for the bag.
“I’m on my way to the on-campus library, but I can stay for a bit if you’ve got time.”
“I’ve always got time for you.”
“That’s why you’re my favorite brother.”
I laughed, well aware that Gina often said the same thing to Nick, Vinnie, and Dom.
I gestured for her to head to the conference room while discreetly relocking the door behind me. She unpacked the takeout containers and set them out on the table while I grabbed some bottled waters and napkins from the small kitchenette.
I nodded toward the backpack she’d set on one of the chairs. Gina was working on her master’s in graphic design and illustrative arts, no doubt the motivation for her evening trek to the library.
“How’s it going?”
“Slowly,” she said on an exhale. “I’ve got a massive website-branding project due by midnight tomorrow, and I can’t get five consecutive minutes to complete a thought. I’m looking at an all-nighter just to make the deadline.”
I could sympathize. Gina was still living at home, and nothing about our parents’ place was conducive to uninterrupted quiet time. Not only did they run the most successful Italian restaurant in Cecilton, but it was also the central meeting place for our large, boisterous, extended family of aunts, uncles, cousins, and grands.
However, while I understood Gina’s desire for the solitude of the library, I didn’t like the thought of her being out alone late at night.
I offered what I thought was a reasonable and preferable alternative. “Study here.” I waved my hand around the room.
“I’ve got a lot to do. Like I said, I’m looking at an all-nighter.”
“Me too,” I told her. “In fact, I’ll probably be here most of the night myself.”
“In that case, I accept.”
I stopped chewing, my big-brother instincts on high alert. “That was too easy. Something you’re not telling me, Gina?”
She shrugged. “There’s a new guy at the library, and he creeps me out.”
“Has he done anything? Said anything?”
