Page 170 of Till The Sun Dies (Checkmate 2)

37

Angelo

Reflection

“Finally!” Shooting out of his seat and pointing an obnoxious finger in our direction, Kane’s announcement draws the gaze of every person in the large banquet room. “Finally! Jesus.” The cloth napkin in his lap falls to the floor, and Jess snorts as Kane rushes around the table and barrels straight up to us. “I swear, it’s like I knew the moment you sealed the deal. My balls un-shriveled and Jessie got the pounding of her life.” He shoves me aside and grabs Laine’s face, bringing her onto her tip-toes. Cupping her cheeks and smooshing them in until her lips jut forward, he slams a long, closed mouth kiss on her mouth and doesn’t stop until I shove him away.

“Bishop! Get the fuck off her, man!”

“Sir!” A little waitress in black and white steps between us like she’s scared we’re going to rumble. “This is a family restaurant, and you’re making a scene.”

“He got laid last night, Wendy!” He points over her head. “Angelo – the eternal virgin – finally used his big boy words and got laid. Now we can all live long, happy lives without risk of explosion.”

Wendy’s cheeks flame.

Laine’s cheeks flame.

And when I look to my right and find a young family whose parents are not a hell of a lot older than us, my anger notches up when the thirty-ish mom’s face flames.

“Bishop.” I step around the women and push him back until we step into the foyer. “You gotta fuckin’ stop.”

“Don’t stop now, brother. You just started.”

“Kane; you’ve seen me work. Don’t make me fuckin’ hurt you.”

Unaffected, not scared in the least, he bounces on his toes and smacks my arm. “Hey – remember way back when we met, when you found out I knew the twins? You found out I kissed Laine by accident.”

Anger rockets through my gut. “What about it?”

“I kissed Laine!” He skips out of my way when I surge forward. “I kissed her before you did. Did you know there was tongue? A little boob action? She groaned, man.”

“Motherfucker!” Pouncing, I slam him to the floor and swing out with wild strikes.

I’m not a fighter, not like the Rollers, not even like Kane, so each strike I get through his guard is a pity punch that heletsthrough. But even knowing that, my knuckles crunching against his face feels good, and when the girls step out and find me on top, I revel in my mini-victory.

“They’re so childish,” Jess murmurs. Holding Laine’s hand, she watches her man take hit after hit. She’s not worried. She watches on with a roll of her eyes, then drags Laine back into the dining room with a huff. “Immature idiots.”

Laughing, Kane bucks me off easily and proves my suspicions – pity strikes – until I land on my back and gasp for breath. Glancing around the space surrounding us, I find dozens of wary eyes watching us.

One man – very Duckworth and snobby – stands over us and points toward the stairs. “You’re no longer welcome in our restaurant. Please leave.”

* * *

Banishedfrom a fancy five-star restaurant with a warning to never return, with red knuckles and a fat lip, we end up eating burritos on the beach for breakfast. Unsurprisingly, the girls didn’t follow us out. They stay inside and eat their fancy prepaid food while me and the man I now consider a brother hang out on the sand and talk shit.

“Where are your folks?” When I lamely mentioned my thoughts on brotherhood, Kane turned introspective, staring at the waves rolling in for the longest time. “Did they make the memorial?”

He shrugs and lies back against the dune behind us. “My mom’s dead, my dad’s a career military guy. No time for frivolous shit like memorials. It’s not like we had Jay’s body, so what’s the point, ya know?”

“You still did something for him. You remembered him. You did it all alone?”

“Nah. Eric was with me.”

“Just Eric?”

“Tell me about your mom?” he returns savagely. “I don’t wanna talk about Jay, but I wanna know why you flinch every time I mention her.”

“She’s dead.”

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