14. Angelo
ANGELO
“Daddy. Daddy.” Brax runs toward me with his arms flailing about. He sputters to a stop near my feet and gazes up at me, squinting when the sun hits his eyes. “Guess what?”
I ruffle his hair and smile at my little man. “Um.” I touch my chin and twist my lips, trying to think like a little kid. His mind goes in so many different directions, I’m not sure where to even begin with this type of question. “You found candy?”
He shakes his head and continues to stare, moving from foot to foot, unable to stand still.
“You…” My voice trails off because fuck if I know. “I give up, bud. Tell me.”
He twists his hands in front of himself and comes up on his tiptoes. “I want to whisper it,” he says softly before uncoiling his fingers and motioning for me to give him my ear.
I lean down, coming to his level, and catch a glimpse of Tilly across the yard with my cousins. “What is it, Brax?”
His tiny fingers touch my ear as he cups his hand near my head. “I have a mommy now.”
My vision blurs immediately before he’s uttered the last word.
My lungs seize, and my body stiffens for a brief moment.
There’s a dull ache in my chest for Marissa, but it’s quickly replaced by a warmth for my new bride and the son who’s staring up at me like he’s just received the best gift in the world.
I bend down, wrapping my arm under his legs and pull him upward, against my body. “You do, buddy. Are you happy?” I ask, trying to keep my voice even.
“Are you sad, Daddy?” He reaches out, touching the corner of my eye with his fingertip. “You’re crying.”
I pull his hand away and kiss his cheek. “I’m happy, Brax. Very happy.” I smother him with kisses until my tears are forgotten and he’s a giggling mess.
He tries to wiggle free of my hold. “Daddy, stop it!” he squeals and finally manages to slip from my arms.
My mother captures Brax by the shoulders and hauls him against her legs. “Is your daddy misbehaving?” she asks him, quirking an eyebrow at me in a playful way.
“He kissed me too much,” Brax tells her before sticking his tongue out at me, as if my mother was going to scold me for such a thing.
“Why don’t you run along and play while I have a little chat with your daddy?”
I know she’s up to something. Betty Gallo always is.
When Brax stares up at me, I give him a quick chin lift before he strolls away.
My mother crosses her arms over her chest and narrows her eyes. “What were you boys talking about before?”
“Boys?” I laugh. “Ma, we’re grown.”
“You’ll always be my child, Angelo. Don’t test my patience. I know when a scheme is being cooked up. I may be old, son, but I’m neither stupid nor blind.”
Running my fingers through my hair, I glance at the ground, unable to meet her eyes. “Nothing is being cooked up, Ma.”
“Lies,” she mutters and shakes her head. “Look me in the eye and tell me that.”
I lift my head, doing my best not to look like I’m lying, even though the woman knows me better than anyone. “Ma, come on. It’s nothing. Honestly.”
She takes a step closer and lifts her chin. “I know when shit’s going down. So, you better spill the beans before I find out from someone else.”
I groan.
Betty’s a digger. The woman will stop at nothing until she gets to the truth. She’s relentless, especially when it comes to her children.
“It’s really no big deal. Morgan needs our help for something.”
“Something?” She cocks her head. “Explain.”
“It’s an assignment he’s working on.”
“What happened to this being a family week?”
I sigh. “This is a family outing. Instead of going to a bar or playing golf, we’re going to do a little side work.”
I almost believe the lie myself. I find it completely convincing, but based on the steely gaze and pursed lips on my mother’s face, she isn’t convinced.
“I forbid it,” she says like I’m a little boy asking to go on some wild and dangerous adventure.
“Seriously, Ma? I’m grown with two kids.”
“Exactly.” She pokes me in the chest. “You need to be there for those babies and your new bride. The time for dangerous antics was in your past, and they’re not part of your future.”
I throw up my hands. “Fine, Ma. Whatever you say,” I lie.
There’s no way I’m letting my brothers and cousins go into this alone. My ma has no say in what I do anymore, even if she thinks she does.
“Your brothers too.”
“I’ll talk with them.” I smile and place my hand on her shoulder. “I promise.”
God, I hate lying to my mother, but sometimes, it’s necessary. It won’t be the first time we’ve gone against her wishes, and I am pretty sure it won’t be the last either.
“Betty, get your ass over here, girl!” Aunt Mar yells from the table, beckoning my mother with her hand.
“You better go,” I tell her, thankful to my aunt for saving my ass from having to tell more lies to my mother.
Ma eyes me cautiously. “Don’t forget, Angelo. I expect you to lead by example. Your father pulled enough shit in his life, and I don’t need my babies in danger now, too.”
She threw that guilt right out there. She’s good, but even so, I wouldn’t abandon my cousins for anything in the world. Morgan’s assured us there’s no danger. It was pretty cut-and-dried, especially with us all together against a single man.
I stand there, watching her walk away before finally taking a deep breath followed by a long, slow exhale. One bullet dodged. But I’m sure the women are already whispering, and Tilly’s going to be chewing my ear off later about it too.
“She giving you shit?” Joe says at my side, almost scaring the living shit out of me.
“It’s her sole purpose in life.”
He laughs and slaps my back. “It’s her job, man. If you want to bow out…”
“No. I’m going. We’re all going.”
“We wouldn’t think less of you. You should be on your honeymoon and spending the week in bed with your bride, not putting yourself in danger for some stupid shit Morgan wants to do.”
“We’re family. We have each other’s backs. Our honeymoon isn’t for a few months anyway.” I turn to look at him when he doesn’t reply, but he’s focused on his eldest daughter, Gigi, as she lies on a lounger on the patio. “It’s hard, isn’t it? Watching your baby grow up.”
I try to picture Tate at that age. Full of rebellion and hormones, and no matter how hard I try, I can’t seem to do it.
“It’s hell on earth. The worst shit ever.” He shakes his head. “This one—” he tips his head her way “—may be the death of me.”
“She cause all that gray?” I smirk, which earns me an elbow in the ribs.
“Just wait until the assholes start coming around, trying to get into your little girl’s pants, man. It’s payback. I know it.”
“I don’t think it works that way.”
He stares at me with an unreadable expression. “Then tell me why I have only girls?”
I shrug. “Weak swimmers?”
“Oh, fuck off. My sole purpose in life is to scare every shitbag that comes near her so much that they almost piss their pants and run away screaming.”
“Is it working with the one she’s talking to now?”
“No,” he grumbles.
“What’s the plan?”
“I have eyes and ears on everything in the city. She’ll soon be in college and will find someone else besides that shitbag she can’t seem to shake.”
“You can’t control everything, Joe.”
“I’ll remind you of that when Tate’s old enough to date. Mark my words, you will do everything in your power to make sure she’s safe from some dipshit that only cares about getting laid.”
He has me there. I’d do anything. I don’t even care if my ass would land in jail if it meant my daughter would be safe.
“But don’t worry. You have a long while until that happens. Tate’s young, which gives you tons of time to plan the ways you’ll torture her boyfriends to make sure they don’t use her.”
“I know who I’m calling for advice.”
He lifts his face toward the sky and sighs. “I hope I live long enough to help you, cousin. I have a feeling Gigi’s just the tip of the iceberg.”
I can’t help but laugh. At least I only have one daughter to worry about, unlike Joe.
“At least most of the people in our area know me and my buddies, and they’re scared shitless. But most times, boys aren’t thinking with their heads.”
“We never do,” I say, feeling my stomach flip, thinking about what lies ahead of me.