Page 5 of King
“We need to talk, boy.”
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at his use of the wordboy. I had just turned forty-seven years old, for Christ’s sake.
“What the ever-lovin’ fuck did you say about Eleanor?” he demanded with a snarl.
“I think the better question is what the fuck are you doing with a woman young enough to be your daughter?”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“I think you know exactly what I’m talking about, old man,” I told him pointedly.
Sinner shook his head as he chuckled.
“There’s nothing like that going on with Eleanor and me. You damn well know your mama would haunt my ass if I so much as thought about going after a woman half my age.”
I snorted, because he was right about that. Mom would turn into a raging poltergeist if that shit happened. There would be doors slamming on their own, dishes flying around the room, and Sinner would be lucky to escape with his life.
“Well, hell, with the way you always talk about her – she’s always making food for you, and her kids are helping you – I thought she was an old lady next door that you had a thing for. Then I saw her, and she’s not a fuckin’ old lady after all, so what the hell was I supposed to think?”
Sinner eyed me like I was a damned idiot. Hell, maybe I was.
“I ain’t looking for another woman, son. I was lucky enough to have your mama for over forty years, and that’s a helluva lot more happiness than a man like me deserves.”
I hated the look of guilt and sadness that was stamped on his face. I’d seen that look from him more than a few times over the years, and had seen the same damned look on Rome’s face since he fucked up his marriage. Now that he and Abby had worked things out, I had hoped I’d never have to see it again.
“When Frankie left me for steppin’ out on her, it changed me. I’d been a selfish, stupid motherfucker, and figured what she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her.” Sinner looked away then, lost in his memories. “Your mama was smart, though. She knew.She knew everything, and she just kept lovin’ me, hopin’ I’d realize what I was doin’ was wrong, until she just couldn’t take it anymore. Those are sins I’ll take to my grave.” His voice was gruff, and I wanted to kick my own ass for starting this conversation.
“When she finally agreed to take me back, I promised Frankie that I would be faithful to her ‘til the day I died. I didn’t figure she’d go first, but life is just fucked up like that sometimes. The fact that she ain’t here doesn’t change anything. I promised her, and I’m gonna keep that promise. I had the best, and I don’t want anybody else.”
I swallowed hard, trying to ease the sudden tightness in my throat. My dad was quiet for a minute or two, before he heaved a deep sigh.
“Now, back to my original question. What the fuck did you say about Eleanor?”
I dropped my chin to my chest in defeat, before raising my head and looking him straight in the eye. “I saw her in her backyard doing yoga, and – “
Sinner barked out a laugh as he held up a hand and interrupted me. “Say no more, son. I’ve seen her out there. I can imagine what you said.”
“What the hell?” I asked in bewilderment. “What was all that you just spouted about being faithful to Mom until the day you died?”
Sinner just laughed again as he shrugged. “I promised to be faithful. I didn’t say I’d go blind.”
“Tell me about her,” I demanded.
“Why?” He asked warily.
“Because I want to know about the lady who pulled a knife on me.”
He eyed me with suspicion, clearly trying to decide how much he wanted to tell me. After a few seconds, he started telling me what I wanted to know.
“Her name is Eleanor Chadwick. She rented the house from me almost four months ago. She’s a graphic designer, divorced, and has two kids. Hunter is seventeen, on the football team at the high school. He’s a good kid, respectful, helps his mama out around the house, even does a little work for me now and then. Her daughter Mia is fifteen, smart as a whip and sweet as can be. Eleanor’s gonna have her hands full with that one.” He shook his head as he frowned.
“She’s just as pretty as her mama, and the boys are already startin’ to swarm like flies, especially her brother’s friends. When they come over, they spend way more time eyeballing her than they should. Hunter knocked one of his football buddies on his ass the other week for tryin’ to flirt with the girl.”
“Where’s their dad in all this?”
Sinner shot me a look of disgust. “That cheatin’, sorry-assed sonofabitch shows up just long enough to try to throw his weight around. Eleanor was lookin’ to take on a side job because he did his damnedest to leave her with nothin’ in the divorce but the bare minimum in child support. That fucker dragged it out, then had the goddamned nerve to take her back to court to try to get his child support lowered. He’s a damned dentist, doin’ those fancy veneers and shit for rich folks, so you know he’s makin’ money hand over fist.” He punctuated his tirade by punching his right fist into his left palm, and I figured he was imagining that fist landing on her ex’s nose instead.
“He lost, but she was left with a mountain of legal bills to pay. That’s why she cooks for me. I pay her one hundred dollars a week, and she makes my dinners. It’s a win-win, as far as I’m concerned. She gets a little extra to put toward her bills, and I’m eatin’ some of the best food I’ve ever put in my mouth.”
