Page 46 of The Breaker
“I also had a day from hell.”
“Isabella?” he asked.
“Yeah, how’d you know?”
“Beatrice told me. She heard the two of them going at it in the restaurant.”
“And she didn’t do anything?” I asked, mildly hurt.
He shrugged.
Why did my mother understand loyalty so well, but my sister was oblivious to it?
“To be fair, Beatrice said Isabella was a little over the top.”
But my sister didn’t do anything, and that’s what mattered. “That’s actually not on my mind. I went to Palermo today to talk to Tommaso.” I told him the whole thing and the shitty predicament I’d gotten caught in.
“Is she cute?”
I shot him a glare.
“I mean for someone else ... or maybe me.”
I continued the glare.
“All right, never mind.”
“He forced me to keep my end of the deal, and I feel like shit about the whole thing.”
“Why?”
“Because it was inappropriate. I shouldn’t have been there.”
“But you didn’twantto be there. You just did your time and left. You really think Aurelia will be mad about that? You’re like the most loyal guy on the planet.”
“I don’t think I’ll lose her or anything, but she might be a bit ticked.”
“If she’s so reasonable about Isabella, I really doubt she’ll be unreasonable about this.”
“Yeah, fair point.”
“I wouldn’t worry about it. I mean, you don’t even need to tell her since there isn’t much to tell.”
“No, I’ll tell her.” If it was something I wanted to hide, then that meant I needed to come clean. I preferred honesty and full transparency. I was an honest person because it was the right way to be, but I also couldn’t handle the guilt of deceit. So my honesty didn’t come from strength ... but weakness. “Just not today. I’m so fucking tired.” I sank into the chair and took a drink.
“Yeah, that’s fair.” Antonio looked toward the stairs. “Francesco and Aldo are here.”
“Great, let’s get the party started.”
We sat together for an hour or two, ordering more drinks and eating the appetizers they continued to bring out. Being with the boys made me forget all the bullshit that happened that day, so I finally let it go.
The guys shot the shit about some of the girls they were talking to, we argued about football for a while, talked about heading to the beach next weekend to jump off the cliffs. I’d been jumping from the rock since I was a boy, and it was the first time I felt hesitant to do it.
Because people depended on me.
Aurelia, Medusa, and now someone I hadn’t met yet.
My whole perspective on life had changed ever since Aurelia told me about the little one growing inside her. Everything was easier but also more complicated. My life seemed to have more value, not because of my importance, but because of the impending responsibility of fatherhood.
