“Porca vaca,Mother,” a voice yelled from the kitchen. “We can still hear you back here.”
The youngest member of the Randasso family, Mansueto, came out of the back. The man was in his early- to mid-twenties. He was about six feet tall, had olive-brown skin, dark black hair and brown eyes one could get lost in for days. The five o’clock shadow he was sporting added another layer of sex appeal to the guy. Blayne had had a crush on Manny when he’d opened the door to his apartment and found Manny standing on his doorstep with the square box in hand. In that moment, Blayne had hoped his pizza delivery boy porn fantasy was about to happen. Sadly, it hadn’t.
“Don’t listen to this old woman,” Manny said with a smile. “She’s a member of the tinfoil hat club. Never met a conspiracy theory she didn’t like.”
“Listen here,il nipotino. I trust those people on Reddit more than I trust the lame-stream news media.”
“Whatever,” Manny said with an over-exaggerated roll of his eyes. “You know I love you, you crazy old woman.” Manny turned around and headed back into the kitchen. Before returning to the room, he spun around and whispered, “Tinfoil Hat Club!”
Blayne stifled the laugh trying to escape him. Rosolino entered Blayne’s bill into the cash register, saying, “It’ll be thirty-four dollars and ninety-nine cents.”
Blayne reached into his back pocket and pulled out his billfold. He flipped it open and handed her a credit card. She took the card and swiped it as they waited for the transaction to go through. The little machine started spitting out a receipt. Rosolino gave Blayne the receipt and a pen. He added ten dollars and one cent to the bill to make it an even forty-five.
“Here you go, Mr. Blayne,” Manny said, handing him a couple of boxes and a single bag. “I put plates, napkins and plastic wear in the bag. I slipped in a couple of cannoli for you and your beau, on the house. I figured you deserved restitution after listening to apersona pazza…crazy person.”
Blayne thanked them and headed back into the early evening heat.Wait, a second? Did he say the cannoli for me and my beau?He smiled and shook his head. When he got to the apartment, he one-armed the pizza boxes, fished out his keys and unlocked the door.
“Honey, I’m home,” he yelled in his best Ricky Ricardo impersonation as he pulled the door closed with his foot. “Hope you’re hungry. I swung by and picked up pizza on the way back from class.”
Blayne put the boxes on the counter. Ethan wasn’t in the living room.Probably in the bedroom. Blayne walked through the apartment and knocked lightly on the closed door. He waited to hear if there was movement inside. After not hearing anything, he turned the nob and walked in.
Ethan was lying on the bed, face down, his head turned away from the doorway. Blayne couldn’t help himself. He took a moment to examine Ethan’s chiseled, god-like back. Ethan’s shorts rode down low enough on his hips that Blayne could see the start of a farmer’s tan. And when Blayne’s gaze traveled south to Ethan’s perfectly sculpted ass, he swore Michelangelo’s David’s ass had nothing on Ethan’s amazing-looking bubble butt. Blayne felt himself stirring in his own pants.Down boy!Blayne willed his member back to a swinging state before walking into the room.
He crossed the room, gently put one of his hands on Ethan’s shoulder and jostled him a bit. Ethan yelped and jerked away from him, rolling over quickly, looking like a cat who had been startled.
“Oh shit!” Ethan let out.
“Sorry,” Blayne said, his eyes going wide. “I tried knocking and calling your name. Didn’t mean to freak you out.”
Blayne could see Ethan’s heart rate was already going back to normal as Ethan’s chest’s fast rise and fall slowed.
“Sorry,” Ethan said. “I guess I was sleeping.”
Blayne glanced down and noticed the remnants of what looked like had been a pretty hot dream from the way the thick outline in Ethan’s shorts was trying to escape and point in his direction. Blayne felt himself getting hard again, so he spun around and said, “I’ll get everything in the kitchen laid out. Come, eat when you’re put together.”
He closed the door behind him and walked down the hallway.Too bad sausage isn’t on the menu tonight. He flicked himself in the crotch, muttering, “Down boy. Heel.” He shook his head from side to side as he tried to get the images of Ethan’s fucking hot body out of his mind.
He grabbed the bag with the plates and cannoli, put the dishes on the table and slipped the cannoli in the fridge to keep them cool. He then put the pizza and breadsticks on the table. He heard Ethan come in behind him.
“Smells amazing,” Ethan said.
Blayne hoped Ethan would come in behind him, slip his arms around him and pull him in for a long embrace, but Ethan pulled out a chair and sat down. Blayne stopped himself from sighing before asking, “What can I get you to drink?”
“Water’s good for me.”
“Two waters coming up.” Blayne grabbed two bottles of water out of the fridge. He knew plastic wasn’t the best for the environment, but sometimes convenience trumped social conscience.
“Here ya go,” Blayne said, tossing a bottle to Ethan. Ethan reached out and snagged the flying bottle with ease. “Good catch.”
“I guess all those years playing wide receiver paid off.”
“You played football?”
“Through high school and some of college.”
“Well, that explains your kickass build,” Blayne said before he realized what he’d said.
“Yeah, between football, dancing and running, I rarely see the inside of a gym. If I’m frank, I’ve never been a fan of gyms,” Ethan replied.
