“He’s proud,” I confirm.
I drink my one beer and then make an excuse to leave. I don’t want to be stuck here talking to someone in my father’s circle. In fact, I kind of want to forget about my family’s legacy for a moment.
I walk out onto the street, knowing that I’m doomed. There’s no way I can escape the reach of my father’s influence. I might as well go home and hide out in my bedroom. I get back in the car, feeling slightly worse than I did before. Instead of pure thoughts of Sofia, now I’m thinking about Mike.
I drive home, wondering if I’m ever going to get a shot at a genuine relationship. It seems ridiculous to imagine that any woman would be interested in someone like me. I’ve got mafia guards following me everywhere I go. I run into connected men in every bar. I’m into the family business so deep that it doesn’tmatter that I’ve never beaten anybody up. I have as much blood on my hands as any of my father’s soldiers.
I wave at the guard before driving through the gate. He looks bored, but I won’t tell my father. I know it has to be a difficult post. Nine times out of ten, whoever drives up is a friend of the family. But it’s that tenth time that demands razor-sharp concentration. He’s the first line of defense my family has against our many enemies.
That’s another part of my life that I wouldn’t want to share with Sofia. Hopefully, she’ll already be in love with me by the time I show her the family compound. If we ever make it that far. I’m getting ahead of myself. I haven’t even been out on a proper first date with her yet, and already I’m worried about introducing her to my father.
“One step at a time,” I mutter aloud.
Turning into the garage, I park next to my father’s favorite Mercedes. It’s an older model, but it looks as good as new. He takes good care of his entire fleet, keeping them running perfectly. He handles the preventative maintenance on my car too, which is good. If he left it up to me, I’m not sure if I would ever get the oil changed.
Inside, I’m planning to just run upstairs to my room. But Marlena stops me on the way up. “Frankie?”
I inhale sharply, trying not to let my frustration show. I don’t want to be wrapped up in family drama at the moment. I really want to just pretend I’m a regular guy who has something to offer a woman besides a life of crime.
But I can’t very well take it out on Marlena. She’s been so good to my dad, and to me. She’s the least offensive person who everhangs around the house, and I owe it to her to be friendly. So I put on a smile and release the stairway railing from my death grip.
“Hey,” I respond, turning around to talk to her.
“Hi,” she says, holding a cup of coffee in her hands. She’s wearing an old sweater and a pair of pajamas, not exactly what most mafia wives wear. She looks comfortable, but also beautiful. It’s been a while since I noticed how pretty she is, and it makes me slightly nervous.
“Hi,” I repeat, hoping she’ll get to the point.
“Cisco and I are wondering if you’re going out for dinner?” she asks.
“No,” I respond. “I’m not really hungry.”
“So you don’t have plans?” she clarifies.
“No, but I don’t really want to have a formal dinner,” I say, trying to extract myself without causing any ill will.
“Please,” she insists. “Just the three of us.”
I run through a list of excuses, but none of them seem to fit. I could tell her I’m busy, that I really need to study some more, but the bar exam is still far away. I could pretend to be sick or invent an old friend that I simply have to visit. But none of those fabrications are going to persuade Marlena to let me off the hook, I’m sure. I can tell that this dinner means a lot to her, so I decide to give in.
“All right,” I say with a sigh. “I’ll be there.”
“Are you okay?” she asks, experiencing more resistance to her dinner suggestion than she expected.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” I answer quickly. “I just can’t study, and I tried to go have a beer, but one of Dad’s friends stopped me.”
Marlena laughs. “Say no more. I completely understand.”
“I can’t go anywhere in this town without being recognized,” I complain.
“I know,” she agrees, shaking her head.
“I’d love to have dinner with you,” I say, feeling seen. Marlena gets me in a way that few others can. Neither of us is violent, and we don’t particularly have ambitions for my father’s fortune.
It’s funny, but the two people who stand to gain the most from all of my father’s enterprises are the two people who just want a normal life. I know Marlena had to give up a lot to settle down with someone like Francisco Corello. I wonder if Sofia would be willing to make such a sacrifice. Or if I would even want her to? When it comes right down to it, do I even want to pursue her? If I really cared, I would just walk away and let her go.
But I can’t. I just met her, and already I feel like she’s different. I tell myself that I’ll just go out on one date with her. One date can’t hurt. Maybe we’ll discover that we have relatively little in common. Maybe we’ll have a fun night out and go our separate ways.
I leave Marlena alone in the foyer as my bodyguard comes in from outside. She’s not really alone. There are always at least half a dozen other foot soldiers on the premises. My father and Uncle Gio are probably tucked away in his office going over the books.
