“You must both have been very close to him,” I said.
“He kept the family together,” Doris replied sadness crossing her face. “We both miss him awfully, and he’d have really liked both of you. Leo, he’d have asked a million questions about Paris, and he’d have wanted to know if you ever traveled to Croatia.”
Both Doris and Trevor chuckled. “It’s pretty much all we’d have talked about for the rest of the night,” Trevor said.
Doris jumped up and served each of us a piece of cake while Trevor collected our scampi plates and took them into the kitchen.
As we ate, I couldn’t help but ask who redesigned the home, since it was clear it was different from the original design.
“After my mom died, Dad hired a company to come and move things around,” Doris explained. “The tiny back kitchen had been mom’s least favorite place in the house, and we never used the library. So he combined the entire back of the house to create a nice size kitchen.”
“It’s beautifully designed. Your dad managed to retained its character while the changes modernized it well.
“It’s not the modern concept many people want these days,” Doris said. “But I agree, I think it’s a great compromise between modern living and maintaining the character.”
When we’d finished our cake, Doris glanced over at Leonardo. “Why don’t you boys go take a walk while Leo and I keep an eye on Luka?”
Trevor smirked. “You always volunteer to watch him when he isn’t screaming.”
“Duh,” she said. “Now go away, so Leo and I have some time without the kids underfoot.”
Trevor gave her a look, making her laugh, but he grabbed my hand and pulled me out the front door. “Beggars can’t really be choosers,” he said as we walked outside.
When we closed the door behind us, he turned to me. “I haven’t been able to think about much except that kiss this morning. Can we try it again to see if it’s as amazing when I’m not an emotional train wreck?”
He didn’t have to ask me twice. I moved into his arms and took his mouth with mine.
This morning had been toe-curling, but this one was fireworks. God, this man’s mouth did strange and wonderful things to my brain.
Trevor
I knew I was being ridiculous, but I couldn’t help it. I wanted to feel Peter’s mouth on mine again. It was the opposite of what I’d said I wanted this morning, but that was before I’d tasted him and felt those lips attached to mine.
The weather was unusually pleasant for Atlanta this time of year. It was usually way too hot, but tonight we’d opened the windows of the music room to take advantage and air the house out. Apparently, my Aunt Doris was going through a romantic streak because the sound of one of my grandpa’s old records started drifting through the window. I almost choked when I heard Harry James’s orchestral sound that began the song “It’s Been a Long, Long Time.”
I pulled back just as Kitty Kallen’s romantic voice started up. “Never thought that you would be standing there in front of me…” Peter began to sway with the music as he held me. “Kiss me once and Kiss me twice, it’s been a long, long time…”
I’ll never forget the sly smile crossing his beautiful face. As we swayed with the music, he leaned down and kissed me like it was me singing the song to him.
I know its cliché, but I couldn’t help but think how my smaller frame fit so perfectly against his larger one. As Harry James’s trumpet pierced the air, Peter swirled me out and then back in for a final kiss. This one was much more intense.
As Ella and Louis’s “Dream a Little Dream of Me,” replaced James and Kallen, Peter continued to swing with me on the front porch. “Did you set that up?” he asked.
I smiled. “No, but it sure fits me.”
“Me too,” he admitted.
We continued to dance to the old musical ballads. I chuckled when Louis’s voice belted out, “Heaven, I’m in heaven.”
“This is almost too perfect,” I said.
“Indeed,” Peter said as we began to move to the faster pace of the music. “I haven’t really heard these songs outside a movie,” he admitted.
I chuckled, “My grandpa played these records all the time. It was as much a part of my childhood as this old home was.”
“I’m jealous of your childhood,” Peter said.
I laughed but with little mirth. “Don’t be too jealous. I have shit for parents.”
“But it sounds like you had the best alternative,” he said.
I pulled in closer to him, as Ella sang about dancing cheek to cheek. I did as she instructed.
Peter looked down at me and kissed me again.
I laid my head on his chest as we swayed with the rhythm.
We stayed like that for several moments until I heard someone stomping up the steps.
“Let that man go!” I heard him say before I recognized who was there.
I pulled away from Peter and looked square in the face of my father. My mom stood only steps behind him.
I reacted before I thought about what to say. “Who the hell are you to come here and tell me to stop doing something?”
My father’s reaction was swift. He grabbed me by the collar and was about to hit me when Peter’s big hand came around and lifted my dad up and away from me.
“Sir, you need to vacate the premises right now before I do something you’ll regret,” he said to my him.
By this time, my aunt and Leonardo were coming out of the front door.
My aunt looked at my father as he dangled above the ground, then at my mom. Without addressing him, she asked my mom, “Rita, why are you here?”
My mother angrily responded. “Can’t I come over to my own father’s house?”
Doris turned toward my dad and put her hand on Peter’s arm, encouraging him to let him down. “Not when you bring this man with you,” she said while looking my father in the eye.
My father was still stunned at being manhandled by Peter. I’m sure in his mind all gay men were pansies that he could bully. Being forcefully removed from me must have really shocked him and stung his pride.
Obviously surprised that my father hadn’t responded, my mother came to his defense. “I can see this place is just as full of sin as it ever was. Edward, I’ll wait for you in the car.”
My father regained his senses and said under his breath. “You stay right there, Rita. I want you to witness this. You are no son of mine, you little faggot,” he said, pointing toward me. “You stay the fuck away from us from now on, you hear?”
I felt Peter tense next to me, but I put my hand on his to stop him from reacting.
“That’s the best gift you’ve ever given me,” I responded. “I’ll say the same to you. You aren’t now and never have been my parents. From this point forward, I want nothing to do with you. Please leave this property and never return.”
This clearly shocked my father. He’d always known me as a quiet, meek child. I’d learned early in life to avoid making him angry, knowing the slightest infraction could turn violent. But something about having Peter next to me, and knowing my son was less than a few feet away from us made me feel confident and stronger than I ever had before.
I could see out of the corner of my eye that Aunt Doris was crying, and I wanted to comfort her. I knew the inevitable separation was hurting her more than it ever would me, but the danger hadn’t passed. My father was a violent man, and now that he’d been confronted, he was unpredictable.
There was a sort of standoff as we all stood facing each other until Peter put his arm around me, showing a united front against the foe.
“You’ll all rot in hell soon enough,” my father said. Then he turned to leave. He grabbed my mom roughly as he walked past her and pulled her along with him. It was dark enough in the shadows that I was unsure what her reaction to all this was, but the truth be told I didn’t really give a damn what she thought any longer.
Unfortunately, it was at that moment that Luka let out a
wail. My mother turned out of my father’s hands and said, “So, it’s true?”
I ignored her and turned to go inside to tend to my son.
I was done with my parents. Hopefully, for the rest of my life. At the moment, I’d rather change a million nasty diapers than spend one more minute with the shit show that they were.
Aunt Doris, Peter, and Leonardo followed close behind me, and I heard the door shut as I walked toward Luka’s bassinet.
I took Luka to the bathroom, where the changing table was, and changed him. When I came back, Peter, Leonardo, and Aunt Doris were all sitting in the parlor. The music we’d been so thoroughly enjoying before my parents had shown up was turned off, and the room was silent.
“I’m sorry for the theatrics out there, but this has been coming to a head for some time. They usually avoid us and this place like the plague,” I said as I glanced over at my aunt, then at Peter. “I’m not sure why they picked tonight to come by.”
Peter smiled. “As you know, we can’t control what our family does. Hell, mine even hired a private investigator to track down my ex.”
I wouldn’t have thought it possible after the horror of what my parents had just put us through, but Peter actually made me laugh.
“Your mom is a handful, no doubt, but at least she loves you.”
Peter sighed. “That’s true. And your aunt loves you,” he said as he glanced over at Aunt Doris.
Tears spilled from her eyes, and she stood up, pulling me into a hug. “I didn’t know they’d stoop this low. Dad forbade them to come to the house unless they let us know they were coming first. I guess since he passed, they thought they could ignore that rule.”
“Clearly,” I huffed.
“Anyway, I’m glad this is done and over with. I’m just sorry Peter and Leonardo had to witness it.”
“Don’t apologize for me,” Leonardo said. “Family is unpredictable. France and England have been at war since the Romans left centuries ago. Since I’m both British and French, you can imagine the drama between the two families.”
We all chuckled.
I looked over at Peter. “Thanks for coming to my rescue. I’m guessing I’d have gotten a good beating if it hadn’t been for you.”
Peter returned my expression. “You should consider getting a restraining order against him.”
“Not very likely to happen here in Atlanta,” I replied. “He’s an upstanding member of the community, and there is no evidence he ever did anything violent to me. My mom talked my grandfather into not pressing charges when he broke my arm.”
Peter didn’t reply and looked down at his hands.
Doris wiped her eyes and stood. “I think we all need another glass of wine and maybe another slice of cake. We don’t have to let their childishness ruin the entire evening.”
Leonardo smiled up at her. “I’ll help.” And they both left the room.
“Thank you,” I said again as I bobbed the now sleeping Luka in my arms.
“I could’ve beaten him to a pulp,” Peter replied. “I’m glad your aunt came out when she did because I thought he was just some homophobe who’d been walking down the street. I came really close to decking your father.”
“He isn’t my father. He was a sperm donor, that’s it. My real father was Ivan Kovachich, my biological grandfather. And my real mom has been my Aunt Doris. Those two people out there really are nothing to me. They haven’t been for a long time.”
“Is that why you use your grandfather’s last name?” Peter asked.
I nodded. “Yeah, I legally changed it when I turned eighteen, but I’ve used their name since I was ten.”
Peter stood up and moved around me and Luka, giving us a hug from behind.
“My mom adores you, so you give the word, and I’m one hundred percent sure she’d adopt you. The way she talks about you, I think she might already have.”
I laughed as I snuggled into Peter’s warm embrace. “She’d be pretty awesome as long as she doesn’t have a brain tumor.”
Peter chuckled. “She doesn’t really manage those very well.”
“Apparently,” I agreed.
We stayed like that until Aunt Doris and Leonardo came in with the cake and wine.
We spent the rest of the evening chatting companionably, but the heaviness of the earlier events still plagued us.
When Leonardo left, Aunt Doris walked him out. “I should be going too,” Peter said. “Leonardo has me pulling extra shifts to get his project done before the party. I’ll be working way too much. Can I plan to come over next weekend?” he asked. “If I don’t plan ahead, I’m afraid I’ll never be able to see you.”
I smiled. “That sounds great. I’ll see if Aunt Doris can watch Luka.”
“No need,” Peter replied, surprising me. “Let’s go do something where we can bring him with us.”
“Sounds good,” I agreed. “But just so you know, that means we’ll need to do something in the morning. Anything after his noon bottle means he’ll be grumpy. He’s a total homebody after lunch.”
“How about Saturday morning for breakfast at the diner?”
“The Lisa diner?”
“Unless it’s uncomfortable for you.”
“No, that’s perfect, actually. At least we know we’ll have plenty of privacy as the wait staff pass Luka around.”
“Exactly, it’ll be fun for all three of us.”
I laughed again and leaned into Peter for a kiss. “Thank you for tonight, I really enjoyed watching the old man’s face when you lifted him off his feet.”
Peter smiled. “Next time, can I hit him?”
“We’ll see,” I replied.
Peter kissed me again and walked toward the door. “See you next Saturday,” he said and was gone.
I sat down just as the tears fell from my face. I held them while Leonardo and Peter were around, but they’d been threatening to spill over since I’d tossed the two hateful fuckers out of my life for good. Not that I was crying for them. No, those tears dried up long ago. But because I knew how much Aunt Doris and Grandpa had hoped my mom would come to her senses, I know how much they’d hoped I would one day reconnect with her, and she’d become a real mom.
I knew that wasn’t ever going to happen, but I’d let their hopes and dreams be mine, and now, I was finally free of them. The feeling was both bittersweet and overwhelming. And, for my aunt, sad.
She came in and sat on the settee with me, laying her head on my shoulder. “I’m sorry,” she said.
“For what? It wasn’t your fault,” I replied.
“No, but I’m sorry anyway.”
“Aunt Doris, I told you, they don’t mean anything to me. I really just want them both out of my life for good. I know that’s tough for you to hear because Rita is your sister, but they’ve always been bad juju for me. I feel freer now than I ever have. I just wish Peter and Leonardo hadn’t been pulled into the middle of it.”
Aunt Doris looked up. “I thank God that Peter was here,” she said. “I can’t imagine the damage that asshole would’ve done had he not been.”
“That’s true. I can defend myself in most situations, but I doubt I’d have fought back… too many years being trained to cower down to him.”
“I’ll call Rita tomorrow. Tell her she’s no longer welcome here, and if we see them anywhere near the property, we’ll have Dad’s attorney draw up papers for a restraining order. Like you, I think there aren’t any judges in Atlanta that’d grant one against your father. But they’re so concerned with appearances I’m guessing the threat may be enough.”
I side hugged her since I was still holding Luka, and she leaned over to kiss my cheek. “I love you, sweet boy,” she said with tears filling her eyes again.
“I know, Aunt Doris. I love you too!”
She got up then and reached for Luka. “Let me have him, I’ll get him ready for bed. That’ll give you a few minutes to yourself. I can imagine you need them.”
I smiled and let her take
Luka from me.
The moment he was out of my arms, I immediately felt vulnerable. Like someone had snatched my heart out of my body.
Luka had become my center, my reason for living. Even the events of the evening and telling my parents they were no longer welcome in my life felt insignificant as long as he was mine to love. Luka filled the gap where my parents should’ve existed. He filled my heart in places even the intense and unconditional love my grandpa and aunt hadn’t been able to fill.
I went upstairs and washed my face and changed into the t-shirt and shorts, I usually slept in.
When I came back out, Aunt Doris was putting the conked-out Luka in his bed. She came over to me and gave me a proper hug. “I’m so proud of you,” she whispered. “You were so strong tonight. Your grandpa would’ve been proud too.”
I’m not sure why that caused me to feel weepy, but it did. I hugged her back as the two of us held onto each other like people who’d lost someone important to them tended to do.
When we pulled back, Aunt Doris kissed my cheek and wished me a goodnight. I doubted I’d sleep much, but at least I felt like something important had happened, and a door that had been letting in bad energy had finally been closed.
“Good night,” I said as she left my room.
I lay in bed and stared at Luka sleeping for what felt like hours. I was surprised when I woke up and found the little one staring back at me. I swear this little person had some ability to know when he was needed. We stared at each other until Luka began to stir. I grabbed his bottle from the refrigerator I kept in my room and warmed it up in the bottle warmer while he watched me.
“I love you so much,” I told him. “You will never, ever feel like I don’t want you with all my heart. I’m here for you night and day, winter or summer, no matter what!”
Luka grunted like he’d understood deep down. I think he probably had.
The tears flowed from my eyes again and not the first time in my life, I thanked God my grandpa and aunt had taught me what unconditional love felt like, so I knew how to be that for my little man.
Another Chance With Love (Chance Series Book 2) Page 9
