Down to Business (Business Series)

by Alexander, J. C.

A second bolt of painful adrenaline shot through my veins.

  “Fuck!” I breathed.

  “Autumn! Are you in there?”

  “One sec, Mom!” I yelled, flinging myself off the side of the pool table. “Don’t open the door! I’ll let you in!”

  Vinny followed my lead, scrambling to collect our scattered clothing. We bumped heads when we both leaned in for our shirts at the same time. Laughing through the pain, I managed to get fully dressed and just as I shoved my arms through the sleeves of my hoodie, my mother unlocked the door herself.

  We froze in place as she pushed the door open and stared at us like we were idiots. “Why didn’t you open the door?!”

  “I was going to...”

  “When? Next week? What took you so long? It’s the middle of the night, Autumn. I could have been mugged waiting on you.”

  Mugged? Didn’t she remember we lived in one of the most boring towns on the east coast?

  “I’m sorry. We were just…finishing up a game of pool…” I said, motioning to the table behind me.

  I followed her suspicious gaze as it traveled past me to the table where our pool cues were discarded on the floor and all the balls were pressed to the edges of the table from us lying around them.

  My face burned with guilt and I reached up to comb my hand through my messy hair.

  “Well, I didn’t mean to interrupt your ‘game’ but I called you after I left the hospital and you didn’t answer. So I called your brother and he said you guys didn’t make it home…so I came by to make sure you were okay.”

  “We are great,” I said tucking my hands into my pockets and rolling back on my heels.

  She crossed her arms. “It’s almost three in the morning, how much longer were you two going to be here?”

  I glanced over at Vinny. “Wow, three already? Guess we should get going.”

  “Yeah,” he agreed in a grunt and immediately began clearing the balls from the pool table.

  I went to the bar and grabbed our empty beer bottles, tossing them in the trash.

  “You two were drinking?” Mom asked, her voice laced with accusation.

  “Just one beer. We paid for them,” I said, brushing off the guilt trip she was attempting to give me.

  “What about your promise to never drink again? Not to mention that you are under age.”

  “Mom, come on it was one beer and…Vinny was supervising me.”

  We both turned to Vinny who suddenly wore a deer in the headlights look. “Uh, sorry. I shouldn’t have let her drink.”

  She gave him a knowing smile. “Yeah, uh-huh. I’ll let it slide this time Vinny.”

  “Thanks,” he said, giving her one of his charming smiles.

  “Are you staying with us at the house tonight?”

  “I wasn’t sure what the plan was, but it wouldn’t be a problem for me to check into a motel.”

  “Don’t be silly. You can stay with us.” Mom said.

  Vinny looked at me for confirmation and I smiled.

  “Okay, I’ll stay with you guys then.”

  “I’m so exhausted. I need to get my butt in bed.” Mom yawned. “Grandma expects me back at eight when visiting hours begin.”

  Once the pool table and bar were in order, I locked up and the three of us stepped out onto the street. Vinny and I supervised Mom as she got into the old Honda. She had to start it three times to get it going. She waved to us in the rearview as she sputtered away from the curb. I wondered how I ever made it to Garden City in that junker.

  Vinny and I both waved back before we turned to one another and started to laugh.

  “Oh my God! That was so close,” I said covering my face.

  “That had to be one of the most awkward situations of my life,” he agreed.

  “Yeah, tell me about it. Good thing she didn’t ask too many questions.”

  He grabbed the sleeve of my hoodie and pulled me closer to him. “I had fun tonight.”

  I smiled, wrapping my arms around him. “It’s been the best night of my life. Thank you.”

  “Don’t thank me.”

  “Why?” I asked, rubbing my hands over his back.

  “Because I enjoyed it just as much as you, maybe even more,” he said before kissing me.

  “That’s impossible.” My heart fluttered and I kissed him back. It was the perfect way to end an almost perfect night.

  After stopping for gas, we drove back to my house, which was a one-story white ranch home with a slate gray roof and a cozy front porch. It could use some new siding and the trim needed to be repainted, but it was home. Mom always kept her potted garden on the porch in the summer, which was all but dead now. She called it her ‘sanctuary of sanity’ but Dad said the only thing that found sanctuary there was bugs.

  Vinny parked in the driveway in front of the detached garage, and I noticed that Mom left the porch light on. We entered the house through the backdoor. The smell of home hit me the moment I opened the door. It was a used smell; the smell of a family that worked hard for what they had. We stood inside the cramped kitchen, which like everything else needed a makeover. Our dinner table that sat eight, took up most of the standing room. It belonged to my grandmother and I was pretty sure it was the same table my mother ate at while growing up.

  I closed the door quietly behind us, figuring everyone was asleep. We tip toed over the squeaky linoleum kitchen floor into the dark living room. I walked over to the nearest light switch and flipped it on. Two worn brown sofas we had for a decade and a used recliner that belonged to my grandfather greeted us. Mom was the kind of woman that believed everything had sentimental value, so most of our furniture had been with us for a while, even our coffee table had old nicks and scratches from when I was a kid. Knickknacks were scattered on shelves, along with our dusty childhood trophies over the fireplace. Handmade projects she adored hung on the walls along with a shrine of photos of our family. I saw him gravitate toward the pictures on the wall and I interrupted him promptly to save myself some humiliation.

  “You can have my room. I can sleep on the couch.”

  He turned to me and the dark circles of exhaustion under his eyes seemed bolder in the dim glow of the room. “No, I’ll take the couch, I don’t mind.”

  “I’ll get you a blanket and pillows.”

  I watched him drop down on the sofa and remove his shoes. I walked to the hall closet where we kept all of our extra blankets. I found one that still looked decent and stole one of the pillows off my daybed to give to him. I carried both to the living room to find him already lying down on the sofa with his eyes closed. He looked up at me when I draped the blanket over him and I leaned down to put the pillow under his head. I whispered goodnight, aiming to kiss his cheek, but he turned his face just in time and our lips met and held there for a long moment.

  “Night,” I whispered as my heart fluttered.

  “Goodnight Auti,” he whispered against my lips with a smirk.

  I pulled away, unable to wipe the smile off my face and turned off the light. I headed to my bedroom that was just the way I left it, barren besides my old computer desk, daybed, dresser, and nightstand. I threw on an old t-shirt and flannel pants to sleep in and crawled into my creaky daybed, finding it extra comfortable. I tossed and turned for a while, trying to calm my racing mind that kept reminding me of what an amazing night I had. By the time I started to drift off to sleep, the digital clock on my bedside table read 4AM.

  I woke up the next morning to the familiar sound of the pipes groaning in the wall next to my bed that signaled someone was taking a shower. I opened my eyes and my heart did a jump-start when I realized that I was back in my bedroom in Hamilton. I sat up and looked around, glaring at the juvenile posters of baby animals, actors, and musicians that once I favored throughout high school. My mind fought to recall what I was doing back in Hamilton in the first place. Once I got everything processed, I slowly threw back my faded flowery violet comforter and glanced over at the clock that read 11:20AM. I
picked up my phone and noticed I had a text from Vinny that said:

  GOOD MORNING SLEEPYHEAD. I’M TAKING A SHOWER. CU SOON ;)

  My heart fluttered as I recalled our night together and I couldn’t wait to see him. I climbed out of my bed and did my best to round my hair up in a ponytail. After using the only other available bathroom, I walked around the house to see if anyone else was home. I found my brother at the dining table taking a bite out of an over-stuffed sandwich.

  “Hey,” I said, going to the fridge and pulling out the orange juice. “Where’s Mom?”

  “She went back to the hospital.”

  “How is Grandma?”

  “Fine I guess.”

  I poured myself some juice in a glass and sipped it. “Are you off today?”

  “Yep,” he said, looking like a chipmunk as he chewed his sandwich and stared at his phone.

  Vinny appeared in the kitchen doorway, his hair still slick from his shower.

  We smiled at one another.

  “Good morning,” he said, stepping over and kissing me.

  I returned the kiss and smiled. “How did you sleep?”

  “Not bad, that sofa is more comfortable than it looks.”

  “I’ll jump in the shower in a minute. I know you probably want to get back to Garden City.”

  “Take your time,” he said giving my hip a squeeze. “Didn’t you want to stay here for a few more days? I can just come back for you when you’re ready.”

  “I don’t know what I‘m doing yet, I guess we should head down there and see how she is doing before I make a decision.”

  “Sounds good.”

  “Are you hungry? I could make you breakfast,” I offered, lacing my fingers with his.

  “I’m good, but thank you,” he said, leaning in to give me another kiss.

  “Get a room,” my brother grumbled.

  I rolled my eyes and pulled away. “I’m going to take a shower. Make yourself at home.”

  “Okay.”

  I left the kitchen and went into the bathroom I shared with my brother. It looked just as messy as it did when I lived at home. My brother’s towel was left on the floor next to a pile of his dirty clothes. I sighed and tossed his clothes inside the hamper, then I glared at the sink where his toothbrush was carelessly tossed, leaving a line of green toothpaste in the sink. I shoved the toothbrush in the holder and rubbed the toothpaste out of the bowl, embarrassed that Vinny had to witness such a catastrophe.

  I grabbed a clean towel, undressed, and finally got into the blue and white tiled shower, a hideous style that we inherited with the house. I quickly scrubbed my hair and body clean, finding unfamiliar tenderness in certain places. I also made sure to shave, just in case. Afterwards, I wrapped a fresh towel around my body and another in my hair, brushed my teeth, and returned to my bedroom.

  When I opened the door, I gasped in surprise to see Vinny lying on my bed, looking at his phone. He glanced up at me and smiled. “Hey.”

  “Hi,” I smiled back and closed the bedroom door with my foot, locking it behind me.

  He set his phone aside and sat up, watching me with interest. Feeling in the spotlight, I laughed and dropped my towel, doing a playful shimmy while I walked to my dresser.

  I opened the top drawer and removed the only decent panties that I had left behind. They had little blue stars all over them and looked juvenile. I looked up to see him watching me in the reflection from the dresser mirror. I blushed and balled the panties into my palm, then turned to him.

  “Are you going to watch me get dressed?”

  “I’ve watched you undress, so why not.”

  I laughed and rolled my eyes. “Did you wanna grab some breakfast?”

  “Sure.” He walked over and turned me to face him. “I’m grabbing it right now.”

  I smiled as he pulled my naked body against him and kissed my shoulder. I wrapped my arms around his back, letting him kiss my neck and cop a feel on my butt.

  “Does this breakfast come with a side of sausage?” I asked, grinning as I lifted my leg against his hip.

  “Extra sausage.” he teased and kissed my lips, our tongues immediately searched out one another. I realized when I tilted my head back that I still had the towel wrapped in my hair like a turban. I reached up and pulled it out, dropping it aside. He lifted me into his arms and carried me to my bed. I laughed aloud as he dropped me on it and climbed over me, his hips clad jeans settling over mine. I wrapped my legs around his waist and stared into his eyes, my soul overflowing with emotion. I never felt anything so strong and fulfilling. There were no words for it.

  “Can I just keep you here in Hamilton with me forever?” I ran my fingers through his silky, damp hair.

  A small smile pulled at the corner of his lips. “You could, but how would we finish our business degrees?”

  “We can transfer to Colgate University.”

  “What about Mazzolas?”

  “You can work from home and drive down once in a while.”

  He grinned. “You have it all figured out don’t you?”

  “Maybe.” I kissed him moved my hand between his legs with a devious smile, rubbing him through his jeans. He responded to my petting with a quiet groan and he instantly solidified against my palm. Less than five minutes later, he was undressed and serving me breakfast with an extra side of sausage.

  After ‘breakfast’, I got dressed in a faded red knitted sweater and jeans. I attempted to do my hair without my straitener, but it wasn’t working. Vinny insisted I leave it down and wavy because he liked me all natural. I had to love him for that.

  We grabbed lunch at a local sub shop and then headed to the hospital. The door to my Grandma’s room was closed when we arrived, so I knocked. The person who opened the door stunned me.

  “Dad?” I asked, blinking.

  “Hey there, Auti. We were wondering when you were going to show up,” Dad said, pulling me into a hug.

  He was dressed in a NYU jersey and jeans. His rust colored hair was flecked with grey and his clothes smelled of cigarette smoke which notified me that he was still a smoker along with his ditzy girlfriend Mindy who thought smoking made her look sexy.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked, pulling out of his embrace.

  “Your mother called me and told me what happened. I thought I’d come see how Grandma was holding up.”

  For some reason it bothered me that he called her Grandma still, even though she wasn’t related to him in any way.

  “How is she?” I asked, leaning around him to try and look into the room. The curtain in the doorway was half closed and blocked.

  “She’s doing great, she’s talking. The drugs are making her a little loopy though.” His blue eyes shifted to Vinny. “Who’s this?”

  The question came out as more of an accusation.

  “This is…” I paused, unsure if we were going to use titles, “my friend…Vinny.”

  “Vinny,” Dad repeated, sizing him up before holding out his hand. “I’m Greg Malone, Autumn’s father.”

  Vinny stepped forward and shook my father’s hand. “Nice to meet you.”

  “You must be the guy that drove her up here?”

  “Yeah, that’s me.”

  “Is that my Autumn I hear out there?” Grandma called out.

  “I’m going to head down to have a smoke and check on Mindy,” Dad said. “She didn’t feel comfortable coming up.”

  I was glad she didn’t. If I had one goal for her, it was to make her feel as uncomfortable as possible. After Dad stepped out of the doorway, I grabbed Vinny’s hand and dragged him into the room with me.

  I was surprised to see my Grandmother sitting up in bed with a bowl of orange Jell-O sitting on a tray in front of her. The bandage around her head was crisp and white as if it was just changed, and most of the color had returned to her face.

  “There’s my favorite granddaughter,” she said, smiling at me as I approached the bed.

  “She’s your only
granddaughter,” Mom said from her chair in the corner.

  “That makes her extra-special.” she gave my arm a squeeze with her cold hand.

  “How are you feeling, Grandma?” I leaned forward to kiss her forehead.

  “Oh I’m just fine. I’ll be as good as new once they stop wrapping my head up like a mummy.” Her gaze moved past me and she spotted Vinny. “Who’s this handsome young man? Is he my nurse?”

  I tried not to laugh as Vinny smiled at her. “No, I’m Autumn’s friend.”

  “Grandma, this is my friend, Vinny. He drove me up here to visit you.”

  “Ooh…you must be that looker she’s always bragging about. The Italian with all the money. I told her she should marry you, Italians have good stock, and the rumor is they have a good salami, if you know what I mean,” she said with a wink.

  “Mother!” Mom snapped.

  Vinny looked to me again and laughed.

  I had no words. I just shook my head.

  “Come closer Vinny, let me get a good look at you. My Autumn only deserves the best.”

  I covered my face with my hand as Vinny stepped up next to her bed. Grandma looked him over from the waist up and then nodded in approval. “You don’t carry any of those SNDs, do you?”

  “Grandma!”

  “Did they turn up her morphine drip?” Mom asked.

  Vinny laughed again. “No, I’m very careful about not getting those.”

  “That’s good, you can never be too careful when it comes to sex.”

  The word sex coming from my grandmother’s mouth made me feel violated.

  “Grandma, can you please—”

  “Mom, why don’t you have some Jell-O?” My mother intervened and picked up Grandma’s Jell-O, trying to spoon a wiggly orange cube into her mouth.

  The door opened and my father stepped back in, carrying a can of diet Coke and a hot tea in a paper cup. He walked over to my mother and handed the tea to her. She thanked him and they stood side by side, drinks in hand and watched Grandma.

  I always found it strange how the divorce seemed to tear our lives apart, but my parents still were able to act civil with one another, even more so than when they were married. My father still called my mother every Sunday and checked up on all of us.