Side Game (Men of Trance Book 2)

by Nicole Loufas

  I don’t stop her when she picks up Lulu and walks out the door.

  “Youngblood,” Fred calls. “You all right?”

  “No, not even close.”

  I take the stairs up to my apartment. I’m drenched in sweat and my heart is racing. Do I call Theo? Do I call the police?

  I should go after Leeyan, help her.

  Help her do what? Kidnap Lulu? No.

  I can’t let her do this.

  I can’t let her fuck this up.

  She came to me because she trusts me. If she trusts me, then maybe, just maybe she cares.

  I race back downstairs and onto the street. She’s standing on the corner, looking down at her phone. Lulu clings to her leg.

  This is my moment, that moment in a book when the good guy rescues the girl. I plan what I’m going to say as I walk up behind her. Confess my feelings. Tell her she deserves a happy ending and I am the man to give it to her. I stop short to catch my breath before tapping her shoulder. Just as I open my mouth to say her name, Lulu speaks.

  “I have to poop.”

  “Can you hold it just a little longer?” Leeyan asks as she taps her phone. I see the Uber app on her screen.

  “I think it’s a big one.”

  Leeyan looks up and finally notices me standing behind her.

  “You scared the shit out of me!” she yells.

  “You almost scared the poop of me too!” Leeyan dances in place. “Mommy…”

  “You can use my bathroom.” I scoop Lulu into my arms and race back up to my apartment.

  I set her down in front of the bathroom door.

  “You’re all good…you can do this alone?”

  “Duh.” She rolls her eyes—Leeyan’s eyes.

  Leeyan is settling on the sofa. Her phone rings, and she quickly declines the call.

  “Thanks for that.” She points to the hall where her daughter is taking a dump in my pristine toilet.

  I sit down and put my arm around her. “Come here.”

  She slides closer and rests her head on my shoulder. “I fucked up, but I can’t go back. As soon as I walk into my apartment, I feel his eyes on me.”

  “You need to file a report on him. I don’t give a fuck if he owns the building.” I’m about to offer my place when I remember I’m already giving it to my parents.

  “I have nowhere to go. If I lose that apartment, I’m on the street. I don’t have enough money to afford a place in the city, and the thought of living far away from Lulu kills me.”

  “I’m leaving soon—sooner than I thought.”

  She moves out of my arms. “Brazil?

  “Yeah. My parents’ house sold. They have thirty days, and I worked it out so they can stay here. I have a place waiting for me in Rio and nothing really holding me here. You can stay until my parents move in. That should buy you some time to figure out your next move.”

  She moves away from me on the couch. “You have nothing holding you here?” I sense pain in her tone. “What about me? Us?”

  “It will never work out,” I reason.

  She desperately grabs the front of my hoodie and forces me to look her in the eyes. “Then let’s fail together.”

  At this moment, I have never wanted to fail harder. I won’t risk my future, Leeyan’s relationship with Lulu, or Theo’s feelings. This is bigger than her and me. Leeyan’s phone rings; it’s Theo. So many lives are affected by our actions.

  “Answer it before he calls the police.”

  I leave to check on Lulu.

  “Everything good in there?”

  How long does it take for a kid her size to take a shit?

  The door opens, and Lulu walks out.

  “You have nice soap.”

  I look at the sink, which is covered in suds.

  Leeyan raises her voice in the living room, so I suggest we go into my room. I turn on the TV.

  Lulu jumps climbs onto the bed and kicks off her shoes. “Do you have Paw Patrol?”

  “Uh, I don’t know.” I click a few buttons to try to search for it.

  “I can do it.” Lulu holds her hand out for the remote.

  I give it to her then tell her I’ll be back.

  Leeyan is agreeing to go home when I return to the room.

  “Did you work it out?”

  “Yeah, for now.” She walks into my arms.

  Holding her is like a long exhale. I close my eyes and enjoy the feeling while I can.

  ***

  I wait in my car around the corner while Leeyan delivers Lulu back to Theo. A few minutes later, she comes storming down the street. I honk so she knows where I am.

  “He lied!” She starts rambling about revenge and getting back at him. “I will fucking end him!”

  I can’t listen to her make threats about Theo. He’s my best friend. If I have to choose a side, life forces me to pick him.

  “I should just leave. It will make everyone’s life easier.”

  “How did that work out for you last time?”

  She shakes her head and sighs. “I fucked up and now he’s going to use this against me. Fight or flight…”

  “You fight for what you want. Leaving never solved anything.” I eat my words. “If you stay and fight for Lulu, I’ll stay and support you.”

  What am I saying?

  This is not how you make life decisions. This is irrational and emotional…and it feels so right.

  “I won’t get between you and Theo. I can’t talk about it with you or listen to you criticize him. Theo is a great father, and he has never done anything to prove otherwise.”

  Leeyan nods. “You’ll stay? For me?”

  “For us.”

  Leeyan is my future, but the road to happily ever after is bumpy, and complicated, and requires a lot of whiskey. I won’t stand on either side of a courtroom and watch the two people I care about most in the world rip each other apart. I can’t take that journey with her; she has to do it alone.

  Chapter Nineteen

  I call Josie three times to apologize for my first message. I reach her on my fourth try. She apologizes for not calling me first and invites me over for coffee.

  “It’s a cash offer. He’s motivated and ready to buy.”

  “Josie, I want the house.” I pull an envelope from my pocket. “You said you’d give me the option of matching your best offer.”

  “You can afford the mortgage?”

  “I can make it work.”

  I already applied to three boutiques in Union Square. It’s time to take my knowledge of high fashion to the next level. With what I make at Trance, I can swing it.

  “The down payment?”

  I slide a cashier’s check across her dining room table. She looks at the check and shakes her head.

  “I have to tell you, I’m surprised.” She points at me . “You surprised me, Giovanni. I told Mags you were one of the good ones.”

  “Do we have a deal?”

  “I’ll co-sign the mortgage, that way if you get into any trouble I can help you. And I get the house back if you default.”

  “You’ll do that for me?”

  “I told you I wanted to keep the house in the family.” She stands, and I reach out to shake her hand. She slaps it away.

  “Come here.” She holds her arms open. “I’m so proud of you. Do your parents know?”

  “No, I want to surprise them.”

  “Oh, they will be!”

  ***

  I decide to wait until we close on the house to tell my parents I’m their new landlord. I’m petrified at what my father is going to say. After breaking the news to Antonia, nothing phases me.

  She cursed me for a twenty minutes straight. Threatened to kick me out of my apartment. Called me every curse word imaginable in English and Portuguese. At the end of it all, she settled for Rico.

  He was more than happy to take my place in Brazil. After all the shit he gave me about moving, it all boiled down to jealousy. When I offered him the chance to take my place, h
e jumped at it. He’s been there a month and texts me every day to thank me for being a pussy.

  I walk into my parent’s house—my house—and yell hello. Boxes are stacked from the front door all the way down the hall. I waited too long to tell them. They’re all packed and ready to go. Where I have no clue.

  “Giovanni.” Dad appears from the kitchen. “I need a hand.”

  I haven’t seen him since I found out he saw my video. I follow him into the kitchen and find the sink in pieces.

  “What are you doing?”

  “The drain is slow. I don’t want anyone accusing me of being lazy.”

  “That’s ridiculous, dad. Just leave it.” I calculate how much this is going to cost me. “I’ll call a plumber.”

  “What for? I’m almost done.” He lays on his back, halfway under the kitchen sink. “Hold the faucet, don’t let it turn.”

  I straddle his legs and reach over to grab the faucet. It moves slightly.

  “Don’t let it move!” Dad yells.

  “I didn’t.” I grip it tighter.

  He grunts a few more times before announcing he’s done. He stands and elbows past me.

  “See.” He turns on the water, it sputters out. I watch it swirl around the sink, then down the drain. “See.”

  “It only took you fourteen years to fix it.” Mom kills his thunder. She greets me with a kiss on the cheek. “You hungry?”

  “No, thanks. What’s with all the boxes?”

  “We’re moving,” she says. “You know this.”

  I never offered my apartment, they don’t know I bought the house, where could they possibly be going?

  “Did you find a new place?” I follow mom out of the kitchen, into my old room.

  “Yes.” She doesn’t offer any other information. “Do you need sheets? I have so many sheets.”

  “No, I don’t need sheets. Where are you moving?”

  “Josie gave us a good deal on a place in San Anselmo. It’s darling. You should come see it.”

  I should come see it? Josie got them a place? Why didn’t she mention this when I was handing her my life’s savings?

  “Josie rented you a house in San Anselmo? How will dad get to work?” San Anselmo is on the Marin side of the bay. It’s one hell of a commute over the Golden Gate Bridge.

  “Your father is retired. His last day was Friday. He’s a free man.”

  “I don’t know about free,” Dad chimes in from behind me. “Where’s the tape? I need to make a box.”

  “Living room table,” Mom says. “Bring it here when you’re finished.”

  I watch my parents pack their things in bewilderment. “How much is Josie charging you to rent the place?”

  “We bought the house, hot shot,” Dad says as he walks away. “What are you writing a book.”

  “No, but I do think I’m entitled to know what is going on. I thought you were broke.” Reality begins to sink in.

  I bought this house for nothing.

  “Who said we’re broke?” Mom looks offended.

  “I assumed since you didn’t buy this house…you couldn’t afford it.”

  “Your father has a good retirement. He was union, you know, and I didn’t want this house. I want to live in the country, with a garden and sun more than ten times a year.” Mom stacks at least ten sets of sheets on the bed. “The new house is small, for two people, maybe three.” She looks at me in that way moms do. “In case you settle down, have kids.”

  I think of Leeyan. We’re on a break while she deals with the custody battle. By break, I mean we only see each other once a week. I can’t hold out any longer than that. I also can’t choose a side. The line was drawn between her and Theo and I refuse to cross it. I’m Switzerland.

  I blamed a lot of my actions on my father. His lack of respect and support was like a hall pass. I made choices under the impression nobody cared about the man I was becoming. It wasn’t until Leeyan slithered back into my life that I began to care. I want to be a better man for her and for me.

  “What are you doing with all this stuff, ma?”

  “Donating it. Some I’m giving to Maggie. She likes this desk.”

  I blush.

  “Josie said the new owner might want some of the old furniture. I don’t know,” she shrugs. “What kind of person wants this old stuff.”

  “The kind who lost his ass on this house. For what they paid, they need anything they can take.” Dad sets the tape on the desk. “Nice desk, huh Theo?” he chuckles at my expense.

  I walk out of the room. Everywhere I turn there are boxes. Boxes filled with useless crap. We accumulate so much crap in our lives. In the end, it's worthless. Even this house. My parents don’t need to live here to be happy. This place is their home because it’s where they live. Being together is what makes them happy.

  “Do you think the new owner will want the dining room table? It doesn’t fit the new house?” Mom runs her hand along the polished cherry wood.

  “Yes.” I sit in my chair. “I’ll keep it. And the hutch.” I point to the matching cabinet.

  “You? This fits in your apartment?” Mom looks at me curiously.

  “No. But it fits here. This table belongs in this house. No matter who lives here.”

  “Do you think it’s a family?” Mom wipes a smudge with her apron. “It’s a good house to raise a family.

  Yes. It is.

  Chapter Twenty

  “Daddy said you were his best friend and now you’re my mommy’s best friend.”

  “Was he smiling when he told you this?”

  Theo and I haven’t really hashed out the how and when I ended up with Leeyan. We’re all adjusting to the new custody agreement. It’s been a long year, but I see the light at the end of the tunnel.

  “I don’t know.” Lulu shrugs. “Is it true?”

  “Sort of.”

  I go back to buttering bread, and her little eyes burn through the back of my head. She’s waiting for a longer explanation. “I’m still your dad’s best friend.”

  “But now you love my mommy.”

  “Whoa. No need to drop the L-word.”

  “Daddy used to be best friends with Sylvie then they fell in love.”

  “Yeah, well I’m not your daddy.”

  Harsh.

  “Do you want to be?” Lulu pauses and reflects on the dumbfounded expression I’m sporting. “Do you want to have a baby with my mommy like Sylvie and Daddy?”

  “This may be difficult for your young brain to comprehend, but not everyone in the world wants to be Sylvie and your daddy.”

  “Duh.” She rolls her little eyes at me. “If you and Mommy get married that means your mommy and daddy will be my grandma and grandpa.”

  I smile at this because my parents love Lulu. Mom cries every time she comes over and sees my old room decked out in Paw Patrol décor.

  The phone on the wall rings. I kept my parents’ old landline; it’s been their number forever, and I didn’t want to give it up.

  Lulu runs to answer it.

  “Hello?” Her eyes light up. “I was just telling Gio he should marry my mommy so I can call you Grandpa!"

  I take the phone before she spills any more tea.

  “Hey Pop.” I pull the cord and walk back to the stove. I place the bread in the pan and top the slices with cheese.

  “Your mother left a box of Christmas crap in the garage. You going to be home Saturday?”

  “You have a key, Dad. You can come by anytime.”

  Once my parents found out I bought the house and my mother stopped crying, I asked them to stay, but they had their hearts set on moving to the cottage. They had no problem, however, leaving the garage full of things they couldn’t take with them but didn’t have the heart to throw away, like old holiday decorations.

  “We want to see you and Lulu.”

  Lulu is like a goodwill ambassador; her presence creates peace between my father and me. Buying the house and committing to Leeyan didn’t hurt either.
I have a feeling Dad likes me now. He’s just too stubborn to admit it.

  “She’ll be with Theo Saturday.”

  Lulu pulls the cord until I turn around. “I want to see Mr. Alberto!” she whines.

  “Okay, shh.” I pull the cord out of her hands and flip her grilled cheese. “We’ll see.”

  “It’s going to rain next week so I need to show you how to clear the gutters.” Dad likes to show me things around the house. I let him explain how the breaker box works and what to do if the pilot light on the water heater goes out.

  I made some improvements before moving in. The kitchen and bathrooms were updated. I let Dad choose the paint for the living room. Spending hours in Home Depot together was a bonding experience. Shopping for paint brushes and masking tape gave me insight about my father.

  Over the years, he made small repairs and painted the shutters. Those tasks were favors for Josie, not improvements to his home. Dad resented my career choice because he wanted me to be a better man. Have more than he could provide for his family. When I told him I bought the house, his perception of me changed. I can’t pinpoint it or even see the transformation. I hear the pride in his voice.

  “Sure, Dad. I’ll see you Saturday. I have to finish making Lulu dinner.”

  “Gio?”

  “Yeah?”

  “You did good.”

  Oh yeah, he definitely likes me.

  I place the phone on the cradle and Lulu drums her fingers on the white marble counter.

  “Do you want a sandwich or what?”

  “Yes, but no—”

  “Crust, got it.”

  I trim the edges and set the plate in front of her.

  “What are you guys up to?” Leeyan sits on the empty stool next to Lulu. She inspects the crust-less grilled cheese and steals a bite. “That’s yummy. I want one.”

  I pull two pieces of bread from the bag and butter them.

  “That’s the best-grilled cheese ever. Don’t you think, Lulu?”

  She’s overdoing it.

  “It’s all right.” Lulu shrugs. “I like mine with Havarti.”

  “Havarti?” I snort.

  “She has a very sophisticated pallet,” Leeyan says in her defense. “I can thank Sylvie for that at least.”