Page 10 of The Tempted

“So, I guess it’s been decided that I’m staying with you while I’m here?” Mikey said, sounding rather perturbed, and a bit defeated all in the same breath.

“Like Victor would let you stay in his house with his daughter that you’re cozying up to,” Jimmy laughed. “I doubt he forgot the scene we walked in on when we came and got your ass,” he lifted an eyebrow displaying a rather impressed facial expression. “Hell, I didn’t,” his laugh turned into a smoker’s cough.

Mikey stood up abruptly turning around to glare at Jimmy. I’m pretty sure he was about to lay into him when a horn sounded. We turned around to see a white Chevy Tahoe double parked in front of my parent’s house. Rico turned off the truck and hopped out of it. In true Rico form, he strutted around the truck, ignoring his surroundings. He flashed me his signature smile not paying any attention to the men that surrounded me on the stoop. He climbed the stairs two at a time eating up the space between us. He leaned in smashing his mouth against mine.

There wasn’t much I could do other than kiss him back despite the audience, I was aware we had. I pressed my hand against his chest and leaned back breaking the kiss after a moment.

“What’re you doing here?” I asked nervously although I wasn’t sure why I was actually nervous.

“It’s nice to see you too babe,” Rico said with a laugh before he glanced around the stoop. He nodded to Jimmy and Anthony acknowledging their presence. He took my hands and pulled me to my feet before he wrapped his arm around my waist. He looked at Mikey for a minute, sizing him up.

“Who’s this?” he asked me as he kept his eyes on Mikey’s.

Mikey leaned against the railing of the banister crossing his arms against his chest. He glanced at Anthony quickly before turning to face Rico again. “Let me guess… Rico?”

“Yeah. I didn’t catch your name,” Rico said as he tightened his grip on my waist.

“I didn’t say it,” Mikey clipped. He looked at me for a second before he looked at Jimmy and Anthony.

“So, pizza yeah? Sounds good,” he said, climbing the remaining steps he reached behind Anthony and pulled open the storm door. Without speaking another word, he walked back inside my parent’s house. Jimmy stared at the closed door and then back at us a sly grin spread across his face and I rolled my eyes. The poor bastard lived for this shit.

“What the fuck is his problem and who the fuck is he?” Rico said into my ear.

“That’s Michael—he’s a good friend of the family. His mom just passed away, so he’s not really acting himself,” I said, scrambling for an excuse as to why Mikey was so rude to him. Anthony stared at me with an expressionless face before lifting one eyebrow questioning my reply to Rico. I replayed my words in my head and I realized I had no idea if Mikey was acting himself. Ten years was a long time and as much as I had changed, I'm sure Mikey had too. Anthony opened the storm door, holding it open for Rico and me. Well, dinner would be interesting that was for sure.

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