“You know how I do…” Veronica replied sassily with a smile.
“Knox!” Landon yelled into the phone. “Quit *footin’ with the waitress and talk to me!”
“Calm down, ya little shit! I’m listening!” Knox spat as he moved aside and waited for his order.
“Nunzio and his boys were at the house last night. How come?”
“Nunzio… Nunzio Rigatti?” Knox whispered into the phone, his eyes going wild with alarm.
“Yeah. Along with his brother and Antonio Pena.”
“You’re positive?”
“What do you think? I might be the baby but I’m not a fucking idiot.”
“That’s trouble right there…”
“So what do we do?”
“Nothing. Keep your neck off the executioner’s block. I’ll deal with it. Lemme know if Dante comes around, tell him I’m lookin’ for him.”
“Knox…”
Knox didn’t say another thing though, as he quickly ended the call. Sliding his phone back into his pocket, he grabbed his coffee and rushed back out to his car.
The bell over the front door of the Violet’s Diner clanged loudly as Letty Alves walked in with G on her hip and Miles by her side.
“How many, hun?” Violet, the Violet, the woman the restaurant was named for, asked as she patted her platinum blonde blow out.
“Two adults and a booster seat,” Letty replied happily.
Letty ignored the stares and the looks they were getting from the other patrons in the restaurant and kept her smile planted on her face. Miles didn’t, though. He looked into the face of each of the men, not daring to blink. Casting each of them a cold, unflinching expression, the others always looked away first.
“You got it, hun. Follow me,” Violet said as she led Miles and Letty to a booth in the back.
Violet passed Miles the booster seat. He placed it on the booth beside the window and sat the kid in the seat, gently strapping him securely in place. Miles slid into the booth next to the toddler, while Letty sat opposite them, grinning broadly at both of them. Her’s was a smile that few things could crack. Miles was relieved to see that he had restored some hope in her eyes.
Cracking open the menu, Letty began perusing the specials while Miles slipped a quarter in the jukebox that sat on the end of their table. Rolling the catalog of songs, he finally stopped when he found a song that appealed to him. As Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers began to belt out “American Girl,” Miles picked up his menu, too, deciding upon what he wanted for breakfast.
“So whaddya want to do today?” Letty asked Miles, not removing her eyes from the breakfast menu.
Miles looked up at her with a surprised look upon his face. “Who, me?”
“Yeah, you!”
“Park! Park!”
“I always take you to the park, G! It’s Miles’s turn to pick.”
“Park!”
Miles laughed as the persistent little bugger continued to demand a trip to the playground.
“Calm your nerves. We’ll hit a park today. Jeez, he’s pushy!”
As G celebrated his small win, Miles contemplated Letty’s question. He hadn’t really put much thought into it. His mind was too busy thinking about the things he needed to take care of with his family. Miles didn’t really consider the fact that Letty would actually want to do something outside the house.
“I mean we could just rent movies, but I figured you’d want to be outside. I just gotta stop by your father’s to check in on him, then we’re free for the day. My dad usually babysits G on Saturday nights. Let’s go out.”
Miles shrugged as a smile tugged at his lips. “All right, let’s see where the night takes us.”
“Do you need to get anything else from the stores? Or are you set?” Letty asked.
“Need to go to a pharmacy and maybe hit a Caldor or a Kmart…”
“Oh, baby. You’re dating yourself. They tore those down about ten years ago. We have a Target and a Super Walmart.”
“What the fuck is a Super Walmart.”
“Someplace you don’t wanna go,” Letty said with a laugh. Talking with her hands, she dramatically replied, “Trust me.”
“This I gotta see…” Miles said with a laugh.
“It’s the zoo. With clothes and appliances.”
Miles nodded as he perused his menu.
“Think I’m going for the steak and eggs,” Miles said as he laid his menu flat on the table. G immediately stole it and began to bang it against the table.
“Old habits die hard, huh?” Letty asked with a laugh.
Miles shrugged. “Guess so,” he replied.