1520 Main

19

"How'd the dance go?" Trey asked Gio the first chance he got, which was Monday afternoon as they counted bottles.

"Not bad," Gio said, nodding with satisfaction. "I'm never going to learn how to dance like she and her partner do, but I can manage basic steps enough to have fun."

"And the partner?"

"She wouldn't be allowed to do all those fancy tricks with him if half the congregation weren't wise to his 'confirmed bachelorhood.'"

"He's Mormon?"

"No. His sister is. Dot's his only chance to dance at that level. I reassured her that I completely understand his position—"

"Top or bottom?"

"He was careful to let me know he was a bottom. And I would never ask Dot to give him up. I had to give him my 'You are about to die' look and he slunk away like a kicked puppy. I caught Albright and his wife trying not to laugh. How was Correggio's?"

Trey grimaced. "The date was fine. I had to do some fast lawyering to get mama to let her wear a dress."

"I thought it was daddy who wanted to protect her honor?"

"He was busy comforting a parishioner."

Gio snorted a laugh.

"Did I tell you about Marina's mama's cooking? Most godawful food I've ever had. Marina even said so, and she'd rather do the cooking, but mama won't let her even though daddy likes Marina's food better."

"Because daddy likes Marina's food better."

"Nope. She just doesn't like Marina's food. Says it's too spicy. So Marina orders meatballs then halfway through the first one, tells me it's wonderful but she's stuffed."

Gio scowled. "Correggio's uses Marie Lazia's recipe. Everybody in town loves her meatballs."

"And everybody's lyin' like a big dog on a big rug. Are you gonna tell Brother John his wife's pride and joy is shit?"

"Had me fooled."

"Marina loved the antipasto—shit, she could've inhaled the olives and prosciutto, but she was too polite to take more'n a coupla bites. I had the pasta alla Norma, but she was eyeballin' that like a starving orphan, so I asked her if she'd switch because I'd rather have the meatballs and I felt we were on familiar enough terms to do that, and I hoped she wouldn't think badly of my manners."

Gio nodded approvingly.

"Almost got some calamari, but she wanted to save that for next time."

"You sure she just didn't want squid?"

"She saw a platter going by and started salivating. I told her what it was and she looked like she'd been promised a trip to a candy store. Shit, I could probably get this girl in bed by waving good food under her nose, 'cuz her mama ain't cookin' it an' she ain't allowed. Now, I saved the best part for last. Boss Tom and Caroline were there."

"The hell you say!"

"Made a point to stop by our table. Boss Tom introduced himself and the missus as Tom and Caroline, no last names. Marina said, and I quote, 'Oh, what a lovely couple!' She was thrilled to be seen as a contemporary. When she asked who he was, I told her he was a client."

"Yo, Boss!" Vern bellowed from the bar, his voice barely reaching back to the stock room. "Boss Tom's lookin' for ya."

"Speakin' of. Be done in a sec! Take over," Trey muttered as he ran to his office to get his books, then out the door and down the street. He ran up the stairs, then stopped just outside the closed office door to catch his breath before strolling in as if he hadn't done a day of work in his life.