Full House (9 page)

Marco pulled away enough to roll to his back. He reached out and pulled Kent by the back of the head into a deep kiss.

Even Marco’s kisses felt like the best he’d ever had. Kent wondered if love truly did make the difference. He wanted to believe Marco felt the same. The thought of Marco enjoying sex with another man as much as what they’d just shared, left him shaken.

“Was it good?” Kent knew it was an insecure thing to ask, but he needed to know.

“The best,” Marco whispered, kissing Kent again.

In that moment, Kent wanted to ask Marco to move in permanently, but he knew it was too soon. He’d continue to think of excuses why Marco and the kids needed to stay until they could no longer imagine leaving.

Marco pressed his lips against Kent’s shoulder. “Did Moody say who he thought was after Eddy?”

Kent
should have expected the question. Now that Marco had been given time to process the information Kent had given him, he was sure his lover would have a lot of questions.

“Probably someone he owes money to. Do you think he would’ve crossed The Dominions?”

“I don’t think he’d openly cross them. He knows too much about the way they deal with that kind of situation. But I can see him trying to skirt them. Maybe he’s got a whore or two he’s pimping out without giving his old friends their cut.”

“So you think he’s running prostitutes on The Dominions’ turf?”

“No. He’s too smart for that. It doesn’t matter where in the city he’s trying to run them. Once you’re in The Dominions, they own your loyalty until death. If they found out, they would consider it an act against them.”

“But I know he’s run prostitutes before. I saw it on his rap sheet.” This was an entirely new world for him and he knew he was in way over his head.

“Yes and no. He ran them for The Dominions, but never for himself. Believe me, if he had, we’d be living in a much bigger house.”

The mention of his house brought up something else they really needed to discuss. “You’ll need to call your insurance company. I’ll make sure the house is repaired, but it should be turned in anyway.”

“How bad is it?”

Kent
wanted to down-play the damage, but he knew Marco would see it soon enough. “Bad. I called one of the night watchmen over at the office to get someone to help him board up the front windows. It should be okay until we can get over there in the morning.”

Kent
felt Marco’s body begin to shake. He wrapped his arms tighter around the man he loved. “It’ll be okay. I won’t let anything happen to any of you.”

“Do you think whoever shot at the house was trying to get Eddy or us?”

“I’d say Eddy, but I don’t think they cared if they took anyone else out in the process. Which is why I think it’s doubly important all of you stay here until this can all be sorted out.”

Marco let out a disgusted snort. “I bet if you had this day to do over again, you’d have just patted me on the back and told me to get my ass to work.”

“No.” Kent leant up on one elbow. “The only thing I regret about this morning was not straightening things out years ago. I was an ass.”

“We both were. I was so sure you’d look down on me…”

“Are you kidding? After hearing what you’ve been through, I look up to you. You’ve handled yourself like a man since the age of sixteen. No one could find fault with that.”

Marco’s body began to relax as Kent settled him against his chest. Kent was pleasantly pleased Marco didn’t protest staying longer. In the coming days, he hoped to show Marco how well he could fit into their lives.

Chapter Six

It was another two days before Marco could finish the brick wall project and start repairing the damage to his house. The day he’d gotten his first look, he’d excused himself and threw up beside the damaged home he’d grown up in.

As he sat staring out the front windshield of Kent’s truck, he began to wonder if he’d ever again feel safe in the house he’d worked so hard to hang onto. He felt a comforting hand at the back of his neck.

“You okay?”

Was he?
Marco knew he still couldn’t answer that question. Years earlier when he’d finally gathered the courage to kick Eddy out, Marco thought that was the last of the violence his brothers and sister would have to witness.

“I’m glad you were able to find a sitter for Maria. I’m not sure she’d be able to handle this.” Marco heard his old pickup pull in behind them and knew his brothers were looking at the damage for the first time. He wondered if they were thinking the same thing he was.

Kent
kissed Marco’s cheek. “I’m going to start unloading the windows. Take as much time as you need.”

Marco shook his head. “I don’t need time. I just need to see it back to the way it was.”

He opened his door and carefully jumped down. Although his knee was still swollen, he’d been able to get around with one crutch which would help a lot in the coming days. He wondered how long the project would take. Not only did the windows need replacing, but the woodwork and walls, inside and out, needed patched, sanded and painted.

As he neared the front door, Marco caught several of his neighbours peering out their windows. He bet they’d be more than happy to see the entire family gone from their street. He flashed his best smile and waved, unsurprised when the curtains immediately closed.

He heard a horn honk and glanced over his shoulder to see his friends pull in front of the house. Zac, Eric, Trey and Cole piled out of Cole’s truck and headed his way.

“We heard you could use a hand,” Zac called.

Marco felt warmed by the gesture. He knew how much weekends meant to his friends, but he also knew they were always there for each other. “I could use more than one. Luckily you brought eight.”

“And you’ve got more on the way. Jules was called into the hospital, but Bobby, Angelo and Moody will also be here.”

The group of men immediately began helping unload the supplies out of Kent’s truck. Marco noticed the puzzled expression on his brothers’ faces and called them over. “What’s up?”

Bruno crossed his muscled arms over his broad chest. “Who’re all these people?”

“My poker buddies. You’ve heard me talk about them.”

“Yeah, but you’ve never introduced us,” Nicky grumbled. “Is there a reason for that?”

Marco didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want his brothers to think he’d been ashamed of them, but he realised that’s exactly the way it appeared. He dug deep to try and come up with an honest explanation.

“I was embarrassed,” he finally admitted. “Not by you guys, so don’t ever think that. I was ashamed that we had shitty parents. These guys didn’t grow up like we did. I guess I thought they wouldn’t understand.”

Bruno reached out and punched Marco in the arm, nearly knocking him on his ass. “If we said something like that, you’d tell us they weren’t really friends if they didn’t like us because of our parents.”

Marco chuckled. “You’re right. Maybe I didn’t give them enough credit.”

“Doesn’t sound like you gave them any credit at all,” Nicky chimed in.

“How’d the two of you get so smart?”

Bruno grinned. “We had the best role model and teacher anyone could ask for.”

Marco pretended to stick his finger down his throat. “Stop or you’re going to make me puke.”

Laughing, Bruno and Nicky walked away. Marco watched his brothers introduce themselves one by one to his friends. He felt true pride for the first time in a long time. Despite recent events, he knew he was witnessing his greatest achievement in life.

“Something wrong?” Kent asked, slipping an arm around Marco’s waist.

Marco cleared his throat. “No. My brothers are good kids.”

“That they are. You should feel proud.”

Marco nodded. “I do.”

* * * *

After they finished for the day, Kent invited everyone over to his house for a cookout. On the way, he and Marco stopped at the grocery store. When Kent noticed Marco getting a large bag of store brand dog food, he scowled.

“That’s not good for Rufus. Get one of the yellow and white bags.”

Marco set the bag in the cart. “Since when are you an expert on dogs?”

“I’m not, but I do watch TV. That other brand is supposed to be better for them.”

Marco rolled his eyes. “It also costs three times more. The only real difference is the amount they shit and for three times the price, I’d rather have Nicky picking up piles of crap than to have him going without something else he needs.”

Kent
started to argue, but snapped his mouth shut. He knew the money issue would be their biggest adjustment. He couldn’t fault Marco. He’d learned the hard way how to budget and stretch a dollar. Growing up in a middle-class family and going on to become quite wealthy, Kent had never worried about where his next meal was coming from. He decided to pick his battles when it came to money.

They passed the produce section and Marco playfully picked up a cucumber. “Give you an ideas?”

Kent
chuckled. “Not nearly as many as that big, twisted zucchini is giving me.”

Marco spotted the odd shaped vegetable and started to laugh. “You are not buying that. Walk away, Kent. Just walk away.”

The meat section proved another obstacle. Kent automatically started to reach for the big T-bone steaks.

“These are cheaper,” Marco said, holding up a package of patio steaks.

“Yeah and they taste cheaper. This is my dinner party. Please let me serve what I want.”

Marco dropped the patio steaks and walked off. Kent sighed. The last thing he wanted was to get into a fight over fucking steaks. He loaded the cart and caught up with Marco.

“I’m sorry if that came out wrong.”

Marco shrugged. “No. I’m sorry. The kids have never had T-bones. It’s selfish, but I hate for them to get used to things like that. It’ll just make it that much harder when we have to go home and live on hamburger and mac and cheese.”

If Kent had his way, they’d never be going back to their old life. “So we feed them hotdogs tomorrow, but tonight we all dine like royalty. Please let me to do this for them.”

“Only if you’ll let me help pay.”

“Deal.”

After paying for the groceries and loading the truck, Kent headed back to his house.

Marco reached over and put a hand on Kent’s thigh. “Sorry if I made you mad.”

“You didn’t. We just have different ways of looking at things. Doesn’t mean one of us is right and the other is wrong. It’ll take time and compromise, but I’m up for it. What about you?”

With his head turned towards Kent, Marco smiled. “I can’t help feeling that you’re compromising too much. I mean…hell. Do you know what you’re getting into? The De La Santo’s come with baggage. Lots of it. It’s not just about buying store brand things over name brands. It’s about not being able to drop everything and go to the movies, or not being able to lay naked on the couch and make love all day.”

Kent
understood what Marco was trying to tell him. He’d be lying to himself if he said he hadn’t thought about all the things the two of them couldn’t do, but it was the things they could do that pushed their relationship over the top for him.

Although he knew it wasn’t the time or place, Kent unbuckled and slid across the seat. He wrapped his arms around Marco and kissed him, keeping it short, but heartfelt. “I love you. Have for years. Do you honestly think not being able to fuck you anytime I want is gonna change that?”

Marco’s eyes sparkled. “Besides my brothers and sister, no one’s ever said those words to me.”

It was an incredibly telling statement. Kent wondered what it would’ve been like to never hear that his parents loved him. He made a mental note to call his dad. Since his mom’s death a few years earlier, Tom Baker had retired and moved to Phoenix. Although Kent got down a couple of times a year to play golf, they definitely weren’t as close as they used to be.

Kent
kissed Marco again, letting his tongue slip inside to brush against Marco’s. “Please tell me we can make this work?”

Marco smiled, his white teeth a stark contrast to his dark skin tone. “I hope so, because I love you, too.”

* * * *

When they pulled into the circular drive, Marco was pleased to see Kent’s backyard fence was well underway. He’d tried to fight his lover over it, but Kent had insisted he’d meant to add one a long time ago, but never got around to it.

Looking at the expensive black iron fencing, Marco began to wonder if it would hold a dog like Rufus in. “You don’t think the bars are too far apart, do you?”

Kent
turned off the engine and studied the work his crew had done earlier in the day. “Not at all. It should hold Rufus just fine. But if you’re worried, we can figure something else out.”

“No. Just wondering.” Marco couldn’t ask Kent to do any more than what he already had. He’d brought several chain link panels over from the construction site and had set up a temporary twelve by twelve enclosure to hold Rufus while they were at work.