Oh, Gio’s going to bang his cock all right…into me. I’m going to make sure of it.
And just like one of the oldest rules of competition says, “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em.”
And that’s exactly what I need to do to get my man.
3 Giovanni
Tim leans his body weight into the crossbar on the door, just under the words ‘Marroni Waste Management.’
“Ready?” he asks as I follow him through the door, my hand cupping the back of my neck as I regret this already.
Tim had told me about a small business whose books he kept, and how they needed some muscle. I figured it was going to be a bar or a club or something like that, and a few bucks in the meantime and getting me out of the house could be good for me. I sure as hell need to blow off some steam and with Gabriella driving me crazy back at the house, bouncing would be a good way to do that.
But before my foot crosses the threshold I know this isn’t the kind of muscle that Tim thinks it is. You don’t have to watch Sopranos to know Italians are experts in waste management, literally and metaphorically.
“We’re here to see Tony,” Tim beams at the receptionist.
She simply nods and shows us to a back room where an oversized, balding man who has enough crosses and medallions hanging from his neck to start his own jewelry store.
“This is the guy?” he says, looking me over with an approving smile.
“This is him,” Tim confers.
“He’s definitely big like you said and muscular.” He pauses. “Buon pomeriggio,” he greets me in an accent that’s clearly not native Italian, as he stands to shake my hand.
“Buon pomeriggio,” I return, taking his sweaty palm in mine and complete our greeting, although my mind is focused on getting out of here as soon as possible…and back to Gabriella.
“Tim, can you give us a moment,” Tony asks.
“Sure thing, Godfather,” he says, trying to act funny when he doesn’t even realize this guy could very well actually be connected.
The two of us both laugh a bit uncomfortably and Tim excuses himself.
What kind of mess did he think I wanted to get into here?
“You looking for work?” Tony begins, his wise-guy accent coming through loud and clear with Tim out of the room.
“I’m not sure I’m the right guy for the job.”
“You don’t even know the job yet,” he says, leaning forward in his chair.
“I can guess.”
He simply nods. “Okay then.”
A week ago this could have worked, well in fact. No doubt Tony needs a collections specialist, a new guy, to show up and make sure his debts are paid. But right now I feel more indebted to Gabriella and her dad and making sure I don’t drag any nefarious activities into their home. Not only that but something inside me has completely shifted today. I know that I can’t pursue this thing with Tim’s daughter, but something inside me makes me want to be a better man, to be the kind of man who could be a father, a member of the community, even if it’s not with Gabriella.
Who am I kidding? I’m lying to myself trying to twist these feelings that I’ve never had for anyone before, ever, yet I know they could only ever be directed at her and only her. I need to face the fact that I’m already obsessed with her and if I pursue her, well, there won’t even be a pursuit. I’ll pounce on her like a cheetah on the Serengeti, making her mine in all ways and protecting her with a sort of possessiveness that is just as feral, beastly, and life-threatening as life on the great plains of Africa, or anywhere where big predators roam.
She needs to go to college, be a kid, drink beer for the first time. My body freezes, thinking of some pimply-faced boy her age trying to get her drunk so he can slide a finger inside her, or worse.
“You okay?” Tony asks. “You’ve got the look of a man who could definitely do this job written all over your face.”
“Yeah, I’m okay Tony. Thanks for your time. Sorry, it didn’t work out.”
I stand, but Tony’s not ready to let this go away just yet.
“I’ve got connections,” he says, uttering the magic word to let me know just exactly what kind of person he is, not that I didn’t at first sight already.
“I don’t,” I say, trying to let him know I’m not interested in any mob activities.
“I bring you in, vouch for you, you do your time in the lower ranks you can work your way up…make more money than you know what to do with.”
Little does he know I’m already sitting on a fat stack of cash and that I’m far from desperate for work. I just want a job so I can lay low and transition back into civilian life, be a ‘normal’ guy, whatever that means…and if it’s even possible.
But normal is not in my D.N.A. It’s not how I do anything in life, including how I need to quit denying myself and pursue Gabriella’s advances.
“We need guys like you around here. Family,” he adds, throwing the Hail Mary.
“Grazie…but this isn’t the right fit for me right now.”
He reluctantly nods, handing me his business card. “In case you change your mind, you know where to find me.”
I nod, knowing he’s probably got eyes on me already at this point. Just what I don’t need, I think to myself.
“Thank you,” I say, opening my wallet and carefully placing the business card inside.
“That your kid?” he says, his finger pointing toward my wallet.
“My what?” I ask incredulously, only then recognizing the picture that’s found its way inside. It’s a senior picture
