"Aha. Put some peaches and cream waffles in front of her, will you? And I'll take my coffee over here so we can talk," Lara told him.
"Sure," Rico said. He served Gloria then stepped over to the side with Lara and steeled himself for an uncomfortable conversation.
"How are you doing?" she asked him like someone who already knew the answer.
"OK," he told her.
"And how are you and Mitch doing?" she asked pointedly.
Rico groaned. Since she was Stella's sister, he didn't feel free to spill his guts to her, but she obviously already knew something.
"Stella told me where she hauled up when she went AWOL that night," Lara told him.
"Mitch kindly put her up after you guys had a fight or whatever," Rico said and he didn't hide how he felt about it.
Lara didn't look pleased either. "She only told me the storm caught her outside. You're telling me she made up a fight between us as an excuse to sleep over at Mitch's?" Lara huffed angrily. "I love her like a sister, but I will yank every last bleached blond hair out of her head. She has no right to use me like that."
"It's not her fault," Rico said. "Mitch..." He could hardly say his name without feeling like he would break down. And what would he say anyway. Mitch wasn't helpless.
"Sorry, honey," Lara said. "I guess that man needs to figure out what the hell he wants."
"I think he has," Rico said dourly.
"No. Guys get confused," she told him.
"I'm not confused," Rico said. Actually he was, just not in the same way as Mitch.
"Yeah? I guess I can't blame you for not wanting to hang around while that big lug tries to figure himself out," Lara said. "As for my sister, she used to flirt with my ex, and she went after more than one of my boyfriends. She's that kind of sister. That's why I love Noreen to bits. She's a straight shooter, honest as they come."
Rico was kind of shocked to hear Lara singing her praises. Noreen would be too considering how relentlessly Lara always needled her. "Can I quote you on that?" he asked her.
"Not on your life. You say I said anything nice about that skinny, little, coffee guzzling toothpick, and I'll call you a damn liar," Lara told him.
Rico laughed. "You're not fooling anyone. I don't know how I keep myself from yelling at you and Noreen to just get a room already."
"She should be so lucky," Lara said but then she grew serious again. "But as far as Stella is concerned, more than once she had me half convinced that something went on with a guy when not a thing happened. It's one of her tactics—make everyone believe the deal is already done. Don't fall for it. I bet she got nowhere with Mitch."
"I don't have a claim on Mitch. He can do whatever he wants," Rico said bitterly, but Lara looked skeptical.
She went over to sit with Gloria, who fed her a bite of her waffle. Lara was sure nothing happened, and Rico didn't exactly doubt her.
Maybe Mitch didn't do anything, but it wasn't really about that. That morning, Rico didn't see any sign that Mitch didn't like having Stella getting all domestic in his kitchen. He probably thought she looked just right all girly in that apron.
Rico had told Mitch he wanted him to kick her out. But what he really wanted was for Mitch to say, "I'm seeing someone, a guy who means a lot to me, and I think I'm falling for him hard."
Imagining Mitch saying those words, Rico wanted to laugh and cry. He was so stupid. Mitch wouldn't say that in a million years. Rico was the one falling hard and crashing into a pit of despair because he threw himself at that man.
"You OK?" Sam asked as he appeared next to him.
"Fine. Just being stupid," Rico told him and tried to wipe the gloom from his face.
"Incoming," Lara called out.
Rico looked toward the door and felt the floor shift under him. Mitch was coming in with Sammy who waved at Rico happily. Gloria squealed Sammy's name, and ran over to her while Mitch made his way over to the counter.
"You want me to be mean to him?" Sam whispered.
"You know how?" Rico asked him pointedly.
