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“I can’t stand her,” Rocca said, joining me in the entertainment room. “She’s such a bitch.”
“Who is she?” Fuck. I was stupid for asking questions. What did I hope to accomplish doing so?
“Her name is Brooke,” Rocca replied. “She only sees my dad because he has money. She’s a gold digger.”
Brooke. Yeah, she looked like a Brooke or a Heather or an Amber. A daddy’s girl who was raised to find a man with money, fuck education. I might be part of the preppy circle and a family with money, or well, used to be, but I also knew the value of an education, unlike the country club whores. “Well, at least she has aspirations.”
“Are you sure you don’t like my dad?” Rocca gave me a look. No matter what, I couldn't tell her the truth. I also knew if Miceli even considered marrying Brooke, Rocca would be sent away. Seen it too many times throughout my life while away at school.
“Nope. You have nothing to worry about from me.” I flipped on the television. “Pizza should be here soon. I even got us chocolate cake.” After the day I had, I was going to need it. I suppose I could drown my sorrows in cake and alcohol. Obviously, the alcohol would have to wait until after Rocca was in bed.
“I like chocolate cake. Can I have a piece before I eat my pizza?” She looked at me expectantly with huge amber eyes. “Please.”
You know what? Fuck it. Yes, she could have cake before dinner. I didn’t give a shit. I was here to sulk, not be a rules miser. “Sure. I might join you on that too.”
“Awesome,” she giggled, wiggling in her seat. “I’ll go get the movie. You should get our drinks.”
“Can do.” While she ran to her room, I went to the kitchen. Since I let Ms. Petry know of our plans, she’d taken the night off, leaving the house utterly quiet and empty. I wouldn’t allow myself to dwell on what I was feeling. Instead, I’d give over to the morose feelings later, when I was alone, in my bed.
“Food’s here,” Robbie said, entering through the back door. “You sure ordered enough to feed a small army.”
He was right. Besides the three boxes of pizzas, there were two bags of sandwiches and a bag with the salads. I went overboard, but it was for a good cause. “Well, a pie for you, some dessert, a salad, and a sandwich.” I shrugged, as though it were no big deal. “Can’t be the only one having a good night.” I gave him a once over. If Miceli could move on, so could I. With Robbie. For a night. “Want to hang out when you’re done with work?”
He blinked. “Uh...”
“We could have a drink. Talk. Get to know each other.” I shrugged. “I feel like I’ve had little adult interaction lately, if you know what I’m saying.”
“Mr. Daidone will be back in a few hours,” he replied. “I’m not sure if—”
“Do you always do what he says?” I quirked a brow. “It’s only for a couple of hours when you’re off duty.”
“Well...” Robbie nodded. “Sure. Okay. That would be nice. Thanks, Collins.”
“No, thank you.” After making sure he had enough for all the guards on duty, I called Kyle and let him know his food was ready. Rocca had pulled up one of the island stools and was looking through the bags to see what all I ordered. “So, what movie are we going to watch tonight?”
“Well, I kind of was meh, with my movies, they’re all pretty childish, so I thought we could watch To All the Boys I Loved Before?”
I’d seen that one before and didn’t see the harm in second-hand embarrassment. “I like that movie.” Hooking my thumb toward the entertainment room, I grinned. “Should we eat in there?”
“I’ve never been allowed to do that before,” Rocca murmured. “Won’t we get in trouble?”
“There’s no one here to tell us no. Just us girls, a movie and food.” I grinned. “Come on, Rocca, be bad with me for one night. We won’t make a mess.” I started for the couch, knowing there was no way she wouldn’t join me.
She considered my invitation for a moment, then followed. “Okay! What can I carry?”
“Dessert and napkins. I’ll get the pizza and drinks for us. Forks should be in the bag with our cake.”
Rocca’s laughter echoed through the house as she hurried into the entertainment room. Though she might be twelve, she still held onto her childhood, no matter bad it’d gotten, embracing her happiness.
Perhaps I could take a lesson or two from her.
