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“Ah… you picking up what I’m putting down?” he asked, laughing again.
“Uncle Christopher!” Leo bounded down the stairs just as we reached the front door.
As was his usual way, he flung himself at Christopher, who went stumbling backward. I did too. But for a very different reason. It occurred to me, for the first time, that my secret affected Leo too. My son. He loved Christopher like a… well, a father. Losing him would end my boy’s world, there was no doubt about that. I suddenly felt sick to my stomach, the walls closing in on me like I was trapped at the bottom of a well instead of standing in a huge mansion.
What good was all my money and power when I could do this to people I loved? Christopher, Leo…
What if Scarlett was right, after all? I was a monster.
“Don’t have too much fun without me.” I looked down to find Leo holding on to my leg.
I ruffled his hair. “I never have fun without you, son.”
Christopher did one of his fake coughs, spluttering “Lies!” in between each one.
His act brought Leo into a fit of laughter. They had such a great relationship. It reminded me of how we were as kids.
“Hey, if you’re having a boy, then that means—”
“Oh, it’s a done deal, man,” Christopher said. “Our kids are best friends for life no matter what crawls out of her.”
We laughed even harder once we saw the way Leo scrunched up his face.
“Crawls out of what?” he asked, the disgust showing on his face.
“I think it’s time for a shower and bed,” I said, scooping him up and placing him back on the stairs. “Get up there.Vamos.”
“But, Papa,” Leo whined.
Christopher walked up to us, pushing between me and Leo to talk to him. “Come on, little guy. You know the deal.”
I frowned at them, my gaze shifting from Christopher to Leo and back again. “What deal?”
“Uncle Chris gives me a dollar for every shower,” Leo replied brightly and scampered upstairs without further argument.
I snorted with laughter. “A dollar?”
“Yeah, yeah, give me a break,” Christopher said, making his way outside. “It’ll work for as long as he’s oblivious to how rich he actually is.”
***
At least Christopher chose a better bar than the last time, and smooth jazz filtered out to the sidewalk as we got out of the cab. I could tell that it was nice enough that I wouldn’t be out of place in my suit, but neither would he in his “good” jeans and plaid button-down shirt.
I looked up and down the street in front of the bar and said, “Wow, I don’t see any biker gangs. Are you sure we’re in the right place?”
“Here’s the right place.” Christopher held up his closed fist and ran his fingers over his knuckles. “Your face, right here.”
I burst out laughing, and soon he joined me, punching my arm playfully as we walked in. It had taken some doing, but I was starting to feel the familiar ease I felt when hanging out with him. It was just his way. I could forget about everything if I let myself. Well, almost everything. As soon as I became aware of how I was relaxing with him, my immediate next thought went to what it would feel like if I lost that.
“Two tequilas,” I called out once we took our seats at the bar.
“Whoa, easy tiger,” Christopher chuckled. “The night’s still young.”
“We always start this way,” I said. “Don’t tell me you’re going soft, brother.”
The bartender poured our shots, and I slipped him a fifty. He swiped it up and gave me a nod, which I guessed was supposed to ask me about change. I shook my head, and he threw me a double thumbs up.
“Next round’s on me,” Christopher held up his shot glass. “But I should warn you, I forgot my wallet at home, so the next round’s gotta be tap water.”
