Read Online On Any Given Sundae by Marilyn Brant - Free Book Online Page B

welcome. Sort of,” she said back.
    “Anything besides that on your mind?” he
asked her, hoping it might be something else good but fearing it
probably wasn’t.
    “No,” she answered quickly and, before he
could fish for more compliments, she slid into his car, sank into
the leather seats and angled herself away from him. Great. They’d
make a believable couple, all right, just not a couple still in the
throes of infatuation.
    He cracked his knuckles, revved up the engine
and played his part by pretending to ignore her, too. And, so,
onward to Mama’s for a second dinner they went. Two meals down.
Only twenty-eight to go.
    As promised, a huge pan of lasagna awaited
them. The aroma of oregano, basil and garlic greeted them at the
door like a butler, while the “Material Girl” sang cloyingly
through the speakers of Mama’s stereo. Home again.
    Mama was busy in the kitchen and the kids
were with Maria-Louisa in the basement again, but Tony ushered them
in, took the plate of cookies they brought, clapped him on the back
and smooched Elizabeth lightly on the cheek.
    “You look smashing tonight,” his brother told
Elizabeth, giving her the Male Eye-Scan (face, chest, legs,
chest).
    She grinned at Tony. Tony winked at her.
    “Knock it off,” Rob said to him. “You’re a
married man. You don’t get to ogle or wink or flirt.” At this,
Elizabeth turned her big, surprised eyes on him.
    “What?” he said to her. “You’re my
girlfriend, and my brother ought to be checking out his wife, and
his wife only . There are rules.”
    She and Tony made eye contact, and Rob heard
her whisper to Tony, “You know the truth, don’t you?”
    Tony reached over and took her hand, then he
kissed it gently. “You’re an amazing woman, Elizabeth, and my
brother is a world-class idiot.”
    She didn’t say anything to that, she merely
sighed.
    “What the hell are you talking about?” he
said to Tony, lowering his voice in case Mama snuck in on them.
    But it wasn’t his brother who answered him.
It was Elizabeth.
    “He knows w-we’re not really a couple,” she
whispered. “He’s sharp. He figured it out last night.”
    Panic gripped his throat. “When last
night?”
    “During dinner, would be my guess.” She
motioned to Tony with her palm.
    “Before, actually,” Tony said. “When we all
talked in the hallway.”
    She nodded. “And Maria-Louisa knows, too,
d-doesn’t she?”
    Tony shrugged. “Probably. We didn’t discuss
it.”
    “Liar,” Rob said. “You two discuss
everything.” Dammit .
    “Okay, fine, but you fooled the kids,” Tony
said, his voice taking on a hard, dangerous edge. “And, of course,
you sure bamboozled Mama. That’s gotta make you proud, big
brother.”
    “Well, hell, you know how she gets when—”
    “That’s neither here nor there,” Tony said.
“But, since Elizabeth was willing to play your game to help you, I
won’t snitch on you. Not this time. But you’ll owe me.”
    Rob may have missed Tony’s moment of
realization last night, but he didn’t miss the threatening note in
his brother’s tone tonight, nor could he avoid seeing the sadness
lingering in Elizabeth’s eyes as she looked away from him and
headed toward the dining room.
    He felt like the idiot his brother claimed he
was.
    The trampling of little feet thundered up the
stairs and beelined straight for the table. Jeez, did those kids
ever slow down? After a chorus of enthusiastic Hi’s and Hello’s to
and from Maria-Louisa and the kids, Mama marched into the room.
    “Oh, good . Our Elizabeth is here
again!” Mama held her tight, and “Frizzy Lizzy” embraced his mother
with a warmth she might have reserved for her own dear mom.
    And now he felt like guilt-ridden fool.
    “Roberto.” Mama kissed him. “How was your day
at the shop? You want to follow in your Uncle Pauly’s footsteps
now? Work at Tutti-Frutti?” Hopeful, futile questions.
    “I like what I do in Chicago, Mama. And,
besides, Siegfried and