Full House (4 page)

Maria’s gaze went from Marco to Moody and back again. She opened the door further and stepped back.

Moody walked into the bedroom and deposited Marco gently on the bed. Marco was surprised when Moody sat cross-legged on the floor beside the bed, obviously trying to make himself smaller.

Moody pulled out a small pad of paper. “Can you tell me what you saw, honey?”

Maria climbed up on the bed to hide behind her brother. Marco pulled her around to sit beside him and wrapped an arm around her. “It’s okay. He’s trying to help.”

“I heard yelling,” she began. “I went to the door and saw Eddy punch Marco. He yelled some more about money and then he slapped Marco.”

Moody made several notes on his pad of paper. “That’s all I need.” He smiled at Maria. “You did good, honey.”

Marco kissed the top of Maria’s head. “Thanks. I’ll call you in for lunch as soon as I get it fixed.”

Maria nodded, and Marco started to slide off the bed. Once again Moody picked him up.

“Seriously, dude, I can walk.”

Moody scowled. “Seriously,
dude
, it’s easier this way.”

Maria giggled, which surprised them both. Marco studied his little sister. “You find this funny?”

Maria nodded, giggling again. “You look so tiny.”

Now it was Marco’s turn to scowl. “I’m not tiny. Moody’s just a giant.”

Moody carried Marco in and set him on the couch. Angelo was standing beside the front door.

“I think I’ll run out and get stuff for lunch.”

Marco studied his nervous friend. “You don’t have to do that. I’m well enough to stand at the stove and make a box of mac and cheese and boil a hotdog.”

Angelo shook his head. “You are not and you know it. Besides, you called us over here at lunchtime, and I’m starving. It’ll just be easier to eat if I run out and get some stuff.”

Marco narrowed his eyes at Angelo. He knew what his friend was up to. Evidently Angelo had taken a look around his bare kitchen while he’d been in the bedroom. Still, his sister needed to eat and despite his protests, he was in no condition to cook it for her.

“I’d appreciate that.” It took more strength than he thought he had to accept the charity he knew was being offered. Despite everything, he’d never taken a penny from the state to help raise his siblings. He’d always prided himself on being able to handle his home life on his own, but it seemed the older the boys got, the more money seemed to be needed.

At least Bruno had finally gotten a job a few days earlier. In the past, Marco had told both brothers that their schoolwork came first and as long as they put in the time and energy required to get good grades, he’d leave them alone about jobs. But when Bruno had come to him about buying a class ring, Marco had put his foot down. He’d informed his brother a part-time job might be in order if he wanted such extravagances.

Bruno hadn’t argued. He’d gone out two days later and found a job as a stock boy a couple of afternoons a week.

“Is there anything special you’re hungry for?” Angelo asked, interrupting Marco’s thoughts.

“Whatever you get will be fine. We’re not picky eaters in this house.” Whining at the back door got his attention. “Can I ask you for another favour before you go?”

“Sure,” Angelo answered.

“Would you set out a bowl of food for Rufus? I think Nicky forgot again. He’s usually inside, but I’ve had trouble keeping him off my leg.”

Moody turned to Angelo and gave him a kiss. “I’ll do it while you get lunch.”

Angelo kissed his partner back before heading out the front door.

“Where’s the food?” Moody asked.

“There should still be some in the metal can next to the backdoor. His bowl should be on top. He might need some fresh water in his bowl outside, too.”

Moody disappeared into the kitchen. Marco settled back on the sofa. He touched his fingertips to his lip, feeling the drying blood. How many split lips had he suffered over the years?

“Jesus Christ!” Moody shouted.

Marco grinned. “I see you’ve met Rufus.”

Moody came back into the room. “He nearly knocked me over trying to get at his food.”

Marco gestured to his knee. “How do you think this happened?”

“You need to get that dog into some kind of training class,” Moody remarked, taking a seat next to the couch.

“I would if I could afford it. He’s really not so bad. I think he makes the kids feel safer knowing he’s here at night.”

Moody nodded. “From the sounds of it, they need as much of that as they can get.”

“Amen.”

Chapter Three

It was another three days before Marco was well enough to meet Kent in his office. He’d hated to call in sick. It was something he’d rarely done in his years of employment, but it couldn’t be helped.

After several days spent on the couch, he was finally able to put enough weight on his knee to walk. He glanced at himself in the rear view mirror. Unfortunately his face looked worse than right after the mini-beating he’d received from Eddy.

He climbed out of his pickup and made his way into the Baker Construction offices. How many times had he gone over the planned meeting in his mind? Despite going through a hundred scenarios, Marco couldn’t see any way around it. He was going to have to come clean with Kent. It was definitely something he wasn’t looking forward to.

Thankfully, at seven in the morning, the offices were still fairly empty. He knocked on the wall outside Kent’s open office door.

Kent
glanced up from a pile of papers. “Come…Fuck! What the hell happened? Your little boy toy get rough with you after I left Saturday night?”

And so it begins.
Marco made his way into Kent’s office and sat in the chair in front of his desk. “No. I had a run-in with my dad on Sunday,” he admitted, refusing to look at Kent.

Complete silence met his explanation. He finally glanced up. Kent’s face had gone red, his meaty hand fisted on top of his papers.

“I hope you filed charges,” Kent ground out between clenched jaws.

“Kind of. I told Moody about it. He took a couple of pictures.”

“Moody? So he’s your go-to guy now?” Kent scoffed.

“He’s a friend. I wasn’t sure what else to do.” Marco shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “There were extenuating circumstances. I needed some answers from someone in law enforcement.”

“What kind of circumstances? A man beats the shit out of you, you press charges. It should’ve been as simple as that.”

Marco touched the healing cut on his lip with the tip of his tongue. “There are things about me you don’t know.”

Kent
’s body seemed to relax enough to lean back in the wide leather desk chair. “You talking about your age, because I already knew about that.”

Shocked, Marco leant forward, bracing his hands on the arms of the chair. “You knew about that? How?”

“I saw you reading a birthday card on your seventeenth birthday,” Kent stated. His tone was matter-of-fact, but Marco could sense some underlying hurt.

“I needed the job.”

“I guess I figured that out. Otherwise I would’ve fired your ass on the spot.”

Marco knew it was time. “I needed the job because I was trying to raise my two kid brothers and my little sister. That was Bruno who answered the door Saturday night.”

“What?” Kent burst out of his chair and stalked around the desk. “What the hell are you talking about? I’ve never even heard you mention your family, now, suddenly, I learn you’ve got an asshole for a father and three kids you’ve been taking care of? When did this happen?”

“Mom left nine years ago, shortly after Maria was born. Guess she got tired of being a punching bag for the old man.” Marco shrugged. He knew if he didn’t get it all out within the next few minutes he’d chicken out.

“Eddy, my dad, was too busy getting drunk to actually hold down a job. I knew if I went to the authorities, they’d split us up. So I dropped out of school and did what I had to do. Once I turned eighteen, I kicked Eddy’s worthless ass out. I’ve been doing it on my own ever since.”

Kent
’s face was back to the reddish purple colour it had been several minutes earlier. He started to say something, but stopped. He held up his hands. “Give me a moment. I’ll be right back.”

* * * *

Once inside the small restroom, Kent locked the door. With his back to the cool tiles, he slid down the wall to land on his ass.

His anger was threatening to overwhelm him and he knew it. If he hadn’t left his office, he knew he would’ve started to yell. Marco wasn’t the person he was mad at though, so there was no reason to take his anger out on the younger man.

As he sat on the floor with his head resting in his hands, he tried to figure out just who he should be angry with. Marco’s dad was an easy option. Never would he have believed Marco would let anyone, let alone his own father, hit him.

Which brought Kent right back to himself. He should’ve known. He should’ve seen it before now. Had he been so blinded where Marco was concerned? For so long, he’d searched for reasons why Marco wasn’t ready for a relationship, always choosing to think the worst of the good-looking younger man.

“Hey,” Marco called through the restroom door. “Am I fired?”

“Hang on,” Kent answered back. He rubbed at his eyes and stood. After several deep breaths, he unlocked the door, and opened it to gaze down into the bruised face of the man who’d held his heart for years.

He swallowed around the lump in his throat. “Of course I’m not going to fire you.” Kent swallowed again, trying to keep his tears at bay. What kind of man did Marco think he was?

“Thanks.”

Kent
checked his watch. “Why don’t we go get breakfast? We’ve got some talking to do, and I’m not sure this is the place.”

Marco’s fingers brushed over the bruise on his jaw. “I’m not sure I’m ready to go out in public yet. I thought I could finish up the job down south while I healed.”

It took every ounce of Kent’s strength not to reach out and replace Marco’s fingers with his own. “I know a place where no one will stare.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

* * * *

Marco followed Kent in his truck. He still didn’t know where they were going, but he was so shocked his boss was being nice to him he no longer cared. His head was still spinning over the events in Kent’s office. He’d actually spilled his guts and the sky hadn’t fallen down around him.

Instead, Kent seemed…nicer. Was it pity that fuelled his newfound concern?

Marco sighed. If it was pity Kent wanted to give, he was wasting his time. The main reason Marco had never opened up to his boss about his home life was because pity wasn’t what he yearned for from the man.

He continued to follow the bright red pickup down one side street after another until it pulled into a bricked, circular driveway. Marco peered through the windshield at the large brick and clapboard modern house in the Colonial style.

The first thing that struck him was how un-Kent-like the structure was. He would have never pictured his boss in such a traditional house.

Marco pulled his rusted white truck behind Kent’s new one and shut off the engine. He was still a little stunned. Why would Kent bring him here?

Before he could open his door, Kent was there to do it for him. “Hope you don’t mind. I thought I’d throw a couple omelettes together.”

“No. That’s fine.” It sure as hell beat the small bowl of store brand corn flakes he’d had earlier.

Kent
reached in and practically lifted Marco from the cab. “Do you need help getting inside? The front steps might be hard for you.”

Marco had been so focused on the size of the house, and the big white columns, he hadn’t even noticed the semi-circular brick staircase that let up to the front door. “Jesus, Kent. I had no idea you lived in a place like this.”

His gaze went to the brickwork. He studied the workmanship with a critical eye, pleased in the knowledge he could’ve done a better job. As he continued to study the house, he spotted two separate chimneys. “How many fireplaces you got in this thing?”

Kent
wrapped a supporting hand around Marco’s waist and led him to the stairs. “Four. Two downstairs and two up.”

Marco’s jaw dropped. “Seriously?”

Kent
shrugged as he helped Marco up the steps. “I always wanted one growing up. With the weather the way it is in San Francisco, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to have what I wanted.”

Marco shook his head. He still couldn’t put the man beside him and the house looming over him together. It seemed completely out of character. He began to wonder how well he really knew Kent.

Kent
unlocked one of the big double doors and punched a code into the keypad just inside. “Hang on. I’ve got something that might help.”