Aftermath (5 page)

Selange sat
regally
and he switched gears to check her out
.
The woman made him proud.
She got it, didn’t she? It’s
wh
at you
think about
yourself –and she projected the air of a Queen.

He got
busted
staring and a
twinkle of mutual
attraction
softened
the hazel irises
. A
slow seductive smile transformed the glossy lips
and he
winked. It was his
unspoken
promise
to
fuck her
good
tonight.

A
hand suddenly rest atop his
shoulder
and h
e
clasped it
recognizing the unadorned fingers of his mother.
“Thanks for coming mama.”

“Of course I
’
m here.”

Alfonzo released her hand
as he turned
to greet Domingo and his wife.
“You, too primo and Teresa, I missed your asses.”

“
Silencio
,
not in here
, hijo!” His mother scolded
.

“
Si
,
mama
,
lo
siento
.”
He answered apologetically then
twis
ted
around. He was
a
n obedient
child,
once more.

Soon, the funeral
began a
nd throughout the service, Alfonzo peered
at his kids and
Selange. He noticed sh
e grimaced quite a bit
and he
placed
a
hand atop her
s
and
received
a thin
smile
.
She slid
her fingers through his
and
s
queeze
d
really tight
. And, that’s how they comforted each other.
Conjoined s
ouls, fingers interlocked, both staring beyond the
lavish coffin
adorned with the black and gold Giacanti crest to the decorative tiles
in the
pattern of the sun.
They reflected on the past and
how
their
t
raged
ies
intertwined. Although, it was
another sad day in their
lives, somewhere in the burnt ruins love blossomed and like today,
in the aftermath
, they drew strength from each other
.
The heaviness lifted from Alfonzo’s chest and for the second time since she arrived, he saw light
appear from the dark
.

CHAPTER ONE

“How’s
your
arm?” Alfonzo
ask
ed
Selange
as the security outfitted Alfa Romeo limo rolled down the highway.

Their vehicle was
fifth in a fleet of similar bullet resistant cars
en route to
Bianca’s
home
.
It was done. The funeral was over and the final farewell to his uncle
had taken him
to the cemetery where his fath
er
rested,
not far from their ancestor
,
a King.

Sal and Al
lie were fast
asleep on the opposi
ng
seat
with
his
mother
. T
his was the
couple’s first
quiet moment
during an emotionally draining
afternoon
.

Alfonzo
was anxious to get
the
family home, but Sophie insisted they stay a few days.
When Sophie insisted, he never had a chance. She implored with those piercing eyes and said it’s her excuse to cook for a large family and a
h
–how in the world could he refuse?

Selange shifted in
the
seat a
nd his attention focused on her,
again
. “You never answered my question. Are you okay?”

“It’s hurting, but it’s manageable.”
She said. The truth is, she found it useless complaining. She could handle the pain. Thankfully it wasn’t worse.

He loosened his tie and kicked
out of
his shoes
,
then
gripp
ed
her waist
. He stretched out his limbs on the
plush seat
and slid her
between his legs
. She reclined
against his torso
.
Now they were
comfortable for the
long
drive back to Palermo.

Alfonzo stroked her
uninjured
arm, “It was hard wasn’t it?”
         “What do you mean?”

“The funeral.”

“Oh.” She put a hand over his wrist as it settled on her stomach and sighed, “It was hard
on
both
of us
.”

He kissed the top of her hair then rest his
chin there.
“You made
it
easier by bringing
back-up.
That mean
t
a lot to me babe, it really did.”

“
You
mean a lot to me.”

His hand caressed her stomach. The silky cotton fabric
of her dress
form
ed
a barrier between his fingers and her flesh. Holding
Selange during the ride and watching the landscape as it rushed by had a soothing effect.
He
wanted
more quiet
moments with
her.
The time spent apart dug a wide chasm of regret in his heart. He missed the birth of the twins and months of paternal bonding. There was a lot to make up for.
His eyes rested on her ring-less hand and his brow furrowed. When had she removed her wedding ring, he wondered? Then he shook
the rocks out
of his head. They were
divorced;
of course she took it off. The fucked-up thing about it is he still wore his. Subconsciously, he knew their hearts were interchangeable and he could never free himself
nor did he want to.

“When we get home,
we’re dating.
”

Selange laughed. Did she hear him right, dat
ing
, since when did Alfonzo c
ourt anybody? Matter-of fact, she recalled taking
him
on several dates.
“You mean hook-up, right?”

“No, I said
go out on
date
s
.” He
responded in a serious tone.
P
rior to
Sal,
they’d hung-out, but what he had in mind was old-fashioned courting. Before he married her a second time, he would do
it
right
, s
weep her off her feet, so when he got down on one knee and proposed, she’d know this time it was for keeps.

“
Oh, okay.
We can do that
.”

“Good,
it’s exactly what I expected to hear.
”

She
swiveled her head to view his handsome face,
“O
h really
,
I
believe I
hear
the arrogance
returning. Maybe, I
need
to rethink my answer for a few days
then get back to you with a decision.
”

He
slowly
stroked his chin in contemplation
,
“Ah man, so you’ll do me like that,
give me lessons on humility and
make
me
beg,
too. Is that how it is now
?”

She flashed th
at
dazzling smile and a dimple formed
near
the corner of her mouth, “Beg
,
”
s
he repositioned
on
top
of
him
.
“Honey you will never have to beg me for anything.”

Selange’s
lips closed over his and
a smirk formed as he ran his
tongue over
the pearly white
teeth then made her pay for teas
ing
by giving her no room to breathe when he sucked
firmly on
her small tongue
and their oral juices mingled.

“Ummmm,” he moaned while he groped her body and his hands went
boldly up the hem of her dress
, rubbing and
squeez
ing her
plush
ass
.

Her body pushed hard on his groin and he sucked her, kneading her ass and forgetting where he was until he heard his mother clear her throat loudly.

Geez, he thought she slept!

She
did it again. “
Um-hum!”
This was her official
announcement
to end t
he
raunchy display,
ahora
!

Alfonzo
moaned and
cursed
her
crappy timing
.
R
eluctan
tly
he
detached from Selange’s moist lips
and
gave
her
bottom
a
solid spank
then
slid forward
clutching her in his
arms and grinned at his mother’s embarrassment, “
¿
Qué
?
”

She scoffed
and
looked away.

Blood
rac
ed through his vessels
from the intimate encounter
and t
he bulge pushing
forcefully
against his slacks was evidence of his desire. He held Selange firmly on his lap
and whispered in her ear, “Don’t move yet babe, you have me standing at attention.”

She cover
ed
her mouth to stifle
a laugh
and his mother tossed the pair a dirty look.

Alfonzo peeked from around Selange
’s head
w
ith
an
innocent
expression
,
“What
mama, what did
I do
, eh
?”

“You two
need
a room
. Aye
-ya-yai
!”

CHAPTER TWO

Maria’s feet
came to a
halt at the edge of the veranda
. Her hands held the smooth marble and she
leaned
forward
on the balustrade inhaling the beauty of the property.
Below, s
hadow
y figures
walked the perimeter
and a futile sigh escaped in a breath.

T
he voices drifting outdoors carried her
back
more than thirty years
ago
when she
first
laid eyes
on
Sicily’s lush soil seeking opportunity and excited at the prospect of starting a new life. So many things changed since then
. T
he girl who saw opportunity in this wondrous landscape
only saw
regret
as a woman
. She fled in
shame
and
withh
e
ld
the truth from
Alfonzo
about his father
. The
lie
tore at her heart
because
Alfonzo never had
an opportunity to
know
Luzo
or experience his love because
her
selfishness prevented
it.