sexy
but please don’t speak any more!”
“Go get changed for your date.”
“It’s not a date! Alex is coming, for heaven’s sake.” Sophia
stomped out of the store and up the stairs to her apartment.
“What’s all the yelling about?” Aldo asked as he walked in
the door.
“Ben Lathem asked Sophia and Alex to dinner,” she winked.
“With hardly any prodding from me.”
With a grin and a skip he kissed his wife on the cheek. “He’d
make an excellent stepfather for Alex. And not a bad son-in-law.”
9.
Ben Lathem was a confirmed bachelor. After he’d split with
Jill he made a conscious decision to remain single – unattached – alone. Yeah,
so marriage seemed to agree with his brothers, he’d told himself. Actually it
appeared to agree with all of his brothers but that meant nothing for him .
He wasn’t ready to settle down to the doldrums of monogamy. And becoming a
father? He’d decided that wasn’t for him either. And if anybody had ever asked,
he could say with complete honesty that he was happy with his choices.
But something happened at a little Italian restaurant, that
incidentally had the most delicious meatballs he’d ever tasted, when the owner
stopped by Ben’s table as he, Sophia and Alex were wolfing down dozens upon
dozens of the scrumptious little things, and said, “What a delightful family!
Thank you for joining us and I hope you are enjoying your meal.”
Alex wasn’t paying any attention to the older gentleman, as
he was too busy trying to out eat Ben. Placing his fork on the edge of his
plate, Ben looked at Alex and thought that perhaps it might be nice to think
about having a family…one day…far into the future. To have a son to take to
ball games and play video games with. A family to take vacations with and a
wife to make love to every night. His eyes traveled to Sophia, who looked
mortified, which instantly irritated him. Ben’s immediate reaction had been one
of pride – completely unwarranted pride. It left him bewildered and confused.
Confused as to why in this moment he’d thought about having a family and
bewildered because Sophia wasn’t interested in him. Her expression made that
painfully obvious. The whole thing just irritated him…to the point that he
couldn’t continue eating, which was another source of irritation because that
meant he would lose the bet to Alex, and Ben never liked to lose. He picked up
his fork and tried to put the comment, and his reaction to it, out of his mind.
With her embarrassment past, Sophia returned her attention
to the plate of spaghetti in front of her.
“How is it that your parents are Italian and you can’t eat
spaghetti?” Ben asked in frustration after watching her try to swirl the
noodles around her fork.
“I can eat spaghetti,” she scoffed, and lifted the fork to
her mouth as noodles dropped onto her plate leaving three or four strands at
her lips. “See?” she smirked as the sucked them into her mouth.
Ben’s stomach lurched at the innocent movement. He watched
her full pink lips latch on to the fork and then slowly ease the metal from her
mouth, leaving behind a tiny drop of marinara in the corner where her upper and
bottom lips met. And then she stuck out her tongue and licked the sauce away
and it was Ben’s turn to be mortified as he felt an erection forming under the
constraints of his jeans. He quickly looked away, cleared his throat, took a
drink of ice water and picked up a breadstick.
The waitress came by to see if they’d like some gelato for
dessert, which of course Alex did. Sophia and Ben graciously declined.
“Last of the wine?” Ben asked as he lifted the bottle of red
from the table.
“All yours,” she smiled.
He poured the last few drops into his glass and swallowed it
all in one gulp. He just might need another bottle.
As always the gentleman, Ben walked them to the door after
they climbed from the taxi and handed Sophia the takeout order of meatballs for
Gloria.
but please don’t speak any more!”
“Go get changed for your date.”
“It’s not a date! Alex is coming, for heaven’s sake.” Sophia
stomped out of the store and up the stairs to her apartment.
“What’s all the yelling about?” Aldo asked as he walked in
the door.
“Ben Lathem asked Sophia and Alex to dinner,” she winked.
“With hardly any prodding from me.”
With a grin and a skip he kissed his wife on the cheek. “He’d
make an excellent stepfather for Alex. And not a bad son-in-law.”
9.
Ben Lathem was a confirmed bachelor. After he’d split with
Jill he made a conscious decision to remain single – unattached – alone. Yeah,
so marriage seemed to agree with his brothers, he’d told himself. Actually it
appeared to agree with all of his brothers but that meant nothing for him .
He wasn’t ready to settle down to the doldrums of monogamy. And becoming a
father? He’d decided that wasn’t for him either. And if anybody had ever asked,
he could say with complete honesty that he was happy with his choices.
But something happened at a little Italian restaurant, that
incidentally had the most delicious meatballs he’d ever tasted, when the owner
stopped by Ben’s table as he, Sophia and Alex were wolfing down dozens upon
dozens of the scrumptious little things, and said, “What a delightful family!
Thank you for joining us and I hope you are enjoying your meal.”
Alex wasn’t paying any attention to the older gentleman, as
he was too busy trying to out eat Ben. Placing his fork on the edge of his
plate, Ben looked at Alex and thought that perhaps it might be nice to think
about having a family…one day…far into the future. To have a son to take to
ball games and play video games with. A family to take vacations with and a
wife to make love to every night. His eyes traveled to Sophia, who looked
mortified, which instantly irritated him. Ben’s immediate reaction had been one
of pride – completely unwarranted pride. It left him bewildered and confused.
Confused as to why in this moment he’d thought about having a family and
bewildered because Sophia wasn’t interested in him. Her expression made that
painfully obvious. The whole thing just irritated him…to the point that he
couldn’t continue eating, which was another source of irritation because that
meant he would lose the bet to Alex, and Ben never liked to lose. He picked up
his fork and tried to put the comment, and his reaction to it, out of his mind.
With her embarrassment past, Sophia returned her attention
to the plate of spaghetti in front of her.
“How is it that your parents are Italian and you can’t eat
spaghetti?” Ben asked in frustration after watching her try to swirl the
noodles around her fork.
“I can eat spaghetti,” she scoffed, and lifted the fork to
her mouth as noodles dropped onto her plate leaving three or four strands at
her lips. “See?” she smirked as the sucked them into her mouth.
Ben’s stomach lurched at the innocent movement. He watched
her full pink lips latch on to the fork and then slowly ease the metal from her
mouth, leaving behind a tiny drop of marinara in the corner where her upper and
bottom lips met. And then she stuck out her tongue and licked the sauce away
and it was Ben’s turn to be mortified as he felt an erection forming under the
constraints of his jeans. He quickly looked away, cleared his throat, took a
drink of ice water and picked up a breadstick.
The waitress came by to see if they’d like some gelato for
dessert, which of course Alex did. Sophia and Ben graciously declined.
“Last of the wine?” Ben asked as he lifted the bottle of red
from the table.
“All yours,” she smiled.
He poured the last few drops into his glass and swallowed it
all in one gulp. He just might need another bottle.
As always the gentleman, Ben walked them to the door after
they climbed from the taxi and handed Sophia the takeout order of meatballs for
Gloria.
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